For the unfamiliar, tepuis are table-top mountains that are difficult to access because of the sheer cliffs that surround them - sometimes 3,000 metres (or 10,000 feet) high. Across their summits and deep within their caverns, lush habitats have been evolving in isolation, which makes them prime areas for study. Speleologist Francesco Sauro from the University of Bologna in Italy is leading the expedition, after recently finishing a 40-day research trip through the Imawarì Yeuta tepui in Venezuela, where there are more than 22 kilometres (14 miles) of caves and tunnels. Sauro himself describes the caves as "a completely different world" and "like islands in time." Two mountain environments can develop very differently because they evolve in isolation, which means expert explorers are never quite sure what to expect until they get there. The Amazon explorers want to understand more about how life exists and evolves in these mysterious environments, and more trips are already planned. Previously unclassified types of bacteria have already been spotted in preliminary studies of the data from Venezuela, though we'll have to wait for the full report to see how useful they might be to the world of science. "Every expedition reveals new geological and biological environments hidden underground," Sauro wrote for The Guardian back in 2014. "In effect, it's like exploring a new world, your next step visible thanks only to your lamp." Via: http://www.sciencealert.com/
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Helena MatiasEditor Archives
April 2024
Please take a look below at the amazing work of Author and researcher Stephen Quayle
Categories
All
|