Lapa Terra Ronca or Caverna Terra Ronca I (GO-063), is a

dolomitic Dolomite () is an anhydrous carbonate mineral composed of calcium magnesium carbonate, ideally The term is also used for a sedimentary carbonate rock composed mostly of the mineral dolomite. An alternative name sometimes used for the dolomiti ...

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

cave inside the area of the

Terra Ronca State Park The Terra Ronca State Park was created by decree nr. 10,879 of 7 July 1989 and had its area and boundaries established by decree nr. 4,700 of 21 August 1996, covering the municipality of São Domingos. Around the state park they created the envi ...

, which houses the largest collection of caves and

grotto A grotto is a natural or artificial cave used by humans in both modern times and antiquity, and historically or prehistorically. Naturally occurring grottoes are often small caves near water that are usually flooded or often flooded at high ti ...

es in the midwest with a number of about 200 being that only Terra Ronca and Angelica are open for the tourists. It is located about 400 kilometers from

Brasília Brasília (; ) is the federal capital of Brazil and seat of government of the Federal District. The city is located at the top of the Brazilian highlands in the country's Central-West region. It was founded by President Juscelino Kubitsche ...

, midway between the municipalities of São Domingos,

Posse Posse is a shortened form of posse comitatus, a group of people summoned to assist law enforcement. The term is also used colloquially to mean a group of friends or associates. Posse may also refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Posse'' (1975 ...

Guarani de Goiás Guarani de Goiás is a municipality in eastern Goiás state, Brazil. Guarani is a very poor municipality in the northeast of the state. Geography Guarani belongs to the Vão do Paranã statistical microregion. There are municipal boundaries wi ...

, in the

State of Goiás State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

. Thousands of years ago, a landslide caused its division into two parts. The first can be visited easily, but the second part requires a tour guide. It's called ''Terra Ronca II'' or ''Malhada'', also of gigantic proportions. It has two skylights, one of them called ''Araras'' and a large gallery called Lovers' Hall decorated with rich

stalactite A stalactite (, ; from the Greek 'stalaktos' ('dripping') via ''stalassein'' ('to drip') is a mineral formation that hangs from the ceiling of caves, hot springs, or man-made structures such as bridges and mines. Any material that is soluble an ...

s and

stalagmite A stalagmite (, ; from the Greek , from , "dropping, trickling") is a type of rock formation that rises from the floor of a cave due to the accumulation of material deposited on the floor from ceiling drippings. Stalagmites are typically ...

s and huge sand dunes crossed by the underground Lapa river.

Geology

Indeed, geologists working for the state park say that the whole area where the cave is located was sea bottom about 600 million years, considering the many sea shells found around the area. It was formed by the continuous action of rain water and the

Lapa River The Lapa River ( es, Río Lapa) is a river of Cayey and Salinas, Puerto Rico. See also *List of rivers of Puerto Rico A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may also refer to: People * List (surname) Organizations * List ...

that comes down from the

Serra Geral The Serra Geral (General Mountains) is a mountain range in southern Brazil, constituting the southern portion of the Serra do Mar system which runs along Brazil's southeastern coast. The Serra Geral runs parallel to the Atlantic coast in Santa ...

. Its name comes from the roaring sound produced by this river running through its long route the two craters on the surface arisen from seismic activity millions of years ago, many halls of stalactites and stalagmites of impressive dimensions of up to and columns with more than 590 meters high. Terra Ronca has a cave mouth of high and wide, with an altar measuring long and high where the religious ceremony of Bom Jesus da Lapa da Terra Ronca takes place at the beginning of August. The ''Salão dos Namorados'' (

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

: Lovers Hall), besides the ceiling of the cave shaped in the form of a clock, the Oco das Araras, a fantastic place where many parrots live, and ''Clarabóia'', another output of Terra Ronca for those who do not want to stay longer inside the cave are other highlights found here. There are several other output options like the ''Pesqueiro'' 1 and 2.

References

External links

Base de Dados do Ministerio do Meio Hambiente
Governo Federal - ICMBIO Official Website {{DEFAULTSORT:Lapa Terra Ronca Caves of Goiás Limestone caves Wild caves Show caves in Brazil Sinkholes of South America Tourist attractions in Goiás