A latest publish on Reddit’s r/thalassophobia acquired 7,200 upvotes after exhibiting a crystal-clear lagoon in Brazil that appears virtually inviting from the floor. However a flooded cave system lies beneath the intense blue water, and divers have gone greater than 220 meters (722 toes) with out reaching the underside.
That’s the thriller behind Lagoa Misteriosa, or “Mysterious Lagoon,” in Jardim, in Brazil’s Mato Grosso do Sul state.
The publish says Lagoa Misteriosa is a sinkhole that shaped after the collapse of a cave ceiling. It sits on the backside of a doline, which in flip is a melancholy related to the dissolution of limestone. In keeping with the attraction’s official web site, the cave is a number of meters under the floor and was shaped by means of the motion of groundwater.
Which will assist clarify why measuring the lagoon just isn’t so simple as dropping a weighted rope into a traditional lake.
The underwater cave system’s rock formations and underwater terrain could make exploration tough as divers descend. Additionally, the water is exceptionally clear, and visibility exceeds 40 meters (131 toes). That readability really creates a visible impact by which, as a substitute of individuals seeing the water turning into opaque because the water will get deeper, the blue appears to proceed into an infinite underwater void.
The deepest recorded exploration of Lagoa Misteriosa was by Brazilian diver Gilberto Menezes de Oliveira in 1998, who reached 220 meters however couldn’t decide the cave’s final depth. So technically, the lagoon just isn’t actually “bottomless,” simply that its most depth has not been established.
Many commenters moved away from the lagoon’s depth and targeted as a substitute on jokes about cave diving. Some spoke concerning the form of particular person keen to enter a darkish underwater cave; others stated that specialised cave diving requires intensive coaching and gear. Yet one more stated that the rationale persons are drawn to cave diving is the attraction and hazard of the surroundings, which is a mix of darkness, restricted visibility, restricted passages, and the truth that they can not be simply rescued.
Others, nevertheless, have been extra skeptical of the declare that know-how can not discover the lagoon. Most of them stated that remotely operated gear can generally be tethered to keep up communication.
No scientific physique has publicly said that fashionable know-how can not discover the lagoon’s full depth, although no such exploration has been documented.
The Each day Dot was unable to independently confirm all geological and depth claims cited on this article. Particulars about Lagoa Misteriosa draw on the attraction’s official web site and the Reddit thread shared in r/thalassophobia. The main points above replicate the publish and feedback as shared in that neighborhood.
