Sinkholes Explored

Nature never stops to amaze us with its beauty and how mysterious the formations are made.  One of the phenomenons that behold anyone that encounters it is the Sinkhole. A sinkhole, also known as a sink, shake hole, swallow hole, swallet, doline or cenote, is a natural depression or hole in the Earth’s surface caused by karst processes — the chemical dissolution of carbonate rocks or suffosion processes for example in sandstone. Sinkholes may vary in size from 1 to 600 meters (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.

How they are formed:

Sinkholes are formed when a swath of land collapsed, leaving behind a crater-like depression in the ground. Commonly it is said that a ground rich in limestone, carbonates and salt beds. When groundwater flows through these rocks, it eats away at them, leaving behind subterranean holes and caverns. When the roof of one of these caverns collapses, it takes the land above down with it.

Some of the famous Sinkholes in the world (Courtesy of National Geographic):

Lisbon, Portugal, in 2003.

Guatemala 2007

Winterpark, Florida 1981

Mulberry, Florida 1994

Bluehole, Belize

Picher, Oklahoma 2008

Iceland

Ik-Kil Cenote, Mexico

Neversink Pit, Alabama

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