uniladtech homepage
  • News
    • Tech News
    • AI
  • Gadgets
    • Apple
    • iPhone
  • Gaming
    • Playstation
    • Xbox
  • Science
    • News
    • Space
  • Streaming
    • Netflix
  • Vehicles
    • Car News
  • Social Media
    • WhatsApp
    • YouTube
  • Advertise
  • Terms
  • Privacy & Cookies
  • LADbible Group
  • LADbible
  • UNILAD
  • SPORTbible
  • GAMINGbible
  • Tyla
  • FOODbible
  • License Our Content
  • About Us & Contact
  • Jobs
  • Latest
  • Archive
  • Topics A-Z
  • Authors
Facebook
Instagram
X
TikTok
Snapchat
WhatsApp
Submit Your Content
Reason why extraordinary cave of crystals is deadly to humans

Home> Science

Published 15:17 8 May 2024 GMT+1

Reason why extraordinary cave of crystals is deadly to humans

The cave's humidity is near 100%.

Rebekah Jordan

Rebekah Jordan

google discoverFollow us on Google Discover
Featured Image Credit: JAVIER TRUEBA / MSF / SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY
Science
Earth

Advert

Advert

Advert

Caves can be exciting to explore - but not when they're a threat to human life.

One such cave in Chihuahua, Mexico is so unique but holds a deadly secret.

The underground cavern, lying 300 metres (980 feet) beneath the Earth, is filled with some of the world's largest natural crystals, some as large as trees.

Interestingly, it was discovered by accident in 2000 when miners drilling into a lead, zinc, and silver mine near the town of Naica uncovered a chamber full of towering, milky-white crystals.

Advert

JAVIER TRUEBA / MSF / SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY
JAVIER TRUEBA / MSF / SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY

'It's the Sistine Chapel of crystals,' stated Juan Manuel García-Ruiz, a geologist with the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), and a researcher who studied the cave.

Fault lines run beneath the Sierra de Naica Mountain, and about 26 million years ago, magma pushed toward the surface through these faults.

This resulted in the mountain's formation along with the jumbo-sized crystals.

As beautiful as the crystals are, the scene can't be appreciated long in there as the same environment is deadly to humans.

The cave's temperature stands at 58 degrees Celsius (136 degrees Fahrenheit), sometimes going above that.

Moreover, the humidity is almost 100% – a level at which sweating has no cooling effect on the body.

Because of this, people need proper protection to stay in the cave for longer than 10 minutes.

JAVIER TRUEBA / MSF / SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY
JAVIER TRUEBA / MSF / SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY

Without proper protection, staying longer than 10 minutes is dangerous, as fluid can condense in the lungs and prove fatal.

Hence why this is a no-tourist zone.

Furthermore, the condensation makes surfaces extremely slippery, making the cave's crystals a dangerous expedition.

Now the fact that it's deadly to humans keeps the majority of us away, the good news is research can still be done in the cave by those who enjoy the wilder side of life.

For example, scientists are learning about undiscovered microorganisms that thrive in these extreme conditions.

'Other people have made longer-term claims for the antiquity of organisms that were still alive, but in this case, these organisms are all very extraordinary - they are not very closely related to anything in the known genetic databases,' said Dr. Penelope Boston, director of Nasa's Astrobiology Institute in Moffett Field, California.

Choose your content:

10 hours ago
a day ago
  • Anton Petrus / Getty
    10 hours ago

    Fresh 'evidence' could finally solve mystery of how The Great Pyramid was built

    Ancient Egyptians used complex architectural methods hidden by time until now

    Science
  • SCIEPRO/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY/Getty Images
    a day ago

    NASA officially kills Mars mission leaving goal wide open for China

    The mission would be the first time ever Martian samples are brought back to Earth

    Science
  • Sebastian Condrea / Getty
    a day ago

    Doctor reveals major impact cannabis has on male sperm

    It could cause more damage than you might think

    Science
  • Bill Ingalls/NASA via Getty Images
    a day ago

    NASA responds after social media users notice bizarre missing part on Artemis 2's heat shield

    Footage appeared to show a hole in the Orion capsule

    Science
  • Artemis 2 astronauts become first humans in history to witness 'indescribable' event in space
  • Artemis 2 astronauts could be about to undergo the most dangerous 14 minutes of their lives
  • NASA supercomputer reveals unsettling timeline for the end of the world
  • How to spot Artemis 2 astronauts as they head for splashdown back on Earth this Friday