Giant Crystal Cave Facts
- Perhaps most notably of all, the term Giant Crystal Cave refers to one of the most truly fabulous marvels of Nature found anywhere on earth. In fact, in many ways, this otherworldy location currently remains one of the most unique of its kind ever discovered on the planet.
- Still more of interest remains to the amazing story, however. That’s because, astoundingly, humans discovered this breathtaking place completely by accident. That truly fortuitous event occurred in the year 2000, in the eventual course of local ongoing mining activities.
- However, the very nature and precise location of the stunning site forever makes this breathtaking creation of geological forces unavailable to the general public at large. That’s because of one amazing fact, its extremely close proximity to a nearby magma chamber.
- In the Giant Crystal Cave, Nature provided this unique site with a measure of built-in security from the intrusion of man. The very forces that created it continue to protect and preserve it, after a fashion. These make it impossible to visit it without specialized protective gear.
- In fact, the temperature and humidity constantly remain so high that the heat index equals 228 F (105 C). It’s a moot point now, however. After a measure of exploration, researchers stopped the pumps keeping water out. It then rapidly refilled with water, thus preventing access.
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Giant Crystal Cave Physical Description
The incredible Giant Crystal Cave literally appeared to its few visitors like an alien landscape. That’s partly due to the fact that it serves as home to the largest crystals found on earth. Incredibly, some of these behemoths attain a size as great as 34 ft (11 m) long and an estimated weight of 55 tons.
These astoundingly large crystals have a composition primarily consisting of selenite. This mineral, the nearby magma chamber deposited over the course of countless centuries. These enormous and impressive crystals formed as a result of an extremely special combination of many factors.
This formative process began with greatly heated groundwater being saturated with sulfide ions. Subsequent to this action, significantly colder surface water leaked down and contacted the mineral-saturated hot water. This formed the next step in the slow process of formation.
However, an extremely surprising thing subsequently occured in the Giant Crystal Cave. That’s because the two supplies of water did not actually mix together. This amazing lack of mixing occurred due to the difference in the relative densities of the two entirely separate water supplies.
Due to the combination of these highly unique natural factors, hydrated sulfates, principally gypsum, inexorably formed at an extremely slow rate over the course of at least 500,000 years. As these painstakingly crystallized, they formed the enormous crystals present in the cave today.
Giant Crystal Cave Location, Condition, and Exploration
The absolutely astounding Giant Crystal Cave formed in a region of the world already renowned for its extraordinary abundance of natural marvels. That location therefore likely won’t surprise many people. This stunning site formed in the general area of Chihuahua, Mexico, in North America.
Being a cave, it quite obviously lies below the surface of the earth. Yet another fact about the placement of this wonder of Nature is its depth. That’s due to the fact that it sits only 1,000 ft (300 m) beneath the surface. Despite that, the masterpiece remained unknown until modern times.
Despite its comparative proximity to the surface, however, due to the extreme conditions within the remarkable cave, researchers still know extremely little about it. What modern science does currently know about this product of amazing natural processes can be summed up briefly.
As remains the norm, the amazing cavern formed slowly, and in what approximates a roughly horseshoe shape. It also lies situated within an enormous limestone deposit. Large, faceted blocks od crystal also cover the floor, and the enormous crystalline beams protrude through these.
This situation creates incredible patterns, merely serving to enhance its beauty. When man originally discovered Giant Crystal Cave, though, water filled the inside. It later became accessible only because the nearby mining operation which discovered it continued pumping the water away.
Only authorized researchers had access permits, due to the utterly inhospitable conditions. Experts made the decision to allow the site to flood again, though, since exposure to air was beginning to erode the crystals. For now, no plans exist to explore the site further, to preserve its natural state.
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