Hang Son Doong

Hang Son Doong in Vietnam has passages over 200 metres tall and 150 metres wide, with a jungle growing inside. Its volume is around 38.5 million cubic metres.

Larger single chambers exist, such as Sarawak Chamber.

Context

Hang Son Doong, whose name is often translated as 'mountain river cave', is in Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park in central Vietnam. A local man, Ho Khanh, found the entrance in about 1991 but could not return to it for years because the location was hard to find. A British team led by Howard Limbert surveyed and explored it in 2009.

The cave is famous for the size of its passages rather than for its length. Surveys by the British cavers found sections more than 200 metres high and about 150 metres wide, large enough to hold a city block of tall buildings. Collapses of the roof have created openings called dolines that let in light, which allows trees and other plants to grow inside.

The volume figure of roughly 38.5 million cubic metres is a survey result and is approximate. Son Doong is often described as the largest cave passage in the world by cross-section, but other caves hold bigger single rooms. Sarawak Chamber in Borneo, for example, has a greater floor area.

The area was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2003. Visitor numbers are tightly restricted to protect the cave.