Great Hole

Great Hole

Возможно, сайт временно недоступен или перегружен запросами. Подождите некоторое время и попробуйте снова.
Если вы не можете загрузить ни одну страницу – проверьте настройки соединения с Интернетом.
Если ваш компьютер или сеть защищены межсетевым экраном или прокси-сервером – убедитесь, что Firefox разрешён выход в Интернет.

Firefox не может установить соединение с сервером geologyscience.com.

Отправка сообщений о подобных ошибках поможет Mozilla обнаружить и заблокировать вредоносные сайты

Сообщить
Попробовать снова
Отправка сообщения
Сообщение отправлено

использует защитную технологию, которая является устаревшей и уязвимой для атаки. Злоумышленник может легко выявить информацию, которая, как вы думали, находится в безопасности.

Wide angle view Great Blue Hole in Belize courtesy a Private Island.
The inland Belize Blue Hole off the Hummingbird Highway
Complete guide to Belize | Central America - Belize.com
Belize guide for vacation, diving, caving, fishing, scuba, the Caribbean sea, Maya temples, friendly people, islands, snorkel, best tourist attractions, what to do.
The Great Blue Hole is a world-class destination for recreational scuba divers attracted by the opportunity to dive in crystal-clear waters and see myriad species of marine life including tropical fish and spectacular coral formations.
The marine life in these areas includes nurse sharks, giant groupers, and several types of reef sharks such as the Caribbean reef shark and the Blacktip shark (Carcharhinus limbatus). Dive excursions to the Great Blue Hole are full-day trips, that usually consist of one dive in the Blue Hole and two additional dives in nearby reefs. The Great Blue Hole is in our list of Top 10 Reasons Why You Should Visit Belize .
The Great Blue Hole is a large underwater sinkhole off the coast of Belize. It lies near the center of Lighthouse Reef, a small atoll 100 kilometres (62 miles) from the mainland of Belize City .
The hole is circular in shape, over 300 metres (984 ft.) across and 125 metres (410 ft.) deep. The world’s largest natural formation of its kind, the Great Blue Hole is part of the larger Barrier Reef Reserve System, a World Heritage Site of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
Glyn Collinson, a NASA scientist who recently dived the Great Blue Hole described it thus:
“It was the deepest, deep blue hole imaginable; A chasm that fell away deep into the deep, dark blue. It had been forged out of solid rock as caverns, hundreds of thousands of years ago during the last ice age. For eons, water filtered through the rock and into these great stone cathedrals, breeding multicolored stalactites and stalagmites. Then, one by one they collapsed in on each other, creating a chasm four hundred feet deep. As Earth’s swollen polar ice-caps receded, the warm Caribbean ocean swept in to fill the chasm with boiling white hands, the last rays of sunlight struck the chasm’s floor. Then, as the limestone broke down, it began to rain tiny fragments of rock, which slowly began to fill the great Blue Hole.”
“Alright,” the dive master said, jolting me back to reality. “Welcome to the Blue Hole. This one is real deep, starting with a drop off from forty feet that goes right the way down to the bottom past 400 feet.” The man held up a detailed custom drawn map of the site and pointed as he talked. “We will go down fast to one hundred and thirty feet where stalactites come down from this overhang. We will stay there for a maximum of twelve minutes, starting from the time that the first pair gets there. We all need to keep together and watch each other. To make sure that you all keep an eye on your depth, the dive pair who goes the deepest will buy a round of drinks for everyone back at the Island.” ‘Great’, I thought, ‘so much for pushing our depth limits.’
Noted SCUBA diver, writer and photographer Rick Frehsee wrote the following account of his research on the Great Blue Hole:
“Lighthouse Reef, Glover’s Reef and the Turneffe Islands are all distinct anomalies in the Caribbean. Nothing else in the Western Hemisphere resembles a true coral atoll, except perhaps Chinchorro Reef, off Mexico’s southern Yucatan Peninsula (just above the Belize atolls). According to geologists they are even more unusual in that the origin of their formation does not seem to mirror the atolls of the Pacific Ocean, where rings of coral are better known.
“The ancient processes contributing to Belize atoll development may have begun as many as 70 million years ago and the atolls did not develop around subsiding volcanoes. Instead, they originated atop giant fault blocks; limestone covered ridges that settled in steps, providing a series of offshore platforms for coral growth. After the last ice age, with the slow rise of sea level, coral growth continued upward, creating the precipitous outer walls and the shallow inside lagoon that typifies these distinct formations. Many drop-offs surrounding the Belize atolls are thousands of feet deep, while depths in the shallow lagoons average 10 to 30 feet.”
“The sense of isolation and remoteness that accompanies a visit to the atolls, belies a rich history. Although only archaeological traces remain, it appears the ancient Maya inhabited at least a few of the atoll islands for more than 1,000 years. The recorded history of the atolls begins in the early 16th century with the arrival of the Europeans. From 1528 to 1532 Spanish explorers researched and and charted the coastline and offshore reefs of Belize and the Yucatan.
“Original names known to the indigenous inhabitants or given by the first Spanish explorers are now obscured. The only names that have survived are published on charts discovered decades after their making. It appears that Turneffe used to be called Terre Nef; Lighthouse Reef, Quattro Cayas (four cayes) or Eastern Reef; and Glover’s Reef, Longorif. The present names evolved with English discovery and occupation in the 1750s. Glover’s Reef was named for the English pirate John Glover, who used this particular atoll as a hideout. Lighthouse Reef was renamed after a navigational light was permanently established on Half Moon Caye.”
In 1836 the famous biologist-evolutionist Charles Darwin paid homage to these remarkable formations when he said the Belize atolls and the Belize Barrier Reef constitute “..the richest and most remarkable coral reefs in the entire western Caribbean.”
In the mid 1970s Jacques Cousteau’s Calypso made its famous investigation of the Great Blue Hole and the Belize atolls, which corresponds to the arrival of dive travel to the region. In 2018 Cousteau’s grandson Fabien returned to the Hole with Sir Richard Branson and a team of explorers to capture many high-quality photos and videos of the Hole’s enigmatic characteristics via a three-person Aquatica Submarine (the Stingray 500). Watch the video of the expedition to dive and map in 3D the Great Belize Blue Hole.
Technology has allowed us to dive deeper and longer than ever before. 🏊 #BlueHole #DiscoveryLive pic.twitter.com/GtQrgo3jmb
Canadian-Belizean diver Captain Ray says: “I was one of those early arrivals from the scientific and sport diving community, accompanying the Cousteau divers into the Blue Hole and participating in one of the first dive travel ventures along the Belize River.
“Because of the relative isolation, our atolls have remained nearly as pristine as I remember them 30 years ago. As a result of today’s relatively easy travel, this sense of remoteness and the quality of the underwater environment is even more extraordinary. With only a few exceptions, I can visit any above or underwater site in the Belize atolls and the scene appears unaltered.”
On-shore caves of similar formation, as large collapsed sinkholes, are well known in Belize, and in the Yucatan Peninsula, where they are known as “cenotes”.
Belize has another, lesser known Blue Hole. This is an inland sinkhole located 12 miles south of the City Of Belmopan in the very center of the country. Yes, it is locally known simply as the Blue Hole. Its location right on the Hummingbird Highway makes this natural swimming pool an attraction for locals and tourists. The inland Blue Hole is within the St. Herman’s Cave system and is administered as a national park, Parking facilities are available and the Blue Hole is accessible by a short flight of stairs that take you down approximately 30 feet into the very cool freshwater pool.
The Inland Blue Hole is sinkhole formed by the collapse of an underground river channel. The exposed section of the underground Cave’s Branch River tributary can be viewed for about 150 feet before it disappears again beneath the surface.
Located just off the Hummingbird Highway, the inland Blue Hole steps lead to a 30 foot deep pool, for which the park is named. The cool, turquoise waters, surrounded by dense rain forest, overhung with moss, vines and ferns are the perfect spot for a cool and relaxing dip.
Facilities are limited to park rangers during working hours and you can enjoy an exhilarating soak in year-round cool water in perennial shade of rainforest and hills that shield the visitor from the tropical sun. The pool is fed by the Cave’s Branch River and disappears underground around a small sandy beach. A nature walk and St. Herman’s Cave are nearby as is the Belize Cave’s Branch River. This is easily accessible a short 15 minute walk or a 5 minute drive across the highway into the area of Ian Anderson’s jungle lodge. The river in this area is spectacular and is accessible to the general public during working hours.
Belize.com Managing Editor Manolo Romero is a frequent visitor to the area and writes:
“The drive is about 5 minutes headed south on the Hummingbird Highway – a very short distance on your left after departing the Blue Hole. This is through a narrow jungle trail with overlapping rainforest. You turn off on your left unto the Ian Anderson’s parking lot that overlooks the Caves Branch River to the front, and the lodge to your right.
“If you arrive an hour before lunch or supper, you can report to the lodge and request food and beverage service and this will be arranged. The lodge management is very accommodating to “drop in” visitors provided they request service in advance.
“If you are not a guest, feel free to park your vehicle and descend into the river which is sweet and clean water. Throughout most of the year the river is clear, low and safe even for those not experienced in swimming rivers but do check with your guide before taking a dip.
“There are some stones on the approach so river sandals may be useful. I find that the river has two distinct temperatures. The area adjacent the parking area is just below body temperature and sunny. The area on the opposite bank is cool and full of shade and privacy and the howler monkeys are not as inquisitive – draw your own conclusions!”
St .Herman’s Cave is located about 450 meters off the Hummingbird Highway in the neighborhood of the inland Blue Hole. The information center and parking are located just off the highway.
The largest of the three known entrances to St. Herman’s Cave sits in a sinkhole 180 feet wide narrowing to a 60-foot wide entrance.
Concrete steps over stone steps once cut by the Maya make for easy access for visitors.
A trail with markers is provided within the cave. It is about a half mile through to the first exit.
Once inside, visitors can scale large boulders and navigate through the water course, while admiring stunning cave formations.
After exploring the cave, you can hike through a 2 mile interpretive trail.
Belize is now open to international tourism with no quarantine requirements and all COVID-19 travel restrictions repealed. Due to diligent work by the government and health authorities, Belize’s COVID19 numbers are at record low numbers. The Government of Belize has decided to remove all public health measures at every land and sea point of entry […]
“There we were, venturing to the bottom of one of the world’s largest sinkholes, an unexplored legend of the deep filled with Mayan mysteries and myths of monsters and wonder,” Sir Richard Branson muses poetically, of his latest excursion over the weekend, which saw him hop into a submarine and hitch a ride down Belize’s […]
It took the ADO bus a full half hour after entering the city limits to finally reach the terminal which is located somewhere near the middle of Merida, Yucatan. One of Mexico’s most bustling metropolises, Merida is a big city covering some 331 sq. miles and from all indications, is still growing at an incredible […]
Minister of Tourism Anthony Mahler has announced that cruise tourism will restart in Belize on 7 July. According to Mahler, a Carnival Cruise ship will arrive in Belize on that date at sixty percent capacity. Minister Mahler said ninety five percent of Carnival passengers would have already been vaccinated. The additional five percent, unvaccinated persons, […]
Bad water and poor sanitation are major causes of illness in much of the Third World. In Belize, happily these are less of a problem than in Belize’s larger neighbors, Mexico and Guatemala. All residents of Belize City and nearly all towns have access to safe and adequate water supplies — “pipe water” as it’s […]
Belize.com is the first website established in Belize, 1995. As a pioneer Digital Media Company, we provide expert content and advice for locals, expats and tourists.
© 2000 ITM Ltd. · Reproduction of any materials from the site is strictly forbidden · All Rights Reserved · Contact · About · Privacy Policy ·

×
This page contains archived content and is no longer being updated. At the time of publication, it represented the best available science.

You might also be interested in ( view all )

Surrounded by darker, deeper ocean waters, coral atolls often glow in vibrant hues of turquoise, teal, peacock blue, or aquamarine. Belize’s Lighthouse Reef Atoll fits this description, with its shallow waters covering light-colored coral: the combination of water and pale corals creates varying shades of blue-green. Within this small sea of light colors, however, lies a giant circle of deep blue. Roughly 300 meters (1,000 feet) across and 125 meters (400 feet) deep, the feature is known as the Great Blue Hole.
The Advanced Land Imager (ALI) on NASA’s Earth Observing-1 satellite captured this image of the Great Blue Hole and Lighthouse Reef in the Caribbean Sea on March 24, 2009. The Great Blue Hole appears at the center of the image, surrounded by a ring of lighter color caused by elevated coral. In fact, parts of the ring surrounding this feature actually crest the water surface at low tide, but a layer of shallow water covers most of Lighthouse Reef Atoll. Boats leave tiny white tracks on the nearby water surface, and two boats appear to travel away from the Hole in this image. East of the boats, a broad band of aquamarine indicates an area of especially shallow water along the reef’s margin. Along its easternmost edge, the reef crests the ocean surface, where breaking waves from the Caribbean Sea form a jagged line of white.
Boats traveling to and from the Great Blue Hole attest to its popularity as a diving site. Besides modern-day marine life, this vertical cave contains remnants from its days above water. When much of Earth’s water was sequestered in glaciers, global sea level was lower. During this time, stalactites or “dripstones” formed inside this cave, and those rocks are preserved underwater today.
Believed to be the world’s largest feature of its kind, the Great Blue Hole is part of the larger Belize Barrier Reef Reserve System, a World Heritage site of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
NASA image created by Jesse Allen, using EO-1 ALI data provided courtesy of the NASA EO-1 Team. Caption by Michon Scott.
A vertical cave in Belize’s Lighthouse Reef Atoll comprises a popular diving site known as the Great Blue Hole. The Advanced Land Imager on NASA’s Earth Observing-1 satellite captured an image of the Great Blue Hole and Lighthouse Reef in March 2009.

Image of the Day
Water

Image of the Day
Water

A vertical cave in Belize’s Lighthouse Reef Atoll comprises a popular diving site known as the Great Blue Hole. The Advanced Land Imager on NASA’s Earth Observing-1 satellite captured an image of the Great Blue Hole and Lighthouse Reef in March 2009.
This marine wonder off of Belize is rich with mystery and biodiversity.

Image of the Day
Life
Water

A burst of color lit the shallow waters of the Gulf of Mexico off the Yucatan Peninsula on December 14, 2008.

Image of the Day
Water

Image of the Day
Atmosphere
Land
Life
Floods

THINGS TO DO AT THE GREAT BLUE HOLE

The Great Blue Hole is one of the most famous diving attractions near the Itza Resort and has been attracting diving lovers for decades. Having been named the best diving spot in the world by legendary explorer Jacque Cousteau, the Great Blue Hole attracts thousands of people every year. The expedition to the bottom of the ancient sinkhole has even recently been undertaken by Richard Branson and Fabien Cousteau, the son of Jacque Cousteau. This has led to even more buzz about the destination, and guests are flocking to idyllic Belize Beach resorts . Thinking of visiting the Itza Resort for our diverse Belize diving packages ? It’s a good idea to know what you can expect from the Great Blue Hole . What is the Great Blue Hole?
The Great Blue Hole is one of the most famous sinkholes in the world. In part due to its large size, the Great Blue Hole is one of the most internationally renowned diving spots in the world. With a size of 318 metres across and 124 metres deep, the hole was formed by water shifts during the Ice Age during a period when the water levels were far lower. With formation periods dating back 153,000 years, the Great Blue Hole is a world heritage site and is part of a larger aquatic ecosystem consisting of coral reefs in the Belize Barrier Reef Reserve System. The depth, surrounding reefs and ecology of the area bring tourists, scientists and diving experts together to explore the wonders lying in wait in the beautiful Belize Lighthouse Atoll. Great Blue Hole flyover
Departing from San Pedro Regional Airport, the flyover of the Great Blue Hole is one of the most exhilarating flying experience
Pocket Hole
Xxx Free Porn Hub
Porno Glamour Vr

Great Hole

Report Page