Bournillon Cave
The Bournillon cave (French: grotte de Bournillon) is located in the ''commune'' of Châtelus in the Isère Department of France, in the Vercors Massif. Its entrance is high, and wide, and is the largest in Europe. It is one of the main karst springs of Vercors, with a maximum flow rate of per second, which feeds a hydroelectric plant. Description The main passage may be followed for over a kilometre to the Salle Terminale. Two short passages lead off from here, both terminating in sumps, where the passage disappears underwater. A passage in the west wall of the entrance porch joins the main passage via a ledge after some 600 metres. After four or five months of draught the sump in the right-hand passage leading off from the Salle Terminale drains, allowing access to further passages upstream. This section is dangerous in the event of storms. The Salle des Centaures, a chamber , is followed by a bedding passage leading to another gallery: Minos Centre. The following Galerie de ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Isère
Isère ( , ; frp, Isera; oc, Isèra, ) is a landlocked department in the southeastern French region of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. Named after the river Isère, it had a population of 1,271,166 in 2019.Populations légales 2019: 38 Isère INSEE Its prefecture is . It borders to the northwest, to the north, [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its Metropolitan France, metropolitan area extends from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean and from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea; overseas territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the North Atlantic, the French West Indies, and many islands in Oceania and the Indian Ocean. Due to its several coastal territories, France has the largest exclusive economic zone in the world. France borders Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, Switzerland, Monaco, Italy, Andorra, and Spain in continental Europe, as well as the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Netherlands, Suriname, and Brazil in the Americas via its overseas territories in French Guiana and Saint Martin (island), ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Châtelus, Isère
Châtelus is a commune in the Isère department in southeastern France. Population See also *Communes of the Isère department *Parc naturel régional du Vercors The Vercors Regional Natural Park (French: ''Parc naturel régional du Vercors'') is a protected area of forested mountains in the Rhône-Alpes region of southeastern France. Geography Set upon a limestone plateau south of Grenoble, the park ext ... References Communes of Isère {{Isère-geo-stub ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Vercors Massif
The Vercors Massif is a Mountain range, range in France consisting of rugged plateaus and mountains straddling the ''département in France, départements'' of Isère and Drôme in the French Prealps. It lies west of the Dauphiné Alps, from which it is separated by the rivers Drac (river), Drac and Isère (river), Isère. The cliffs at the massif's eastern limit face the city of Grenoble. Background Over time, various features of the complex geography have been recognised including, the Quatre Montagnes (four mountains), the Coulmes (gorges), the Vercors Drômois (Drome Vercors), the Hauts-Plateaux (high plateaus) and, in the foothills, Royans, Gervanne, Diois, and Trièves. The massif is sometimes called the "fortress." The movement of people tends to be between the massif and the surrounding plains rather than between the various parts of the massif itself. Until the mid twentieth century, the name ''Vercors'' was used to describe only the township of La Chapelle-en-Vercor ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Karst Spring
A karst spring or karstic spring is a spring (outflow of groundwater) that is part of a karst hydrological system. Description Because of their often conical or inverted bowl shape, karst springs are also known in German-speaking lands as a ''Topf'' ("pot") which is reflected in names such as Aachtopf (the source of the Radolfzeller Aach) or Blautopf (the source of the Blau river in Blaubeuren). Karst springs often have a very high yield or discharge rate, because they are often fed by underground drainage from a large catchment basin. Because the springs are usually the terminus of a cave drainage system at the place where a river cave reaches the Earth's surface, it is often possible to enter the caves from karst springs for exploration. Large karst springs are located in many parts of the world; the largest ones are believed to be in Papua New Guinea, with others located in Mediterranean countries such as Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Turkey, Slovenia, and Italy. Types ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Sump (cave)
A sump, or siphon, is a passage in a cave that is submerged under water. A sump may be static, with no inward or outward flow, or active, with continuous through-flow. Static sumps may also be connected underwater to active stream passage. When short in length, a sump may be called a duck, however this can also refer to a section or passage with some (minimal) airspace above the water. Depending on hydrological factors specific to a cave – such as the sea tide, changes in river flow, or the relationship with the local water table – sumps and ducks may fluctuate in water level and depth (and sometimes in length, due to the shape of adjacent passage). Exploration past a sump Diving Short sumps may be passed simply by holding one's breath while ducking through the submerged section (for example, Sump 1 in Swildon's Hole). This is known as "free diving" and can only be attempted if the sump is known to be short and not technically difficult (e.g. constricted or requiring nav ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Vassieux-en-Vercors
Vassieux-en-Vercors is a commune in the department of Drôme in southeastern France. The town is known for its assistance to the French Resistance during World War II, for which it was awarded the Ordre de la Libération. Geography The village is built on a polje of limestone and dominated by a vast Karst landscape. This polje lies on a syncline generally known as the "Plateau de Vassieux". The Plateau de Vassieux is the site of numerous other karst phenomena, such as limestone pavements and caves, which are studied and explored by local speleology groups. History Vassieux-en-Vercors is home to several prehistoric archaeological sites, and has a Museum of Prehistory which was created in May 1970 after the discovery of a flintknapping workshop. In June and July 1944, during the Second World War, the French Resistance, known as the Maquis du Vercors, staged a major uprising against the German occupation in Vercors Massif, Vercors and proclaimed the Free Republic of Vercors. I ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Isère (river)
The Isère ( , ; frp, Isera; oc, Isèra) is a river in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of southeastern France. Its source, a glacier known as the ''Sources de l'Isère'', lies in the Vanoise National Park in the Graian Alps of Savoie, near the ski resort in Val-d'Isère on the border with Italy. An important left-bank tributary of the Rhône, the Isère merges with it a few kilometers north of Valence. Many riverside communes have incorporated the Isère's name into their own, for example, Sainte-Hélène-sur-Isère and Romans-sur-Isère. The department of Isère is likewise named after the river. Etymology The name ''Isère'' was first recorded under the form ''Isara'', which means "the impetuous one, the swift one." Not originally a Celtic word, it was very likely assimilated by the Celts in ancient times. This word is related to the Indo-European ''*isərós'', meaning "impetuous, quick, vigorous," which is similar to the Sanskrit ''isiráḥ'' इसिरः อิส ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Rhône
The Rhône ( , ; wae, Rotten ; frp, Rôno ; oc, Ròse ) is a major river in France and Switzerland, rising in the Alps and flowing west and south through Lake Geneva and southeastern France before discharging into the Mediterranean Sea. At Arles, near its mouth, the river divides into the Great Rhône (french: le Grand Rhône, links=no) and the Little Rhône (). The resulting delta forms the Camargue region. The river's source is the Rhône Glacier, at the east edge of the Swiss canton of Valais. The glacier is part of the Saint-Gotthard Massif, which gives rise to three other major rivers: the Reuss, Rhine and Ticino. The Rhône is, with the Po and Nile, one of the three Mediterranean rivers with the largest water discharge. Etymology The name ''Rhône'' continues the Latin name (Greek ) in Greco-Roman geography. The Gaulish name of the river was or (from a PIE root *''ret-'' "to run, roll" frequently found in river names). Names in other languages include german: R ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Urgonian Limestone
The Urgonian Limestone is a geologic formation in France. It preserves fossils dating back to the Cretaceous period Period may refer to: Common uses * Era, a length or span of time * Full stop (or period), a punctuation mark Arts, entertainment, and media * Period (music), a concept in musical composition * Periodic sentence (or rhetorical period), a concept .... Some parts of the limestone have undergone metamorphism to produce ductile folds next to faults. See also * List of fossiliferous stratigraphic units in France References External links * Geologic formations of France Jurassic France Limestone formations {{Cretaceous-stub ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |