Xianren Bridge () is a
natural arch
A natural arch, natural bridge, or (less commonly) rock arch is a natural landform where an arch has formed with an opening underneath. Natural arches commonly form where inland cliffs, coastal cliffs, fins or stacks are subject to erosion f ...
created by flowing water that has the world's longest recorded span.
Carved of
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 ...
karst
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 ro ...
, the formation bridges
Buliu River
Buliu River () or Buliuhe is a river beginning with the convergence of the Yuli and Anxiang rivers in Lingyun County and flowing a northeasterly direction before ultimately joining the Hongshui River just before the Longtan Dam. It is crossed by t ...
in the northern
Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region
Guangxi (; ; alternately romanized as Kwanghsi; ; za, Gvangjsih, italics=yes), officially the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region (GZAR), is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China, located in South China and bordering Vietnam ( ...
,
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 ...
. Because of its remote location, accessible only by a three-hour rafting trip, it was not discovered until recently and remains relatively obscure. An expedition in October 2010 by the
Natural Arch and Bridge Society
Nature, in the broadest sense, is the physical world or universe. "Nature" can refer to the phenomena of the physical world, and also to life in general. The study of nature is a large, if not the only, part of science. Although humans are ...
first measured the bridge's span and found it to be in length.
[Jett, Stephen ]
China Diary
The Natural Arch and Bridge Society
See also
*
List of longest natural arches
This list of longest natural arches ranks the world's natural arches by the length of their span as defined and measured by the Natural Arch and Bridge Society (NABS).
As a disclaimer, the NABS states that the information in this list, and theref ...
References
External links
Drone footage
{{10Arches
Natural arches of China
Landforms of Guangxi
Rock formations of China