Blue holes are huge underwater sinkholes that appear on the seafloor when the limestone bedrock collapses.
Some of the most famous blue holes are off Central America, especiallyBelizes Great Blue Hole.
Measurements of the holes depth and how current circulates through it werepublishedthis week in Frontiers in Marine Science.
Belize’s Great Blue Hole, pictured here, is probably the most recognizable blue hole. The newly discovered blue hole off the coast of Mexico is even deeper.Photo:The TerraMar Project
The Taam Ja Blue Hole is more than twice as deep as Deans Blue Hole.
The team specifically referenced Krubera-Voronya, the deepest-known cave, which is 7,188 feet (2,191 meters) deep.
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A 2023 survey found the hole was 900 feet deep; it’s now known to be over 1,300 feet deep.Graphic:Alcérreca-Huerta et al., Front. Mar. Sci. 2023
Location of the blue hole and images of it at (B) 16 feet deep, (C) 65 feet deep, and (D) 98 feet deep.Graphic:Alcérreca-Huerta et al., Front. Mar. Sci. 2024
