나이카(Naica)
멕시코 북서부 치와와(치후아후아) 주에 있는 마을.
광산지대로 수정동굴(Cave of the Crystals)이 유명하다.
Naica is a town in the Mexican state of Chihuahua. It is located in the municipality of Saucillo. As of 2010, the town of Naica had a population of 4,938, up from 4,775 in the 2005 INEGI Census. It is a mining town and the location of the renowned Naica Mine.
수정동굴(Cave of the Crystals)
Cave of the Crystals or Giant Crystal Cave(Spanish: Cueva de los cristales) is a cave connected to the Naica Mine at a depth of 300 metres (980 ft), in Naica, Chihuahua, Mexico. It takes the form of a chamber within the limestone host rock of the mine, and is about 109-metre (358 ft) long with a volume of 5,000 to 6,000 cubic metres (180,000 to 210,000 cu ft).
The chamber contains giant selenite crystals(gypsum, CaSO4 · 2 H2O), some of the largest natural crystals ever found. The largest is 11.40 metres (37.4 ft), with a volume of about 5 cubic metres (180 cu ft), and an estimated mass of 12 tonnes. When it was accessible, the cave was extremely hot, with air temperatures reaching up to 58 °C (136 °F) with 90 to 99 percent humidity. The cave is relatively unexplored because of these factors. Without proper protection, people can only endure approximately ten minutes of exposure at a time.
The cave was discovered in April 2000 by brothers Juan and Pedro Sanchez while drilling in the mine. As of October 2015, the mine had reflooded and the cavern filled once more with the water rich in minerals required for the crystals to grow.
A group of scientists in the Naica Project have been studying these caverns.