Dark Star 2014, let's draw conclusions

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Created: Tuesday, 02 September 2014 10:33

Published: Tuesday, 02 September 2014 10:33

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We have just completed the international expedition Dark Star 2014.
For the fourth consecutive year, cavers from different countries and continents have worked side by side in one of the highest and most remote karst areas of the planet: the huge "wall" of Baysun Tau in the south of Uzbekistan. In fact, as the  monoclonal has a length of 60 km, exploration focused on that portion of the mountain that for 30 years never ceases to amaze: Godja Gur Gur Ata, which in the local language means "The father of the caves."
Coordinated by the Speleo Club Ekaterinburg, also this year's expedition was sponsored by La Venta and saw the participation of 4 italians: Aldo Gira, Giovanni Gurrieri, Alessandro Rinaldi e Giuseppe Spitaleri. In addition, thanks to the excellent results of the explorations and documentation of this new round of expeditions, the project has received the support of the National Geographic Society, that also sent a reporter and two photographers: Americans Mark Synnott and Matt Oliphant and English Robbie Shone. In early 2015, the magazine will publish a report on Dark Star 2014, with the beautiful photos of Robbie and Matt. In addition, thanks to the enormous work of Vadim Loginov and Larisa Pozdnyakova is expected in the coming months, a documentary full of interviews, external overviews (filmed with the help of a drone) and videos shot during the explorations in Dark Star.
And the explorations?

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"In depth" by Dark Star

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Created: Thursday, 21 August 2014 10:08

Published: Thursday, 21 August 2014 10:08

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I have just received a call from Giuseppe.
News are secondary to the fantastic sound of his thrilled voice. The beauty of exploration rather than the meters that are added to the knowledge are the human stories and the friendships that arise or are consolidated in those moments.
Giuseppe tells me that the internal camp, located at 800 meters of depth, in the complex lasted for well over 6 days. That must not have been easy at a temperature of almost zero degrees is my addition.
In these days of camp they explored, and a lot. The cave goes down to -900 with a development which now exceeds 13 km in total. The areas explored are mainly composed of meanders tall and narrow. And very wete from a significant water flow. It almost seems like Boy Bulok he screams to me excited from the Intermatica satellite phone.

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From Italy to the depths of Uzbekistan

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Created: Tuesday, 12 August 2014 08:23

Published: Tuesday, 12 August 2014 08:23

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After "only" 38 hours of travel and a couple of days to obtain the permits finally the expedition Dark Star 2014 is operating. The base camp has been set up below the entrance of Dark Star and the ascent that leads to the cave was equipped.
Sunday a group brought the diving material to the terminal siphon of the Siffonnaja cave (one of the many entrances near Dark Star, explored in the 90s).
Another group climbed on the plateau and yesterday has equipped the descent to R19, a cave explored and surveied in the 80s and of which the topography was lost.

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Article on sulphates of the caves of Tepui on Sedimentology

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Created: Monday, 28 July 2014 13:37

Published: Monday, 28 July 2014 13:37

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The article reports a study carried out by the University of Bologna and Modena in collaboration with the ETH Zurich, concerning deposits of sulfates, such as gypsum and alunite, and rare phosphates-sulfates sanjuanite and rossiantonite in the caves of the Venezuelan tepui. The isotopic study of sulfur has identified a likely source of atmospheric sulfate ion, probably resulting from Dimetilsulfide (DMS), a gas produced in large quantities by biological activity on the surface of the ocean, or by processes of reduction in the Amazon rainforest.

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San Candido Outdoor Festival, how was

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Created: Monday, 21 July 2014 07:33

Published: Monday, 21 July 2014 07:33

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It is finished the second edition of the Adventure Outdoor Festival in San Candido which featured the major Italian and foreign champions in a wide variety of outdoor disciplines, from climbing to running, from mountain biking to yoga, not to mention the Wind suites, sleg line etc... In all this, La Venta has outstanding for the explorations and the incredible results of over 20 years winning over an hard enough audience in this beautiful town on the border with Austria.

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Ready to start the expedition Dark Star 2014

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Created: Friday, 18 July 2014 10:46

Published: Friday, 18 July 2014 10:46

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Still up there in the high caves of Godja Gur Gur Atà, the legendary monoclonal of Baysun Tau.

From August 4 to 26 will be held yet another expedition in the region of Surkhandarya, in the south of Uzbekistan.

After the important expeditions Samarkand 1989 and 91, the collaboration between the Speleo Club Ekaterinburg and the Association La Venta resumed in 2011.

In recent years, important discoveries have been made in the cave Dark Star (entrance at 3450 mt), that in three expeditions reached 10 km of developpement and 850 ms of depth, in addition, in 2012, at more than two decades by the only exploration Italian - Russian we have returned at Ulugh Begh (entrance at 3650 mt) further revealing the immense potential of this remote cavity

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