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. "There is no other place on the planet," García-Ruiz said, "where the mineral world reveals itself in such beauty."
This is an article I found on the National Geographic site for this phenomenon, it is so exciting and can be a source of fascination for anyone who finds crystals interesting.
I watched the documentary on the Nat Geo TV station and found it very exciting, so I share it with you.
2 comments:
Beautiful! I saw this a while back and was REALLY fascinted how those grew so big, think of the energy!!!
Nancy
I am just now in the process of discovering, and in turn educating myself on the enchanting world of crystals and minerals. This new interest just suddenly 'popped' into my awareness not long after I was blessed enough to experience a phone reading with you. In retrospect, I look back and see so many exciting new things have come into focus for me since that wake up call of an interaction. The Nat GEO documentary was informative. The images of the crystal cave however, were simply breathtaking!
Just wanted to take the time to thank you again and perhaps send you a digital hug to help remind you what a positive force you have been in the lives of so many people!
Thank you dear lady,
Ben Buisson
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