The Riesending cave (German: Riesending-Schachthöhle) is a pit cave in the Untersberg near Berchtesgaden, Germany and Salzburg, Austria. At 1,148 m it is the deepest and at 19,300 m the longest cave in Germany. It was discovered in 1996. In June 2014 it became well known because of a large effort to rescue a lead speleologist.

Riesending cave

Description edit

The Riesending cave (German for "huge thing") is a pit cave in the Untersberg, near Berchtesgaden, Bavaria. At 23,800 m[1] it is the longest and 1,148 m the deepest in Germany.[2] Riesending was discovered in 1996 by Hermann Sommer and Ulrich Meyer.[3]

In June 2014, Riesending became well known to the general public for the largest ever rescue effort, the rescue in the Riesending cave, taking eleven days by 700 members of a multinational group of cave rescuers to rescue then-52-year-old Johann Westhauser [de], one of the original and principal researchers of the cave, a physicist, speleologist and cave rescuer himself, who had been injured in a rockfall deep in the cave.[4]

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ "LISTE DER LÄNGSTEN UND TIEFSTEN HÖHLEN DEUTSCHLANDS". Retrieved 2023-01-23.
  2. ^ Müller, Thilo; Krauf, Andreas (n.d.). "Die längsten Höhlen" (in German). Verband der deutschen Höhlen- und Karstforscher. Archived from the original on 2020-10-27.
  3. ^ Geiger, Stephanie (2008-09-21). "Bayerns tiefster Punkt". Die Welt (in German). Archived from the original on 2022-12-28. Retrieved 2022-12-28.
  4. ^ "Riesending rescue: German caver Johann Westhauser surfaces". BBC News. 2014-06-19. Archived from the original on 2022-10-02. Retrieved 2014-06-19. (NB. The article incorrectly states that the cave was discovered in 1995 by Johann Westhauser himself, however, the cave was discovered in 1996 by Hermann Sommer and Ulrich Meyer, but first explored by a team including Johann Westhauser in 2002.)

Further reading edit

External links edit

47°41′58″N 12°58′59″E / 47.6994°N 12.9831°E / 47.6994; 12.9831