8 ms·

New cave found in Vietnam: "A skyscraper could fit"

318 points by cwan 16y ago

t3rcio 16y ago
It's like a Prehistoric cenaries
veb 16y ago
Oh wow at the Jungle inside it... that's pretty amazing. I don't think I've ever seen such a beautiful cave.
rrival 16y ago
This isn't reddit
- tptacek 16y ago
  New scientific discoveries are virtually always germane to HN.
  - secretasiandan 16y ago
    A link to the article text rather than the photo gallery might be more appropriate http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/print/2011/01/largest-cave/jenkins-text http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/print/2011/01/largest-cave...
    - jameskilton 16y ago
      Link that doesn't try to print the page: http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/jenkins-text http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/jenki...
  - deleted 16y ago
    [deleted]
  - rrival 16y ago
    Love new scientific discoveries, just haven't seen a lot of gallery links here and recall that that's a leading indicator of content noise ratio increase. Thanks for posting the direct article link.
frou_dh 16y ago
That's gorgeous. Reminds me of the kind of scenes you see in adventuring video games, only more intricate.
- deleted 16y ago
  [deleted]
- cubicle67 16y ago
  I just hope no one in Hollywood sees these and decides that'd be a cool location for a movie
  - CamperBob 16y ago
    Does anyone even bother to shoot on location anymore?
    - cubicle67 16y ago
      I was thinking of the movie "The Beach" when I wrote that. As I remember, hollywood execs decided the idyllic location (a remote Thai beach) wasn't idyllic enough, and bulldozed large sections of it to improve it
jcfrei 16y ago
I wonder how they took the pictures. Was there enough light in the cave thru some holes in the ceiling? Did they install huge lamps or did they use a very long exposure (seems unlikely by looking at the people). either way stunning and surreal photographs!
- ramidarigaz 16y ago
  I think a really bright flash is sufficient.
  - pmjordan 16y ago
    Not for that sort of size. Light intensity drops at inverse square of distance, reflected light intensity falls off at up to 1/r^4. I suspect a combination of massive floodlights and long/multiple exposure.
    - wiredfool 16y ago
      Actually, they _are_ probably using multiple really freaking bright flashes, or rather flash bulbs. There are still some around that blow away anything else you can get down into a cave for a power/size ratio. Think streetlight sized bulbs filled with magnesium. There's probably some light painting going on as well with (bright) flashlights and long exposures. The 1/r^4 really only applies if the light is coming from the camera position, and is unfocused. If you're illuminating the subject from another location, the only worry you really have is the 1/r^2 from the source to the lit object.
- xtacy 16y ago
  For long exposures, depending on the exposure time, the people could just walk away to avoid excessive ghosts. In one of the pictures (7th pic), one could see a translucent backpack, which in fact suggests long exposure.
- jonknee 16y ago
  Different techniques depending on the photo, but for any of the shots with vegetation you know there is decent light at least some of the day.
Mithrandir 16y ago
http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2054401 http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2054401
joshfraser 16y ago
Beautiful. This is the first time I've ever wanted to visit Vietnam.
- oliverdamian 16y ago
  Yes Vietnam is definitely amazing. Ha Long Bay http://goo.gl/yu0hj http://goo.gl/yu0hj is another magical place there...
- bbgm 16y ago
  It's a beautiful country. You should definitely visit. I lived there in the 80's and driving from Ho Chi Minh City to Hanoi and back was quite a fabulous journey
- prawn 16y ago
  Get over there - worth seeing. Don't miss Halong Bay: http://www.google.com.au/images?q=halong+bay http://www.google.com.au/images?q=halong+bay
kylelibra 16y ago
Isn't this part of the plot of Neal Stephenson's Cryptonomicon? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cryptonomicon http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cryptonomicon
- benatkin 16y ago
  Close enough. :)
- WildUtah 16y ago
  That was in the Philippines. Totally different.
  - kylelibra 16y ago
    I remembered it was somewhere in southeast Asia and then I remembered there was something about Vietnam. I didn't put the whole thing together until a while after I posted the comment. Great book though.
  - tsotha 16y ago
    Also... no gold :(
  - wyclif 16y ago
    There are a lot of caves in the Philippines that were used by the Japanese when the Imperial Army was routed by US/Filipino forces. Recently I was on the island of Bohol where we went mountain climbing and found a cave with Japanese pottery shards still on the floor.
harscoat 16y ago
Even after reading the text version, wondering how come these caves were not discovered before, especially after such a military focus on the region.
- smhinsey 16y ago
  I'm confused because I have seen old episodes of Explorer and similar shows about them. I'm trying to figure out if it was the same chain of caves or not, but I remember a show dedicated to one cave system that had been turned into a massive fortress that the US basically had no choice but to ignore during the Vietnam war.
- yummyfajitas 16y ago
  In the caption of the 5'th picture, they say the Viet Cong hid in the caves.
dfhtkyu 16y ago
----- http://www.etradinglife.com http://www.etradinglife.com ------ ----- http://www.etradinglife.com http://www.etradinglife.com ------ ----- http://www.etradinglife.com http://www.etradinglife.com ------ ----- http://www.etradinglife.com http://www.etradinglife.com ------ ----- http://www.etradinglife.com http://www.etradinglife.com ------ ----- http://www.etradinglife.com http://www.etradinglife.com ------ ----- http://www.etradinglife.com http://www.etradinglife.com ------ ----- http://www.etradinglife.com http://www.etradinglife.com ------
rickmode 16y ago
A real-life "Center of the Earth"! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Journey_to_the_Center_of_the_Earth http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Journey_to_the_Center_of_the_...
- rue 16y ago
  There's also the cave-related https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/The_Descent_(novel) https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/The_Descent_(... which I quite enjoyed.
TGJ 16y ago
It's almost painful to see them drilling holes into the rock face. I understand the need but a part of me wants to get all greenpeace and kick the human invaders out.
- sliverstorm 16y ago
  Don't worry. When we're talking cave time & scale, a few holes drilled in the rock is a drop in the bucket. It's really only when you have unusually numerous human visitors, particularly the oils from their hands, that kill caves. I understand your sentiment, but caves are a geologic phenomenon, and on that scale this is not even a geologic blink. So breathe easy, and save the torches & pitchforks for when they want to turn it into an amusement park :)
- shimonamit 16y ago
  Yes, it was a sour-face moment when I saw that. In fact I came back to HN to see if anyone else saw it. The hidden majesty and serenity of nature, suddenly revealed, is defiled by our invasive devices.
  - alex_stoddard 16y ago
    And yet that majesty and serenity only really exist when we can see it and access it. As others have said it would be bad to turn it into a theme park but simple exploration demands some "invasive" measures.
erreon 16y ago
It's amazing and kind of freaky how often explorers still find new things on Earth. I cannot wait for more money to be spent on undersea exploration.
epochwolf 16y ago
The photo gallery requires flash which my iPad does not have. :(
- cubicle67 16y ago
  nor does mine, but this is one of those cases where it's worth the effort of dragging yourself across to a machine that does (and I'm sure you've got one). trust me.
- B79 16y ago
  Try these jpg files: http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/01-vietnam-cave-714.jpg http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/0... http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/02-rapel-vert-714.jpg http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/0... http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/03-largest-subterrainian-passage-714.jpg http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/0... http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/04-jungle-inside-cave-714.jpg http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/0... http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/05-phong-nha-bang-mist-714.jpg http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/0... http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/06-hang-en-714.jpg http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/0... http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/07-headroom-shrinking-714.jpg http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/0... http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/08-fluted-limestone-wall-714.jpg http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/0... http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/09-forest-cave-entrance-714.jpg http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/0... http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/10-greenery-rimstone-714.jpg http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/1... http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/11-rare-cave-pearls-714.jpg http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/1... http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/12-algae-skinned-maze-714.jpg http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/1... http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/13-han-son-doong-skylight-714.jpg http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/1... http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/14-passing-great-wall-714.jpg http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/1... http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/15-great-wall-vietnam-714.jpg http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/1... http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/16-waterfall-714.jpg http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/1... http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/17-passable-dry-season-714.jpg http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/1... http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/18-hang-loong-con-714.jpg http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/1... http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/19-stalagmites-714.jpg http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/1...
shkb 16y ago
Nice 3D fly-through. Nat geo also made a documentary about surveying the cave (World's Biggest Cave). http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o-iZ6WJeqhE http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o-iZ6WJeqhE
slacker2 16y ago
I would love to find the set of pictures in hi-res.
chanux 16y ago
Brings back memories. I've been in a similar (very) small scale limestone cave in Sri Lanka. The entrance, the great wall, the waterfall and the cactus garden were some very similar to what I see in photos. Unfortunately I couldn't take any good pics with the point and shoot and the flash light I had at the time. Above the cave was a forest with huge trees. There was a stream going through the cave and in rainy season it makes it impossible to go inside the cave, just like in 'Hang Son Doong'. Sorry for the useless rant. I was too excited :) Some not so detailed pics of Wawulpana I found in the Internet. http://pics.kathe13.de/thumbnails.php?album=40 http://pics.kathe13.de/thumbnails.php?album=40 And some more information http://www.srilankanwaterfalls.net/waterfalls/wawulpana.htm http://www.srilankanwaterfalls.net/waterfalls/wawulpana.htm
jarin 16y ago
Amazing natural wonder. Although I will say that a small part of me wants to see it transformed into a real-life version of Ironforge.
- andreyf 16y ago
  Although I will say that a small part of me wants to see it transformed into a real-life version of Ironforge. One would hope that labor laws would prevent you from building something of the sort via manual labor, but what about robots of some sort?

318 points by cwan 16y ago

t3rcio 16y ago

It's like a Prehistoric cenaries

veb 16y ago

Oh wow at the Jungle inside it... that's pretty amazing. I don't think I've ever seen such a beautiful cave.

rrival 16y ago

This isn't reddit

tptacek 16y ago
New scientific discoveries are virtually always germane to HN.
- secretasiandan 16y ago
  A link to the article text rather than the photo gallery might be more appropriate http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/print/2011/01/largest-cave/jenkins-text http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/print/2011/01/largest-cave...
  - jameskilton 16y ago
    Link that doesn't try to print the page: http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/jenkins-text http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/jenki...
- deleted 16y ago
  [deleted]
- rrival 16y ago
  Love new scientific discoveries, just haven't seen a lot of gallery links here and recall that that's a leading indicator of content noise ratio increase. Thanks for posting the direct article link.

frou_dh 16y ago

That's gorgeous. Reminds me of the kind of scenes you see in adventuring video games, only more intricate.

deleted 16y ago
[deleted]
cubicle67 16y ago
I just hope no one in Hollywood sees these and decides that'd be a cool location for a movie
- CamperBob 16y ago
  Does anyone even bother to shoot on location anymore?
  - cubicle67 16y ago
    I was thinking of the movie "The Beach" when I wrote that. As I remember, hollywood execs decided the idyllic location (a remote Thai beach) wasn't idyllic enough, and bulldozed large sections of it to improve it

jcfrei 16y ago

I wonder how they took the pictures. Was there enough light in the cave thru some holes in the ceiling? Did they install huge lamps or did they use a very long exposure (seems unlikely by looking at the people). either way stunning and surreal photographs!

ramidarigaz 16y ago
I think a really bright flash is sufficient.
- pmjordan 16y ago
  Not for that sort of size. Light intensity drops at inverse square of distance, reflected light intensity falls off at up to 1/r^4. I suspect a combination of massive floodlights and long/multiple exposure.
  - wiredfool 16y ago
    Actually, they _are_ probably using multiple really freaking bright flashes, or rather flash bulbs. There are still some around that blow away anything else you can get down into a cave for a power/size ratio. Think streetlight sized bulbs filled with magnesium. There's probably some light painting going on as well with (bright) flashlights and long exposures. The 1/r^4 really only applies if the light is coming from the camera position, and is unfocused. If you're illuminating the subject from another location, the only worry you really have is the 1/r^2 from the source to the lit object.
xtacy 16y ago
For long exposures, depending on the exposure time, the people could just walk away to avoid excessive ghosts. In one of the pictures (7th pic), one could see a translucent backpack, which in fact suggests long exposure.
jonknee 16y ago
Different techniques depending on the photo, but for any of the shots with vegetation you know there is decent light at least some of the day.

Mithrandir 16y ago

http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2054401 http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2054401

joshfraser 16y ago

Beautiful. This is the first time I've ever wanted to visit Vietnam.

oliverdamian 16y ago
Yes Vietnam is definitely amazing. Ha Long Bay http://goo.gl/yu0hj http://goo.gl/yu0hj is another magical place there...
bbgm 16y ago
It's a beautiful country. You should definitely visit. I lived there in the 80's and driving from Ho Chi Minh City to Hanoi and back was quite a fabulous journey
prawn 16y ago
Get over there - worth seeing. Don't miss Halong Bay: http://www.google.com.au/images?q=halong+bay http://www.google.com.au/images?q=halong+bay

kylelibra 16y ago

Isn't this part of the plot of Neal Stephenson's Cryptonomicon? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cryptonomicon http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cryptonomicon

benatkin 16y ago
Close enough. :)
WildUtah 16y ago
That was in the Philippines. Totally different.
- kylelibra 16y ago
  I remembered it was somewhere in southeast Asia and then I remembered there was something about Vietnam. I didn't put the whole thing together until a while after I posted the comment. Great book though.
- tsotha 16y ago
  Also... no gold :(
- wyclif 16y ago
  There are a lot of caves in the Philippines that were used by the Japanese when the Imperial Army was routed by US/Filipino forces. Recently I was on the island of Bohol where we went mountain climbing and found a cave with Japanese pottery shards still on the floor.

harscoat 16y ago

Even after reading the text version, wondering how come these caves were not discovered before, especially after such a military focus on the region.

smhinsey 16y ago
I'm confused because I have seen old episodes of Explorer and similar shows about them. I'm trying to figure out if it was the same chain of caves or not, but I remember a show dedicated to one cave system that had been turned into a massive fortress that the US basically had no choice but to ignore during the Vietnam war.
yummyfajitas 16y ago
In the caption of the 5'th picture, they say the Viet Cong hid in the caves.

dfhtkyu 16y ago

----- http://www.etradinglife.com http://www.etradinglife.com ------ ----- http://www.etradinglife.com http://www.etradinglife.com ------ ----- http://www.etradinglife.com http://www.etradinglife.com ------ ----- http://www.etradinglife.com http://www.etradinglife.com ------ ----- http://www.etradinglife.com http://www.etradinglife.com ------ ----- http://www.etradinglife.com http://www.etradinglife.com ------ ----- http://www.etradinglife.com http://www.etradinglife.com ------ ----- http://www.etradinglife.com http://www.etradinglife.com ------

rickmode 16y ago

A real-life "Center of the Earth"! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Journey_to_the_Center_of_the_Earth http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Journey_to_the_Center_of_the_...

rue 16y ago
There's also the cave-related https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/The_Descent_(novel) https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/The_Descent_(... which I quite enjoyed.

TGJ 16y ago

It's almost painful to see them drilling holes into the rock face. I understand the need but a part of me wants to get all greenpeace and kick the human invaders out.

sliverstorm 16y ago
Don't worry. When we're talking cave time & scale, a few holes drilled in the rock is a drop in the bucket. It's really only when you have unusually numerous human visitors, particularly the oils from their hands, that kill caves. I understand your sentiment, but caves are a geologic phenomenon, and on that scale this is not even a geologic blink. So breathe easy, and save the torches & pitchforks for when they want to turn it into an amusement park :)
shimonamit 16y ago
Yes, it was a sour-face moment when I saw that. In fact I came back to HN to see if anyone else saw it. The hidden majesty and serenity of nature, suddenly revealed, is defiled by our invasive devices.
- alex_stoddard 16y ago
  And yet that majesty and serenity only really exist when we can see it and access it. As others have said it would be bad to turn it into a theme park but simple exploration demands some "invasive" measures.

erreon 16y ago

It's amazing and kind of freaky how often explorers still find new things on Earth. I cannot wait for more money to be spent on undersea exploration.

epochwolf 16y ago

The photo gallery requires flash which my iPad does not have. :(

cubicle67 16y ago
nor does mine, but this is one of those cases where it's worth the effort of dragging yourself across to a machine that does (and I'm sure you've got one). trust me.
B79 16y ago
Try these jpg files: http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/01-vietnam-cave-714.jpg http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/0... http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/02-rapel-vert-714.jpg http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/0... http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/03-largest-subterrainian-passage-714.jpg http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/0... http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/04-jungle-inside-cave-714.jpg http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/0... http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/05-phong-nha-bang-mist-714.jpg http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/0... http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/06-hang-en-714.jpg http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/0... http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/07-headroom-shrinking-714.jpg http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/0... http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/08-fluted-limestone-wall-714.jpg http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/0... http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/09-forest-cave-entrance-714.jpg http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/0... http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/10-greenery-rimstone-714.jpg http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/1... http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/11-rare-cave-pearls-714.jpg http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/1... http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/12-algae-skinned-maze-714.jpg http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/1... http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/13-han-son-doong-skylight-714.jpg http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/1... http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/14-passing-great-wall-714.jpg http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/1... http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/15-great-wall-vietnam-714.jpg http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/1... http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/16-waterfall-714.jpg http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/1... http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/17-passable-dry-season-714.jpg http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/1... http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/18-hang-loong-con-714.jpg http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/1... http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/19-stalagmites-714.jpg http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/01/largest-cave/img/1...

shkb 16y ago

Nice 3D fly-through. Nat geo also made a documentary about surveying the cave (World's Biggest Cave). http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o-iZ6WJeqhE http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o-iZ6WJeqhE

slacker2 16y ago

I would love to find the set of pictures in hi-res.

chanux 16y ago

Brings back memories. I've been in a similar (very) small scale limestone cave in Sri Lanka. The entrance, the great wall, the waterfall and the cactus garden were some very similar to what I see in photos. Unfortunately I couldn't take any good pics with the point and shoot and the flash light I had at the time. Above the cave was a forest with huge trees. There was a stream going through the cave and in rainy season it makes it impossible to go inside the cave, just like in 'Hang Son Doong'. Sorry for the useless rant. I was too excited :) Some not so detailed pics of Wawulpana I found in the Internet. http://pics.kathe13.de/thumbnails.php?album=40 http://pics.kathe13.de/thumbnails.php?album=40 And some more information http://www.srilankanwaterfalls.net/waterfalls/wawulpana.htm http://www.srilankanwaterfalls.net/waterfalls/wawulpana.htm

jarin 16y ago

Amazing natural wonder. Although I will say that a small part of me wants to see it transformed into a real-life version of Ironforge.

andreyf 16y ago
Although I will say that a small part of me wants to see it transformed into a real-life version of Ironforge. One would hope that labor laws would prevent you from building something of the sort via manual labor, but what about robots of some sort?