World Biggest Hole

World biggest hole

It is believed that holes are wrath of god on this earth and are pathway to hell. Most people reading this would agree but here it is certainly not the case. Holes created in different parts of the world either due to human works like mining, as sum of these are diamond mine shafts that have been abandoned or due to wrath of god as we all know through meteor shower or something similar falling that made the dinosaurs extinct are today popular vacation spots as they are a visual extravaganza.

A sinkhole, also known as a sink, swallow hole, shakehole, swallet or doline, is a natural depression or hole in the Earth's surface caused by karst processes—for example, the chemical dissolution of carbonate rocks or suffosion processes in sandstone. Sinkholes may vary in size from 1 to 600 metres (3.3 to 2,000 ft) both in diameter and depth, and vary in form from soil-lined bowls to bedrock-edged chasms. Sinkholes may be formed gradually or suddenly, and are found worldwide. The different terms for sinkholes are often used interchangeably.

Sinkholes may capture surface drainage from running or standing water, but may also form in high and dry places in certain locations.

The mechanisms of formation involve natural processes of erosion or gradual removal of slightly soluble bedrock (such as limestone) by percolating water, the collapse of a cave roof, or a lowering of the water table. Sinkholes often form through the process of suffusion. Thus, for example, groundwater may dissolve the carbonate cement holding the sandstone particles together and then carry away the lax particles, gradually forming a void.

Occasionally a sinkhole may exhibit a visible opening into a cave below. In the case of exceptionally large sinkholes, such as the Miny sinkhole in Papua New Guinea or Cedar Sink at Mammoth Cave National Park in Kentucky, a stream or river may be visible across its bottom flowing from one side to the other.

Sinkholes are common where the rock below the land surface is limestone or other carbonate rock, salt beds, or rocks that can naturally be dissolved by circulating ground water. As the rock dissolves, spaces and caverns develop underground. These sinkholes can be dramatic, because the surface land usually stays intact until there is not enough support. Then, a sudden collapse of the land surface can occur.