Sternes: An International Spelaeological Expedition Unveils a Natural Wonder
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In 2023, with the support of international spelaeology organisations, including the World Union of Spelaeology (UIS), the European Spelaeological Federation (FSE), and the National Spelaeological Society of the USA (NSS), along with local support from the Municipality of Sfakia and individual sponsors, the Spelaeological Club of Crete successfully accomplished all of its objectives. It ensured the safe return to the surface of the 50 participants from 7 different countries.
The results of the expedition were remarkable:
Approximately three kilometres of nearly exclusively horizontal cave passages were explored and mapped.
Photographs and mapping recorded the rare and surprising crystalline cave formations, which are not commonly found in the area's landscape. Geological layers and faults were measured at different depths within the cave. These measurements are part of the ongoing research on how the White Mountains were formed. This research is being carried out by the University of Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates, the Technical University of Crete, and the Natural History Museum of Crete, as part of the UNESCO programme.
Samples of living organisms have been gathered from significant depths, and there are plans to supply them to research laboratories both in Greece and internationally for further study.
Moreover, a surface survey was conducted to document and record new caves and chasms in the broader Lagonia / Ammoutsera area.
Data on the yearly changes in temperature and humidity were obtained from the nearby Lagonia chasm, where a central glacier is located. This information was gathered using sensors that had been placed there a year earlier by geologists from Greek universities. These very sensors were then reinstalled in the Sternes cave to collect data for the upcoming year.
Sternes Cave
The Sternes Cave currently measures 5.6 kilometres in length and reaches a depth of -616 metres (until further updates). This ranking positions the cave as the third largest in Crete and the sixth deepest in Greece.
Below the depth of 500 metres, there are numerous underground passages of diverse types and intriguing features waiting to be explored.
The Sternes Cave is situated to the south of the peak bearing the same name in the White Mountains of Crete. Its entrance lies at an altitude of 2,080 meters. The cave was initially documented in 1991 within a report by the French Spelaeological Group ‘Group Spéléo d'Orsay’ (GSO). The GSO explored this vertical cave in 1991 and 1992, encountering several challenges, especially in narrow sections. Their exploration ceased at a narrow passage located at a depth of -428 metres from the surface.
The members of the expedition explained that at the -428 metres depth, there was a passage so narrow that only a very slender dog weighing a maximum of 10 kg could fit through, but not a human. This incredibly tight passage remained the deepest point of the cave for the following 13 years. In 2005, the entrance to the chasm was rediscovered by a group of spelaeologists from the Athenian association ‘S EL AS’, who had significant experience in Crete. When exploration was resumed by the ‘S EL AS’ team, they observed a strong airflow that chilled the skin at -428 metres. Although there was no straightforward way to continue exploration, the presence of such an airflow created high expectations for further exploratory efforts. For spelunkers like us, such an airflow is a reason for celebration. Collaborating with spelaeologists from various associations in Crete and abroad, the spelaeologists from 'S EL AS' conducted exploratory expeditions in 2005 and between 2009-2012. However, they managed to advance only a few metres within the narrow passage.
Hence, in 2017, certain members of the Spelaeological Club of Crete, including those who had been part of previous expeditions, made the determined decision to return. They were resolute and committed to the task, firmly believing that through systematic and intense efforts, they could successfully traverse to the other side of the passage.
Little had they anticipated what would unfold six years later:
- Prior to the Sternes 2017 expedition: cave depth -428 metres / total route length 552 metres.
- Following the conclusion of the Sternes 2023 mission: cave depth -616 metres / total route length 5,600 metres.
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