While human being have been drawn tocavesfor millennia — as shelters , burial places , and mythological portal to the underworld — the gilt age of cave exploration dawned only in the preceding several decades : Many of the world ’s most telling caveshave only beendiscovered since the 1960s .
Whether you ’re a spelunker ( an amateur caver knocking about ) or a professional speleologist documenting cave unknown toscience , here are eight of the world ’s heavy caves to add to your pail tilt .
1. Son Doong Cave // Vietnam
Discovered by timber harvester Ho Khanh in the early nineties but undiscovered until 2009 [ PDF ] , Son Doong Cave in the remote jungles of Vietnam holds the title of the largest cave in the mankind by bulk . Son Doong is a sprawling connection of tunnel and caverns , the big of which could contain an total New York City block everlasting with 40 - chronicle buildings , according to a 2015 National Geographic hostile expedition . department of the cave ’s ceiling have give , creating prodigious fanlight squall “ dolines ” that provide life to flourish hundreds of feet beneath the forest storey . If you ca n’t make it to Vietnam , explore Son Doong on this spectacular360 - degree virtual tour .
2. Mammoth Cave // Kentucky, United States
Mammoth Cave in Kentucky is the longest cave organisation in the world as of 2023 , with426 milesexplored — and scientist approximate another 600 nautical mile have yet to be unwrap based on mensuration of line motion within the caves . Mammoth Cave has drawn visitant since the 1800s , and 10 miles ofunderground passagesare approachable to tourer today . Frequent melodious events and an one-year “ cave sing ” concert spotlight the cave ’s remarkable acoustical properties .
3. Veryovkina Cave // Abkhazia, Georgia
Veryovkina is the deepest cave in the world , stretching1.4 milesbeneath the surface . It takes professional spelunker about a week to descend all the agency and repay , braving waterfalls , tight squeeze , and sheer drops . But the proceeds is idyllic — Veryovkina cave ’s terminus is a “ beautiful turquoise lake ” about 50 feet long and 25 feet spacious “ besiege by spurt - bleak limestone , ” cave lensman Robbie ShonetoldNational Geographic .
4. Sac Actun // Mexico
The longest underwater cave system in the macrocosm , Sac Actun winds more than235 milesunder Mexico ’s Yucatán peninsula . The adventurous can take a angle of dip in the Sac Actun arrangement via more than 228 cenotes — naturally occurring swim pools that shape when sinkholes connect the surface to the underwater caves .
5. Derinkuyu // Türkiye
Rediscoveredin 1963after a secret citizen ’s dwelling overhaul , Derinkuyu is believed to be the largest hand - carved cave system in the world . The monumental subterranean urban center was excavated in the region ’s subdued volcanic ash rock during the 1st millennia BCE , when a revolving doorway of invaders made an underground retirement an plus . Researchers estimate Derinkuyu could house up to 20,000 hoi polloi along with stock and food stores . The composite was build to withstand siege — it ’s equipped with elaborate ventilation shafts and deep well in addition to creature comforts like chapels and wine presses .
6. Jewel Cave // South Dakota, United States
Over215 milesof the Jewel Cave system have been mapped to appointment , agree to the National Park Service—99 percent of which has been explored since 1959 . It ’s a “ breathing cave , ” have in mind the cave waiver or sucks in air as the open pressure level changes with the weather . The cave occupy its name from faceted quartz called calcite spars that stud the walls . Jewel Cave is also the only place in the earth where the populace can viewhydromagnesite balloon , a rock music formation that bet like thedeflated aftermathof a pit party .
7. Ox Bel Ha // Mexico
A penny-pinching neighbor to Sac Actun in Mexico ’s Yucatán peninsula , Ox Bel Ha spans just over197miles of submerged passages — but you did n’t always take a bathing suit to chaffer . During the most recent ice age , between 25,000 and 18,000 years ago , ocean levels were more than a hundred foot lower near Mexico and the caves were teetotal and approachable to humans . Archaeologists have found soot from ancient fires in Ox Bel Ha and three purposeful burials of human remains , suggesting aritual significanceto the site . spelaeologist conceive Ox Bel Ha and Sac Actun are in all probability connect — finding a link between the two would rocket the combine system to the status of largest cave in the earthly concern .
8. Lechuguilla Cave // New Mexico, United States
Lechuguilla Cave started its career as “ Misery Hole , ” a 90 - foot pit in southeast New Mexico where miner extract squash racquet guano for utilisation in fertiliser and explosives . It was n’t until 1984 that cavers received approval from the National Park Service to follow up on the source of a mysterious breeze emanating from the cave flooring . In 2023 , Lechuguilla is considered the world ’s eighth longest spelunk with more than 150 mile explore . Lechuguilla is home to a variety of speleothems — fancifully mold mineral deposit — likecavepearls , U - loop-the-loop , and the iconic Chandelier Ballroom , with the world ’s largest known gypsum stalactites .
