'Eye' island photos go viral
published : 10 Jun 2026 at 08:03
writer: Gary Boyle
ORIGINAL SOURCE/WRITER: Pongpat Wongyala
Local authorities and experts have conducted a drone survey of a mysterious circular island known as "The Eye" in Pathum Thani after images of the site went viral on social media.
Prinya Thaewanarumitkul, a law professor at Thammasat University, posted aerial footage of the formation on his Facebook page.
Mr Prinya suggested the phenomenon may have formed naturally following the 2011 floods. He described it as a floating mass of aquatic vegetation that slowly rotates and rubs against the shoreline, gradually forming a nearly perfect circle resembling Argentina's famous floating island, El Ojo.
Following the online attention, local officials and community leaders inspected the site, which sits on privately owned land.
Drone footage revealed the pond covers more than 12 rai.
On the eastern side of the Chao Phraya River, about two kilometres southeast of Pathum Thani Bridge 1, the circular island measures roughly 100-120 metres in diameter.
Authorities are now coordinating with the landowner to see if the site could be opened to visitors.
Vocabulary
- aerial: in the air; done in the air - ซึ่งอยู่ในอากาศ
- coordinate: to organise the different parts of a job or plan so that the people involved work together effectively - ประสานงานกัน
- drone (noun): an aircraft (or ship) without a pilot, controlled from the ground - เครื่องบินไร้คนขับที่ควบคุมด้วยวิทยุทางไกล
- mass: a large amount of something - ปริมาณมาก
- phenomenon (noun): a fact or an event in nature or society, especially one that is not fully understood - ปรากฏการณ์
- rotate: moving in a circle around a fixed central point, or to move something in this way - การหมุน
- vegetation: plants -
- viral: (of a video, photo, story, etc.) spread across the internet very quickly (like a virus spreading a disease) as people share it with their friends or the news media reports on it - แพร่กระจายผ่านทางอินเทอร์เน็ตอย่างรวดเร็ว
