洞穴 25

It was Lechuguilla's gypsum crystals that made scientists question how these caverns were formed. They discovered that Lechuguilla's limestone had actually been eaten away by sulfuric acid, cutting through literally miles of limestone. And when sulfuric acid dissolves limestone it leaves behind gypsum, the basis of Lechuguilla's remarkable formations. And there was one set, more than a mile from the surface, that almost defied belief. The Chandelier Ballroom was the ultimate discovery. With its six-metre long crystals it's surely the most bizarre cave chamber in the world. And the walls had one further surprise. Extremofile bacteria were found to be feeding on the rock itself. The discovery of life that exists without drawing any of its energy from the sun shows us once again how complex and surprising the underground world can be. Each year explorers chart over 100 miles of new cave passages. But with half the world's limestone still to be explored, who knows how many Lechuguillas are still waiting to be discovered.

正是楚基耶洞的这些石膏水晶让科学家们对这些洞穴的形成感到好奇。他们发现，楚基耶洞的石灰岩实际上已经被硫酸腐蚀掉了，这些硫酸几乎溶解了数千米长的石灰岩。硫酸溶解石灰岩后留下了石膏，这是形成楚基耶洞奇妙构造的基础。其中离地面近两公里处的一个地方简直令人难以置信。枝形吊灯舞厅是最奇妙的发现，它的水晶石长达6米，它无疑是世界上最奇妙的洞穴大厅。而且石壁上还有更多的神奇。人们发现，极端生物依靠岩石本身生存。这种不需要太阳的能量而存在的生命的发现向我们显示出，我们的地下世界是何等复杂奇妙。探险者每年都要探索数千米地下洞穴，但世界上还有一半的石灰岩洞穴尚待探索，所以你无法预知还有多少个楚基耶洞等待人们去发现。