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Geological Formations

Gran Cenote

Erosional and Karst Formations

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Gran Cenote lies along the road between Tulum and Coba on Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula, a karst sinkhole formed by the collapse of limestone bedrock into an underlying flooded cave network. Its clear turquoise water and partially open, partially cavernous structure expose extensive stalactite and stalagmite formations along its submerged and semi-submerged chambers, evidence that the caves were once dry before rising sea levels and groundwater flooded them. Gran Cenote connects underground to the wider Sistema Sac Actun cave system, one of the largest surveyed underwater cave networks on the peninsula, and is a popular site for snorkeling and cave diving. This entity documents Gran Cenote specifically as a geological formation, a karst sinkhole near Tulum whose flooded chambers connect into the Sac Actun cave system.

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