Sighting a pit in roads, in forests, are a common occurrence but have you ever imagined a deep hole in the middle of an ocean! What is the dragon hole? Where is it located in the universe?
Imagine a ship through its voyage, ripping off the wind, tearing the waves, and suddenly it encounters an enormous pit ahead!
Is it life-threatening? What lies in the depth of the dragon hole? How was it formed?
Read this article to feed the curious and adventurous soul.
The Marvel Evoking Secret Of The Deep Oceans
Blue holes are the large pits in the ocean. When observed from above, they impart a dark blue color other than the ocean color and hence are popular as blue holes.
At the depth 987.2 ft (300.89 meters) and 130 m wide entrance, Dragon Hole, also known as Yongle Blue Hole after the third Ming emperor, is the deepest known blue hole in the world. They are mostly vertical and have thousands of depth.
It is situated 25 km south of Discover reef, a parcel island of the South China sea.
Theory of Formation: Dragon Hole
Locals call it the ‘eye’ of the South China sea and believe that it is the place where the Great Monkey King found his golden truncheon.
There are two scientific theories regarding the formation of the blue holes.
Many scientists believe blue hole formation started with the melting of glaciers. When glaciers melted, some of them left space in the place where there was initially ice, creating a hole. As the years went by, the sea level rose, and those holes gained depth with time.
Another theory states that the disruption in tectonic plates of the ocean floor led to the settlement of sand and debris, resulting in the formation of enormous pits known as blue holes.
Advantages Of The Dragon Hole
Dragon hole is valuable to scientists because it aids:
- Research of climatic changes
- Study of marine ecology and geochemistry
- Analysis of marine water columns diversification
- Evolution history shreds of evidence
- Rock sedimentation, bacteria, thermocline organisms information gathering
- Discovering of submerged cave passages
Journey Inside The Dragon Hole
Whenever we talk about these deep holes, we crave to dive into its mysterious world. What is inside there?
Diving up to 90 feet inside this blue hole, we see the expected: sharks, coral reefs, giant turtles, and 20 inhabiting species of fishes.
However, further down, everything becomes dark, and the oxygen level drops. Life completely vanishes as we move deep down.
The dragon hole is not entirely vertical; it has giant coral reefs making light impossible to penetrate deeper.
On reaching the bottom, skeletons of hermit crabs, conches shells, and giant corals beds are seen, which could have accidentally fallen into it and died from suffocation.
The level of toxic hydrogen sulfide gas is devastatingly high, and there is no essence of oxygen.
Underwater tunnels and caves are present. In some blue holes, human skeletons have been discovered, belonging to thousands of years before the ice age.
Facts You Must Know!
There are a few blue holes present over the earth, among which the Dragon hole is the deepest recorded.
These will not be around us forever as sand and soil particles fall every day into it from the sides. Hence, one day they will no longer exist.
Going deep down in blue holes is dangerous due to high toxicity. The arch makes it life-threatening for divers who have not received training for diving in the blue holes.
The giant coral reefs, unseen passages, underwater tunnels make them invaluable from a biodiversity perspective but add another threat to the lives of the divers.
The depth of blue holes is a constant source of mystery for marine biologists on the lookout.
However, they are a specimen of the artful architecture nature designs, among the unseen and unforgettable mysteries.
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