'Ghost city'

British scientists were confused after learning that a city in the misty place appeared on Google Maps and online data services, but never existed.

Ormskirk city center, town near Argleton on Google Maps.Photo: ormskirkoccasionalsingers.org.

Telegraph said, on the Google Maps software, the city of Argleton is located in the middle of the fields, near the highway M58 and south of Ormskirk. The software considers it a real city in the region with the postal code L39.

If you look for the name "Argleton" online, people will find many ads for people recruitment, home sales and dating in "Argleton city", as well as websites that help people find the nearest church, where to run. The most ideal set. Those companies, people and even services actually existed, but only in the area with the postal code L39, not in the "Argleton" city.

Roy Bayfield, president of a marketing company in Ormskirk city, found an address "in the middle of Argleton city" so he went there to investigate. The results show that this address does not exist. On Google Maps, Bayfield's company is close to a university in Argleton city.

"Argleton is located between Aughton and Aughton Park on Google Maps. But when I arrived, it was just empty fields , " Bayfield said.

Location of "Argleton city" on Google Maps.Photo: Telegraph.

Google and the data provider for the Google Maps software cannot explain the mystery. They are investigating.

Some argue that the data provider deliberately put Argleton's name in Google Maps to trap companies that intentionally violate copyright. Online map companies often fill out fake street names to trap unauthorized copying.

"If someone deliberately copied unauthorized maps, the supplier company would point out fake street names to prove illegal behavior , " said Joe Moran, a map expert at John Moores University (UK). , explain.

Tele Atlas, the company that provides data for Google Maps and is based in the Netherlands, announced that they will remove Argleton's name from the map. A spokesman for the company said: "Such errors are not common, but I do not understand why such an error appears in our data."