On espeleobloc, you can read an article published in Science, which is about how caves of Mallorca show the marks of a 20m sea level drop of the Mediterranean Sea between 85.400 and 76.600 bc.
1° International Web Festival SpeleoMovie
February 21, 2010 – 8:54 pm
1° International Web Festival
Rassegna internazionale del documentario speleologico
Napoli Underground is happy to announce a call for entries for as we
launch our first viewer-judged Speleological documentary film festival
open to speleo enthusiasts around the globe. It is our hope that video
entries which will be broadcast and available for viewing on our web
TV Napoli Underground Channel will increase knowledge and appreciation
for the incredible beauty and mystery of the underground world in
general.
We welcome your videos which feature and describe caves, caverns and
other underground cavities, natural or artificial. Participation is
open to everyone, and is completely free. We will have two categories
for entries.
The first is “Speleological Shorts” for unedited video no longer than
20 minutes. Winners will be judged by votes cast by web viewers.
The second category, “Classics of Speleology” will be composed of
completed, edited presentation documentaries already released for
viewing by their producers and open to those who would like the free
exposure of their work on Napoli Underground during the festival
Participation in the festival requires that video material be sent in
high quality digital format, either Flash or mp4 (flv/mp4) with
480X360 resolution and ready to be uploaded to our server. The same
format and requirements used for YouTube are a good reference for the
format we require.
For all videos in Category one, “Speleological Shorts”, a separate 3
minute promotional “trailer” should be sent. The trailer or “teaser”
will be uploaded pre-festival for viewing on the Napoli Underground
channel to promote the SpeleoMovie festival. Entries must also include
a written description of the video including name and/or organization
sending the entry, title, name and location of the cave or underground
location being shown and a brief narrative about the exploration or
activity shown.
Right now, we tentatively envision scheduling three unedited
“Speleological Shorts” videos and one “Classics of Speleology”
documentary each day during the festival presentation period. All
material entered remains the property of its contributor, who by
participating by sending their videos in either category give their
consent for transmission of their material on the Napoli Underground
Channel for the singular purpose of promoting cultural understanding
and support for speleological exploration, with no commercial intent
or usage whatsoever.
Again, as of this announcement the festival is scheduled for the month
of November, 2010. Final information, details and any updates will be
forthcoming by October 30, 2010.
The Napoli Underground web site forum will have a dedicated forum chat
area where we can update, discuss and refine the festival as it
develops. Your thoughts and suggestions will be most welcome to help
us make this a fun and informative international event! We want to
hear from our friends around the world and look forward to seeing your
SpeleoMovie!
Contact us napund@gmail.com
Two expeditions in Illyuzia-Mezhonnogo-Snezhnaya
February 20, 2010 – 4:33 am
From december to january, two expeditions visited the worlds second deepest cave, the Illyuzia-Mezhonnogo-Snezhnaya system. They used the lower Snezhnaya entrance, and faced some serious flooding around the bottom, because of melting of snow at the surface. You can read about the expedition proceedings here and here.
Spele-O-Feminin” International Gathering – 3-5 April 2010 – Ardeche-France
February 18, 2010 – 4:27 am
Dear All,
(VERSION FRANCAISE CI-DESSOUS)
The FSE and the UIS Techning department have the pleasure to officially invite you to participate to “Spele-O-Feminin” International Gathering from the 3rd to the 5th of April 2010 in Ardeche – France. It’s the first time that a speleological international event will gather so many female cavers from all over Europe and elsewhere. Men are also welcome. SpeleO féminin is an FSE EuroSpeleo Project FSE and is organised by the Rhone-Alpes Speleological FFS Committee in partnership with the Teaching department of the UIS, and also different sponsors and institutions.
The idea has arisen from the discovery that, in different places in Europe, women organize camps to practice speleology together. We have therefore concluded that an international gathering of female speleologists could bring us a lot, on a human level and to share about our practices. This event will take place early April during Easter celebrations, in Ardèche, close by the Nature Reserve of Ardèche Gorges, globally known for its caves and prehistoric sites, between Lyon and Marseille. It will comprise cave visit and exploration, conferences, round tables, Gala night, movies projection and photos showing.
The practical details and the programme are on :
http://fsue.ffspeleo.fr/forums/viewtopic.php?id=256
And all the information is available at :
http://speleo.e-monsite.com/rubrique,english,559915.html
The modest financial help sought by the organizing team to several speleological structures is intended to make easier the venue and stay of attendees and more particularly those coming from far (Central Europe, etc) for which an allowance is provided for transport and accommodation.
Looking forward to seeing you soon at Spele-O-Feminin,Best speleological regards, The Organisation Committee
Contact : http://speleo.e-monsite.com/rubrique,english,559915.html
&
Marcel Meyssonnier
President of UIS Teaching Commission
&
Olivier VidalSecr. General FSE+33 6 81 61 16 70
Email : contact@eurospeleo.org
Web : www.eurospeleo.orgForums : http://fsue.org/forums/
History of cave diving
February 15, 2010 – 4:24 am
Here you can read about the history of cave diving, starting from 1878 Nello Ottonelli’s first attempts at Vaclause, to the latest records of today. By espeleobloc.
The stone forest of Madagascar
February 12, 2010 – 7:53 am
On espeleobloc you can read about the stone forest of Tsingy, which is a unique karst phenomena in Madagascar. Dissolution created a forest of blade-sharp limestone formations.
2nd International Conference on Granite Caves in Sweden 2011, June
February 10, 2010 – 7:54 pm
The Fennoscandian Shield consists of crystalline rocks. Sweden is known for its granite caves, and there are thousands of them recorded (SSF). The various types of caves are described by Sjöberg (1994). In most cases, the caves seem to have a paleoseismic origin (Mörner, 2003).
The Symposium will be held close to Nynäshamn located 50 km south of Stockholm, 2011 June 1–4 + 5-7. The program will include 2 days of paper presentations and discussions, and 2 days of field excursions. We are also planning a scenic boat trip in the archipelago. Final program and dates in the 2nd Circular.
Registration, contact and questions We would appreciate an early pre-registration. A registration form is posted on www.speleo.se Or use the e-mails of any one of us in the Organization Committee. Don’t hesitate to contact us for any question and information.
Organization committee
Nils-Axel Mörner – morner@pog.nu
Rabbe Sjöberg – rabbe.sjöberg@telia.com
Sven Gunvall – sven.gunvall@telia.com
Johannes Lundberg – johannes.lundberg@nrm.se
Ulla Pettersson – ulla.pettersson@mdh.se
Under the main patronage of:
the Swedish Speleological Society (SSF)
SSF-homepage – http://www.speleo.se
Glowworm caves of New Zealand
February 9, 2010 – 11:24 am
On espeleo you can read about the unique glow worm caves of New Zealand. These caves are illuminated by Arachnocampa luminosa glowworm.
Mesacny Tien – the longest cave in Tatra
February 6, 2010 – 7:48 pm
Between January 22 and 25, a group of slovak cavers visited Mesacny Tien cave in Tatra mountains. With the 900m of surveyed new parts, the length of the cave reached 24,1km, and surpassed the length of polish cave Wielka Snieźna, becoming the longest one in the Tatra. When the group descended to the 1st Bivouac at -260m, they found it comletly ruined by a rockfall of a mass between 5000-10000kgs! The rocks falling from the ceiling, some of them reaching a weigth of a few hundred kilograms, completly distroyed some of the tents, and bivouac equipement. It is a big luck that the rockfall happened when the camp was not populated with a dozen of cavers!
SKALARJEVO – JANUARY 2010
February 3, 2010 – 10:15 am
The 21st January 2010 was finished caving expedition PROJECT MT.KANIN -2000M. The main interest for cavers from six countries (CZ, SK, SLO, GB, HR, PL) represented again the cave Skalarjevo brezno. The main goal was to survey new passages in Sleeping dragon (Black meander and Gallery of Three) in the lenght 300m which were discovered in August 2008. In January 2010 was discovered next 300m of new passages named Nervous Breakdown p100 and new part named Made in Heaven behind shaft p293 Rolling Stone. The cave goes on. We prepare other expedition in first part of March 2010.