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RuGlu6 10-03-2008 01:22 AM

Giant Crystal Cave
 
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/n...crystals-cave/
April 9, 2007—Geologist Juan Manuel García-Ruiz calls it "the Sistine Chapel of crystals," but Superman could call it home.

A sort of south-of-the-border Fortress of Solitude, Mexico's Cueva de los Cristales (Cave of Crystals) contains some of the world's largest known natural crystals—translucent beams of gypsum as long as 36 feet (11 meters).

How did the crystals reach such superheroic proportions?
In the new issue of the journal Geology, García-Ruiz reports that for millennia the crystals thrived in the cave's extremely rare and stable natural environment. Temperatures hovered consistently around a steamy 136 degrees Fahrenheit (58 degrees Celsius), and the cave was filled with mineral-rich water that drove the crystals' growth.

Modern-day mining operations exposed the natural wonder by pumping water out of the 30-by-90-foot (10-by-30-meter) cave, which was found in 2000 near the town of Delicias (Chihuahua state map). Now García-Ruiz is advising the mining company to preserve the caves.

Sebae again 10-03-2008 02:02 AM

Very cool.

Marlin65 10-03-2008 03:30 AM

Thanks for sharing. :biggrin:

justinl 10-03-2008 03:32 AM

wow that is amazing! I really hope whoevers in charge of the mining decides to let it be.


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