Tales of the Loch Ness Monster have floated around the world for centuries.

Described as a large aquatic animal or a plesiosaur-like creature, the Loch Ness Monster (also known as "Nessie") has been the subject of numerous amateur and scientific investigations over the years in an attempt to uncover the truth. Nessie is said to have a long neck with a dinosaur-like head, a humped back, flippers and reptilian dark gray skin; her estimated length is anywhere between fifteen and forty feet, with a weight of up to 2,500 pounds.

Loch Ness is situated in northern Scotland, near the town of Inverness, and is considered one of the country's largest lakes (or "lochs"), albeit smaller than it's biggest, Loch Lomond. At twenty-four miles long and one mile at its widest point and up to one thousand feet deep, Loch Ness is part of the Great Glen fault that divides the Highlands from Fort William to Inverness, Scotland. Loch Ness empties into the River Ness, which in turn flows into the North Sea.