A blue hole is a geological formation that consists of a large cavern filled with seawater that is located under the seabed. and, unlike marine trenches and marine abysses that are formed due to the movements of tectonic plates and that can measure up to 11 thousand meters deep, These blue holes form gradually over centuries or millennia thanks to the movement of seawater in and out over soils made of limestone rock.
Experts discovered this place thanks to fishermen in the region and previous studies, Therefore, an attempt was made to measure the link with a 30-meter rope, but since it was not enough, they tried it with increasingly longer ropes without reaching a precise result. So They had to use an instrument that measures water pressure and an echo sounder, so they managed to reveal the depth of the blue hole.
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Where in Mexico was it discovered?
A group of researchers from El Colegio de la Frontera Sur (ECOSUR) discovered a blue hole on the sea floor of Chetumal Bay, on the southeast coast of the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico. This blue hole It measures 274 meters deep and has a surface area of 13,690 square meters. and was named Taam Ja’, which in Mayan means “deep water.”
Thanks to its size, it is the second largest blue hole in the world, The first is found in China and is the Sansha Youngleand is 301 meters deep. Although this blue hole was discovered a few years ago, it was in 2023 when scientists published an article in the journal Frontiers in Marine Science with all their findings.
According to the published study, The Taam Ja’ has an almost circular shape on the surface and the inclination of the sides of the blue hole is pronounced, with slopes of 80 degrees They form the structure of a huge cone covered by biofilm, sediment, limestone and gypsum overhangs.
The mouth of the blue hole begins with a depth of between 4.5 and 5 meters below sea level, where the properties of water change significantly with temperature and salinity gradients.
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