Deep underground, plunging 1604ft (489m) beneath the Chihuahuan Desert in southern New Mexico, lies the Lechuguilla Cave, a cavern which stretches on for 149 miles (240km). There is no light, and little to eat either. Any living thing must eke out an existence under conditions of near starvation.
"You can go in an entrance and travel for 16 hours in one direction before you get to the end of it," says Hazel Barton, professor of geological sciences at the University of Alabama.
"So you're a very, very, very long way from the entrance. You're isolated, and there are places in that cave where more people have walked on the moon than have been in that area."
The bacteria also have an even more surprising trick up their sleeve – they are resistant to most antibiotics, despite the fact that they have been trapped in a cave that formed six million years ago, most of which was completely sealed off from humans until 1986. Not only is this resistance a remarkable natural phenomenon, it is now helping guide researchers to drugs that can withstand the onslaught of antimicrobial resistance in modern medicine.
Wonder how long it's going to take for some idiot to get himself wedged into a fissure in there and close off the place entirely 🤔
Access to Lechuguilla has been very restricted by the National Park Service because the cave has such extensive beautiful but delicate formations. As such when people go in they are typically very experienced cavers. Accidents can still happen (I actually know someone who broke their arm in this cave but their group managed to self-rescue) but the Nutty Putty scenario resulting in complete closure is unlikely as 1) Nutty Putty was privately owned where this is owned by NPS and 2) this cave is considerably more valuable in multiple ways (including scientifically as the article demonstrates). Also I just want to say that sealing off Nutty Putty because of someone’s death is just such an unconscionable action. It’s like filling in a canyon with concrete because someone fell off a cliff.
Side note I hate to call one cave more ‘valuable’ than another but I don’t know a better way to say it. Lechuguilla is basically a world treasure due to the large amount incredible, pristine decorations. See photo for an example.
Why does he have a helmet lamp on when the cave is so brightly lit inside?
The photo is taken with multiple flashes temporarily setup by the photographer. The helmet and light are not a prop - this is a wild cave with no lights installed.