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At the top of the earth’s crust are cavities that connect to the surface. These are caves, they consist of a complex system of passages and halls. Speleologists are engaged in the study of caves. There are several types, but karst ones are the most common. They are the longest and deepest. This type of cave is formed when water dissolves some rocks. Therefore, they are formed where deposits of soluble rocks are located.
The longest cave in the world is located in the USA. Many caves have water: streams, rivers, lakes and even waterfalls. Most of them have air, and it is breathable. Some have guided tours.
We present you 10 longest caves in the world: a list of natural underground passages of the globe that amaze with their beauty.
10 Khyollah, 201 946 m
In the northern spurs of the Glarn Alps, in Switzerland, is the longest cave in Europe. This is a cave Hello. Its depth is also impressive, it is 939 m.
The cave was discovered in 1875. She has two entrances. The second, upper entrance was opened not so long ago, in 1980. The lower part of the cave is accessible to visitors. In summer, there are strong floods, so a significant part of the tunnels remains under water.
9. Lechugilya, 222 572 m
In the Guadalupe mountain range, in the United States, more precisely in New Mexico, there is the Carlsbad Caverns National Park. There you can see not only one of the longest, but also the deepest caves in the United States. This Lechuguilla. Until 1986, this cave was called Misery Hole (“hole of misery“). Once it was a small well, the depth of which did not exceed 25 m. Going down into it, one could get into the system of passages, which stretched for 120 m.
In 1984, speleologists received permission to excavate, and two years later a new part of the cave was discovered. Now it is also called as the canyon on which the entrance is located. It received this name due to the species of agave common here – Agave lechuguilla.
This cave is unique, distinguished by a variety of crystalline mineral deposits. Some of them amaze the imagination, for example, giant plaster “chandeliers” up to 6 m in size.
You can learn more about the cave by watching the BBC documentary from the Planet Earth series, in the 4th episode of the Caves, Lechuguilla is also mentioned.
8. Gua Air Jernih, 227 m
In the mountain range of Kalimantan, in Malaysia, there is a cave Gua Air Jernih. It was discovered in 1978 by English cavers. It has many entrances, you can get to the main one by boat along the river.
This is a multi-storey cave system located in limestone. It is considered the longest in Asia. In total, there are 5 levels, on the lower of which a cave river flows.
7. Wind, 237 716 m
In the Black Hills, in the USA, in South Dakota, you can admire the cave Wind. It has been known since 1881, formed in limestone under the influence of thermal waters. This is a voluminous labyrinth, in which there are many galleries. Wind Cave is rich in minerals.
Its natural entrance is small in diameter, only 0,35 m. In order for tourists to visit the cave, an additional shaft was cut. Now everyone can visit it by descending into the depths of the cave in an elevator. Excursions are constantly organized here.
But those who would like to take a walk through its tunnel should take warm clothes, because. a cold wind always blows here. Even the title wind cave can be translated as “Wind Cave“. It is thanks to the wind that unique calcite deposits have formed here, which are woven into incredibly beautiful patterns. In 1903, the territory of the cave became a national park.
6. Shuanghe, 238 m
In the Suiyang mountain range, located in China, in the province of Guizhou, there is an extended cave system – Shuanghedong. Her research has been ongoing since 1987. During this time, more than 20 expeditions from various countries, including Japan, France and, of course, China, have visited here.
The cave appeared in gypsum and dolomites. There are at least three rivers flowing here, which form waterfalls and lakes. They have fish and shrimp. Some of the fish weigh more than a kilogram. In the cave you can meet salamanders, frogs of various insects, including spiders, as well as bats.
5. Optimistic, 257 m
In the mountain range of Podolia, which is located on the territory of Ukraine, you can visit a cave with an interesting name “optimistic“. This is one of the longest gypsum caves in the world. Until now, it has not been fully studied.
The cave was opened in 1966. She was discovered by accident. In 1965, speleologists from the Cyclops club explored the Wind Cave, located near the village of Korolovka. They drew attention to the stream going underground. Speleologists returned to this place a year later, examined 400 m of the cave. Further study of it showed that this is one of the longest known caves.
The name “Optimistic” arose because fellow cavers, skeptical, called them optimists. After that, there were more than 200 expeditions here. In the cave you can admire the stalactites, helictites. Its passages lie at a depth of approximately 20 m.
4. Ox-Bel-Ha, 270 200 m
In the Tulum massif, which is located in the expanses of Mexico, in the north of the Yucatan Peninsula, there is a cave Aux Bel Ha. Its name translates as “Three ways of water“. This is a huge underwater cave system, belongs to the karst. It was opened in 1996.
The peculiarity of this cave is a huge number of entrances, at least 140. Until now, it has not been fully explored, but more than 80 branches have already been discovered. Getting into it is not so easy, because. all passages of Ox Bel Ha are flooded, and some underground currents connect to the Caribbean Sea.
Only divers can explore it. These underground currents have a huge impact on flora and fauna, thanks to which exotic plants can be found here.
3. Jewel, 310 732 m
In the Black Hills, located in the United States, in South Dakota, you can see a karst cave Jewel, or, as it is also called, Jewel. It has only one natural entrance. There are strong winds here, the speed of which reaches 15 m/s. All galleries of the cave are covered with a layer of calcite, the thickness of which reaches 17 cm. Because of this, it has an unusual appearance.
It was discovered in 1900, and 8 years after the discovery, it became a national monument. Researchers Albert and Franck Michaud became interested in where the howling wind came from and discovered a small hole in the canyon.
Despite the fact that it was discovered a long time ago, its large-scale study began relatively recently. If you wish, you can go down into it and inspect everything on your own, because. excursions are organized here. An artificial entrance was made for visitors, and part of its galleries and passages were equipped with bridges.
2. Sak-Aktun, 346 740 m
In the mountains of Tulum, in Mexico, there is an incredibly huge cave Save Aktun. It is almost completely flooded with water. The cave system is located in the north of the Yucatan Peninsula. It was not easy to prove that she was of such huge size.
Other cave systems were explored, and over time it turned out that they all connected with Sak-Aktun, which became one of the longest caves in the world. Its name translates as “white cave».
It is a fascinating sight: clear water in which catfish and piranhas swim, surrounded by unusual stalactites. There are also many huge Goliath spiders and bats. There is a special tourist route for those who would like to see it all with their own eyes.
1. Mamontova, 651 784 m
The longest cave is located in the Appalachian massif, in the USA, it is called “Mamontova”, refers to karst. It was formed in a layer of limestone. Until now, it has not been finally explored, only 587 km were examined, where about 20 large halls and the same number of deep mines were found.
It’s called that because in English, the word mammoth can also be translated as “great“. It is because of its size that it got its name.
The cave was discovered in 1797, but even before that moment there were people in it, Indian mummies were found there. It has a rich history, for several centuries it has changed several owners, and in 1941 a national park was created here.