Mexico’s Taam Ja’ Blue Hole is the deepest known underwater sinkhole in the world, researchers have discovered — and they haven’t even reached the bottom yet.

New measurements indicate the Taam Ja’ Blue Hole (TJBH), which sits in Chetumal Bay off the southeast coast of the Yucatan Peninsula, extends at least 1,380 feet (420 meters) below sea level.

That’s 480 feet (146 m) deeper than scientists initially documented when they first discovered the blue hole in 2021, and 390 feet (119 m) deeper than the previous record holder — the 990-foot-deep (301 m) Sansha Yongle Blue Hole, also known as the Dragon Hole, in the South China Sea.

  • MamboGator@lemmy.world
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    4 months ago

    There’s also a giant eel lurking in one of the caves that pops out when you swim near it and scares the shit out of me every time.

  • Lexam@lemmy.ca
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    4 months ago

    THIS is where we need AI! Load a bunch of cute underwater drones that can go down and gently explore and take pictures and videos for us. Instead some paper will use AI for a" journalists rendition" of what might be down there.

    • FuglyDuck@lemmy.world
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      4 months ago

      So I remember launch day in SWOTOR. We rolled pubie, and the “capital hub” so to speak was coruscant, it was the world you were sent to after getting off the noob world.

      Some one was standing at the flight path for the hangar bay/capital building and stuff, looking over the side and wondering what was down there.

      So, I told him- sarcastically, I might add- that there was a loot chest with guaranteed epics, maybe even a legendary mount.

      I ran off cuz… launch day, had stuff to do…. About thirty seconds later I’m getting blasted in zone chat cuz the dumbass jumped.

      So somebody else told the guy he was jumping off the Wrong spot, go to the other corner. Look for the air vent.

      I feel bad for this guy, cuz he jumped like 3-4 times being a lootwhore before apparently retelling imp.

  • Flying Squid@lemmy.world
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    4 months ago

    Don’t go down there, guys. Everyone down there is an asshole. Trust me, I went down there with some squid buddies and those guys in that cave system are fucking racist.

    • RaoulDook@lemmy.world
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      4 months ago

      from the Wiki article: “The deepest blue hole in the world at 300.89 meters (987 feet) deep is in the South China Sea and is named the Dragon Hole, or Longdong.”

      Longdong, haha!

    • Twinklebreeze @lemmy.world
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      4 months ago

      The deepest blue hole in the world at 300.89 meters (987 feet) deep is in the South China Sea and is named the Dragon Hole, or Longdong.

      :|

    • NOT_RICK@lemmy.world
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      4 months ago

      It’s not far from it, but this is on the eastern side of the Yucatán peninsula. The Chicxulub crater is on the Northwestern side of the peninsula. I’m not equipped to weigh in on if it may be related, though.

      • Cosmic Cleric@lemmy.world
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        4 months ago

        I’m not equipped to weigh in on if it may be related, though.

        Yeah that’s basically was going to be my next question, curious if it’s just the aftermath of such a huge impact with the Earth kind of thing.

        CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

        • vaultdweller013@sh.itjust.works
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          4 months ago

          Blue holes are generally created via similar methods to sink holes. Basically sandstone erosion, also I dont think an impact like that would leave any cave systems. Remember that asteroid was about the size of Texas, im pretty sure most things in the region we’re nuked and I cant imagine much more than a crater could be created.