World's biggest underwater cave found in Mexico

A group of divers has found a connection betweentwo underwater caverns in eastern Mexico to revealwhat is believed to be the biggest flooded cave on the planet, adiscovery that could help shed new light on the ancient Mayacivilization.

The Gran Acuifero Maya (GAM), a project dedicated to thestudy and preservation of the subterranean waters of the Yucatanpeninsula, said the 347-kilometre(216-mile) cave was identified aftermonths of exploring a maze of underwater channels.

Near the beach resort of Tulum, the group found that thecave system known as Sac Actun, once measured at 263 kilometres is connected tothe 83-kilometreDos Ojos system, GAM said in astatement.

GAM director and underwater archeologist Guillermo de Andasaid the "amazing" find would help researchersto understand the developmentof the rich culture of the region, which was dominated by theMaya civilization before the Spanish conquest.

"It allows us to appreciate much more clearly how therituals, the pilgrimage sites and ultimately the greatpre-Hispanic settlements that we know emerged," he told Reuters.

The Yucatan peninsula is studded with monumental relics ofthe Maya people, whose cities drew upon an extensive network ofsinkholes linked to subterranean waters known as cenotes.

Some cenotes acquired particular religious significance tothe Maya, whose descendents continue to inhabit the region.