A team of celebrities, including Sir Richard Branson, the iconic British CEO of the Virgin Group, will be converging on Belize this December to participate in a historic underwater research project.
The Belize Blue Hole is the largest sinkhole in the world. Located a few miles off the coast, the Belize Hole Hole is large enough to comfortably contain two fully equipped Boeing 747 airliners with plenty of space left over. The Belize Blue Hole is easily visible from low earth orbit, a body of perfectly circular dark blue water neatly framed by Lighthouse Reef.
Today, the Belize Blue Hole is one of the most popular dive sites in the world due to what is underwater – a vast system of mysterious caverns. A million years ago, the caverns were on dry land where stalactites and stalagmites were formed. After the end of the last great Ice Age, water levels rose and covered the caverns to form the Belize Blue Hole (sometimes called the Great Blue Hole).
Despite its fame today, only local fishermen knew about the Belize Blue Hole 40 years ago when Jacques Cousteau, the legendary French explorer, visited the site in 1971 with his ship the Calypso. Afterwards, Cousteau declared that the site was one of his top 10 favorite dive sites on the planet. In 2018, his grandson Fabien Cousteau will be leading a team of scientists and explorers to once again map and explore the Belize Blue Hole. Along with scientists from the Roatan Institute of Deep Sea Exploration (RIDE), the team will use military-grade sonar and underwater cameras to create a 3D map of the entire site. Scientists will also be taking water and sediment samples to help better understand the natural history of Belize.
The 2018 expedition will be using next-generation submarines built by Aquatica, a Canadian company. The CEO of Aquatica Submarines has announced he will personally pilot one of the subs. And not to be outdone, his friend Sir Richard Branson has also declared he will pilot one of the submarines, too.
If you’re interested in diving the Belize Blue Hole yourself or want to explore the rest of the reef, one of the best places to stay is Chabil Mar. Located just steps from the beach on the beautiful Placencia Peninsula, Chabil Mar is an award-winning luxury resort that offers diving and snorkeling vacation packages ideal for adventure junkies.
