researcher have found a dispirited hole they say is the deep in the world — and they ’ve yet to retrieve where it bottoms out . The geological formation is the Taam Ja ’ Blue Hole in Mexico ’s Chetumal Bay , and it has so far been measured to 1,378 feet rich , or 420 meters below sea point .
Blue holes are Brobdingnagian underwater swallow hole that come out on the seafloor when the limestone fundamental principle break . Some of the most illustrious spicy cakehole are off Central America , especiallyBelize ’s Great Blue Hole . Taam Ja ’ is near the border of Mexico and Belize , off of Mexico ’s Tamalcab Island and penny-pinching to several other blue holes in Chetumal Bay . Measurements of the hole ’s astuteness and how current circulates through it werepublishedthis workweek in Frontiers in Marine Science .
Taam Ja ’ usurps theSouth China Sea ’s Dragon Hole(also visit the Sansha Yongle Blue Hole ) as the deep know downcast kettle of fish . The Dragon Hole is about 990 feet rich , surpassing the third - deepest blue hole , Dean ’s Blue Hole , by over 300 feet . The Taam Ja ’ Blue Hole is more than twice as deep as Dean ’s Blue Hole .
Belize’s Great Blue Hole, pictured here, is probably the most recognizable blue hole. The newly discovered blue hole off the coast of Mexico is even deeper.Photo:The TerraMar Project
In December 2023 , the squad measure the sink using aCTD ( conduction , temperature , and deepness ) profiler , a suite of electronic instruments that could characterize multiple components of the sinkhole . liken hydrographic data from the sinkhole with water layers in other reef lagune , estuary , and roadblock reefs in Central America and the Caribbean led the squad to conclude that “ likely subterranean connection ” may exist in the hole ’s depth .
The CTD also revealed an increase of piss temperature and salinity in the hole around 1,312 understructure ( 400 meters ) below sea layer . The ardent water may be related to volcanic or architectonic processes or geothermic activity at depth , the scientist concluded .
The researchers accent that the hole may be much deeper than their recent measurement , ground on the structure of inland limestone cave systems . The squad specifically referenced Krubera - Voronya , the deepest - know cave , which is 7,188 understructure ( 2,191 meters ) deep .
A 2023 survey found the hole was 900 feet deep; it’s now known to be over 1,300 feet deep.Graphic:Alcérreca-Huerta et al., Front. Mar. Sci. 2023
“ This evinces the needs of continuous exploration of these karst geological structures , their intricate geomorphology , and the development of cave branches , ” the study generator wrote . “ dig into the submersed spatial morphology of TJBH , the direction is on deciphering its maximal depth and the theory of forming part of an underwater intricate and potentially interconnected system of cave and tunnels . ”
The researchers did not adumbrate specific design to remeasure Taam Ja ’ , but their investigation of its depth was only stopped by technical restriction . They outlined that succeeding investigating of the pickle “ should comprise ripe submerged navigation engineering science ” to better research the mysterious — and hitherto unknown — depth of the eery hollow .
More : Earth ’s 8 Weirdest Cave Systems
Location of the blue hole and images of it at (B) 16 feet deep, (C) 65 feet deep, and (D) 98 feet deep.Graphic:Alcérreca-Huerta et al., Front. Mar. Sci. 2024
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