Did you know there’s a hole in the ocean so deep scientists can’t find the bottom of it?
Located in Mexico’s Chetumal Bay, it’s called the Taam Ja’ Blue Hole, and it’s at least 420 meters deep. At that depth, you could put the Empire State Building inside and only just see its tip poking out of the top.
Taam Ja’ goes even deeper, though. The last attempt to find the bottom failed. It remains anybody’s guess how far down it goes…
Here are 10 quick-fire facts about this geological marvel.
Interesting Facts About Taam Ja’
1. The name Taam Ja’ is a Mayan word that means “deep water.”
2. The hole was explored for the first time back in 2021 when a local fisherman led researchers to its location.
3. Researchers originally thought it was 274.4 meters deep, which made it the second-deepest blue hole in the world after the Dragon Hole in the South China Sea. Later investigations revealed it went even deeper, eclipsing all previous records.
4. The top of Taam Ja’ is an almost perfect circle that covers an area of almost 14,000 square meters. For reference,
5. The hole has layers of differing temperatures, one of which (at a depth of 400m) was roughly the same as you find in the Caribbean Sea. Could the two be connected beneath the ocean floor?
6. The seawater around the Taam Ja’ Blue Hole is only 5 meters deep. This “vertical cave” really does drop out of nowhere to unprecedented depths.
7. Steep sides slope at angles over 80 degrees, creating a large underwater conical structure.
8. Blue Holes form over innumerable generations from the dissolution of limestone. As the rock dissolves, a cavern forms. Eventually, the ceiling can’t support itself anymore, causing it to collapse. Some of these gaping chasms flooded after the ice age due to rising sea levels cause by melted ice caps.
9. Analysis of the water inside Taam Ja’ suggests the seawater is somewhat diluted.
10. Taam Ja’ may hold secrets to the earth’s climate eons ago. Blue Holes are also rich in biodiversity, so it likely provides a home to all sorts of marine life.
