Sistema Ox Bel Ha

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Sistema Ox Bel Ha

BW

Location: Quintana Roo , Mexico
Geographic
location: 		20 ° 9 '36.5 "  N , 87 ° 29' 17.1"  W Coordinates: 20 ° 9 '36.5 "  N , 87 ° 29' 17.1"  W.
Sistema Ox Bel Ha (Quintana Roo)
Sistema Ox Bel Ha
Geology: limestone
Type: Water cave, stalactite cave
Discovery: 1996
Overall length: 271.026 kilometers
Level difference: -57.3 meters
Particularities: world's second longest underwater cave

The Sistema Ox Bel Ha ( Spanish , Mayathan ; German "three water path system") is an underground river system in the Mexican state of Quintana Roo ( Yucatán Peninsula ) southwest of Tulum , the southern parts of which are in the Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve . With a measured 271 km (as of October 2019) it is the world's second longest known underwater cave system and the fourth longest system in total. It is connected to the surface by 143 cenotes . The average depth is 16 m (maximum 57.3 m). The halocline is about 13 meters deep; three of the six outflows to the Caribbean coast are diveable .

Travel history

 Survey development 
was standing Length
(km) 		Cenotes
02/1996 - 1
01/1998 0.5 2
05/1998 12.1 6th
04/1999 56.6 7th
05/1999 70.3 14th
02/2000 70.7 44
01/2002 94.5 56
09/2002 97.2 56
04/2003 107.1 60
03/2004 133.4 84
01/2005 133.6 86
06/2005 142.9 96
02/2006 144.7 98
07/2006 146.8 99
07/2007 164.5 128
11/2007 169.9 129
06/2008 172.3 130
05/2009 180.0 130
08/2010 182.1 131
03/2011 187.1 131
05/2011 222.3 131
06/2011 224.3 133
09/2011 228.9 136
10/2011 231.2 137
12/2011 232.8 137
02/2012 233.2 137
03/2012 233.4 137
04/2012 234.8 137
06/2012 238.2 140
08/2012 240.4 140
10/2012 242.3 140
12/2012 242.4 140
05/2013 243.6 140
06/2013 244.3 140
08/2013 256.7 140
05/2018 270.2 143
08/2018 271.0 143
Source:

After the discovery in 1996 ( ⊙ ), over 70 km were already measured in the first research phase (January 1998 to February 2000) and thus the Nohoch Nah Chich system, which was 61 km long at that time, was replaced. In 2011, the 25 km long Sistema Naranjal was connected to Ox Bel Ha.

In contrast to the longer known and more northerly located systems Sac Actun and Dos Ojos, further research was carried out for the first time using satellite images and GPS localization. This enabled new access points to be found quickly. Only the use of modern techniques, especially of diving scooters and rebreathers , the development has enabled some passages, such as the 5.5 kilometers from the Cenote Yaxchen to 700 m after the cenote Ma'Kai .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Bob Gulden, Jim Coke: World longest underwater caves. In: Geo2 Committee on Long and Deep Caves. National Speleological Society (NSS), October 1, 2019, accessed December 26, 2019 .
  2. ↑ a b Long underwater caves in Quintana Roo Mexico. NSS, Quintana Roo Speleological Survey (QRSS) , July 18, 2019, accessed December 26, 2019 .
  3. ^ Bob Gulden: Worlds longest caves. In: GEO2 Committee on long and deep caves. NSS, December 2, 2019, accessed December 26, 2019 .
  4. ↑ List of Long Underwater Caves in Quintana Roo Mexico. QRSS, March 2, 2001, archived from the original on February 12, 2008 ; accessed on November 1, 2009 .
  5. ↑ Donna Richards, Simon Richards: Yaxchen and Ox Bel Ha, Quintana Roo . In: National Speleological Society, Association for Mexican Cave Studies (Ed.): AMCS Activities Newsletter . No. 30 . Austin 2007, p. 77–84 (English, cave-exploration.com [PDF; 5.5 MB ; accessed on June 8, 2016]).