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Sanmenhai
Sanmenhai is a cave in the Leye-Fengshan geopark in Guangxi, China. The cave is unique in that it features seven skylights that mimic the layout of the constellation Ursa Major (the Big Dipper). Etymology ''Sanmenhai'' translates into English as ''three doors accessible to the sea''. The cave is also known as ''Shuiyuandong'', meaning ''cave that produces water''. Location and geology Sanmenhai is located in Poxin, a village in Fengshan County, Guangxi. It is an outlet of the Poxin underground river, which formed during the Permian period. Exploration The seven skylights of the cave are designated Skylight I - Skylight VII. Skylights I - IV extend westward from the entrance of the cave. Sanmenhai is delimited by Skylight III, which divides the underground river into southeast and northwest sections. The southeast portion is accessible by tourists, and extends from the outlet to Skylight III. Only three of the seven skylights are accessible by boat on the underground ri ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fengshan County, Guangxi
Fengshan County (, zhuang: Fonghsan Yen) is a county of Guangxi, China. It is under the administration of Hechi City. Administrative divisions Fengshan has one town, Fengcheng (), and ten townships: *Paoli (袍里乡) *Zhaiya (砦牙乡) *Changzhou (长洲乡) *Qiaoyin (乔音乡) *Lintong (林峒乡) *Jinya (金牙瑶族乡) *Gengsha (更沙乡) *Zhongting (中亭乡) *Pingle (平乐瑶族乡) *Jiangzhou (江洲瑶族乡) Geography Fengshan County is located in the northwest of Guangxi. The county takes its name from the shape of the mountain range in this region, which resembles a phoenix spreading its wings. The county is situated on a variety of geological formations, including karst, which is a landscape formed from the dissolution of soluble rocks—including limestone, dolomite and gypsum—and is characterized by sinkholes, caves and underground drainage systems. Karst is a rare formation seen in only a few locations worldwide. Geographic features Fengshan County ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Geopark
A geopark is a protected area with internationally significant geology within which sustainable development is sought and which includes tourism, conservation, education and research concerning not just geology but other relevant sciences. In 2005, a European Geopark was defined as being: "a territory with a particular geological heritage and with a sustainable territorial development....the ultimate aim of a European Geopark is to bring enhanced employment opportunities for the people who live there." Today the geopark is virtually synonymous with the UNESCO geopark, which is defined and managed under the voluntary authority of UNESCO's International Geoscience and Geoparks Programme (IGGP). UNESCO provides a standard for geoparks and a certification service to parks that apply for it. The service is available to member states of UNESCO. This list is not the same as the member states of the United Nations. Membership in the UN does not automatically imply membership in UNESCO ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Guangxi
Guangxi (; ; Chinese postal romanization, alternately romanized as Kwanghsi; ; za, Gvangjsih, italics=yes), officially the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region (GZAR), is an Autonomous regions of China, autonomous region of the People's Republic of China, located in South China and bordering Vietnam (Hà Giang Province, Hà Giang, Cao Bằng Province, Cao Bằng, Lạng Sơn Province, Lạng Sơn, and Quảng Ninh Provinces) and the Gulf of Tonkin. Formerly a Provinces of China, province, Guangxi became an autonomous region in 1958. Its current capital is Nanning. Guangxi's location, in mountainous terrain in the far south of China, has placed it on the frontier of Chinese civilization throughout much of History of China, Chinese history. The current name "Guang" means "expanse" and has been associated with the region since the creation of Guang Prefecture in 226 AD. It was given Administrative divisions of the Yuan dynasty, provincial level status during the Yuan dynasty, but ev ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and borders fourteen countries by land, the most of any country in the world, tied with Russia. Covering an area of approximately , it is the world's third largest country by total land area. The country consists of 22 provinces, five autonomous regions, four municipalities, and two Special Administrative Regions (Hong Kong and Macau). The national capital is Beijing, and the most populous city and financial center is Shanghai. Modern Chinese trace their origins to a cradle of civilization in the fertile basin of the Yellow River in the North China Plain. The semi-legendary Xia dynasty in the 21st century BCE and the well-attested Shang and Zhou dynasties developed a bureaucratic political system to serve hereditary monarchies, or dyna ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ursa Major
Ursa Major (; also known as the Great Bear) is a constellation in the northern sky, whose associated mythology likely dates back into prehistory. Its Latin name means "greater (or larger) bear," referring to and contrasting it with nearby Ursa Minor, the lesser bear. In antiquity, it was one of the original 48 constellations listed by Ptolemy in the 2nd century AD, drawing on earlier works by Greek, Egyptian, Babylonian, and Assyrian astronomers. Today it is the third largest of the 88 modern constellations. Ursa Major is primarily known from the asterism of its main seven stars, which has been called the "Big Dipper," "the Wagon," "Charles's Wain," or "the Plough," among other names. In particular, the Big Dipper's stellar configuration mimics the shape of the "Little Dipper." Two of its stars, named Dubhe and Merak ( α Ursae Majoris and β Ursae Majoris), can be used as the navigational pointer towards the place of the current northern pole star, Polaris in Ursa Mino ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Underground River
A subterranean river is a river that runs wholly or partly beneath the ground surface – one where the riverbed does not represent the surface of the Earth. It is distinct from an aquifer, which may flow like a river but is contained within a permeable layer of rock or other unconsolidated materials. A river flowing below ground level in an open gorge is not classed as subterranean. Subterranean rivers may be entirely natural, flowing through cave systems. In karst topography, rivers may disappear through sinkholes, continuing underground. In some cases, they may emerge into daylight further downstream. The longest subterranean river in the world is the Sistema Sac Actun cave system in Mexico. Subterranean rivers can also be the result of covering over a river or diverting its flow into culverts, usually as part of urban development.Richard J. Heggen: Underground Rivers from the River Styx to the Rio San Buenaventura with Occasional Diversions'', University of New Mexico. Rever ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Permian
The Permian ( ) is a geologic period and stratigraphic system which spans 47 million years from the end of the Carboniferous Period million years ago (Mya), to the beginning of the Triassic Period 251.9 Mya. It is the last period of the Paleozoic Era; the following Triassic Period belongs to the Mesozoic Era. The concept of the Permian was introduced in 1841 by geologist Sir Roderick Murchison, who named it after the region of Perm in Russia. The Permian witnessed the diversification of the two groups of amniotes, the synapsids and the sauropsids ( reptiles). The world at the time was dominated by the supercontinent Pangaea, which had formed due to the collision of Euramerica and Gondwana during the Carboniferous. Pangaea was surrounded by the superocean Panthalassa. The Carboniferous rainforest collapse left behind vast regions of desert within the continental interior. Amniotes, which could better cope with these drier conditions, rose to dominance in place of their am ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Karst Topography
Karst is a topography formed from the dissolution of soluble rocks such as limestone, dolomite, and gypsum. It is characterized by underground drainage systems with sinkholes and caves. It has also been documented for more weathering-resistant rocks, such as quartzite, given the right conditions. Subterranean drainage may limit surface water, with few to no rivers or lakes. However, in regions where the dissolved bedrock is covered (perhaps by debris) or confined by one or more superimposed non-soluble rock strata, distinctive karst features may occur only at subsurface levels and can be totally missing above ground. The study of ''paleokarst'' (buried karst in the stratigraphic column) is important in petroleum geology because as much as 50% of the world's hydrocarbon reserves are hosted in carbonate rock, and much of this is found in porous karst systems. Etymology The English word ''karst'' was borrowed from German in the late 19th century, which entered German much earlier. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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