The vast Shondong is the largest cave on Earth

Shondong is the largest cave in the world. It is so huge that it has a river, a jungle, and its own climate.

The largest cave in the world, called Shondong, is located in Phong Nya Kebang National Park in Vietnam. Hidden deep in the jungle, the entrance to the cave was discovered in 1991 by a local resident, but the steep descent and the roar of the rushing stream warned him to go inside. The cave gained international fame only in 2009, after Shondong was explored by a group of British scientists.

During the inspection of the cave, it was found that its size reaches record values-more than 5 kilometers in length, 200 meters in height and 150 meters in width. And the total volume of the cave is estimated at as much as 38.5 million square meters.

The cave is so large that it has its own microclimate: in Shondong, there is a jungle formed due to the light penetrating through the gaps in the vault, and even clouds. But this cave is famous not only for its record size. In Shondong, there are some of the highest stalagmites in the world, which reach a height of 70 meters.

And here they found cave pearls the size of a baseball, which is very abnormal. Cave pearls form in depressions on the floor under a constant drip. Drops falling from a sufficient height turn over the tiny balls of calcite, preventing them from "growing" to the base, and supply the material for crystallization.

Currently, access to the cave requires a permit, which is granted on a limited basis — in 2019 and 2020, no more than 1000 such permits will be issued. The tourist season here lasts from February to August.