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Scientists have identify the world ’s big hugger-mugger caloric lake in a cave in southern Albania , the results of a new expedition confirm .

research worker from the Czech Republic first find the lake four eld ago , but they did not have the correct instruments to measure it at the time , consort to a translatedstatementfrom the Neuron Foundation — an organization that promotes research by Czech scientists .

View of an underground thermal lake from above inside a cave.

Cave explorers have discovered the largest-known underground thermal lake in the world.

Now , the team has announced it returned to the lake in 2024 with state - of - the - art 3-D digital scanner , corroborate that the secret water torso is the gravid of its sort known to scientific discipline .

The scientists named the lake " Neuron " after the foundation , which funded the recent expedition . The lake measures 454 feet ( 138 meters ) prospicient and 138 foot ( 42 1000 ) broad .

" In order for Czech scientific discipline to present this phenomenal discovery , it was necessary to guide scientific research and precise measurements,“Marek Audy , a cave adventurer who led both expeditions , said in the statement .

A water-filled cave in Albania with a researcher posing by some rock columns.

The lake is thermal, meaning it is heated by geothermal processes inside Earth’s crust.

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Audy and his colleagues first discovered the concealed chamber while exploring the delimitation region between Albania and Greece , which has beensubject to political tensionsfor over a one C and therefore been off demarcation for some research .

While exploring the realm around the town of Leskovik in Albania , the team spotted a huge pillar of steam wafting from a mountain range of a function and , upon closer inspection , experience it was rising from an abysm more than 330 feet ( 100 m ) deep , Audy said .

Cave explorers pose in front of an underground thermal lake in Albania.

Researcher hope to return to Lake Neuron to study it further, they said.

The researcher descended into the stone pit and found an extensive scheme of caves , including some with thermal springs and one containing a immense lake , Audy said .

" During our initial exploration , we create a basic single-valued function using our equipment and right away realized that we had pick up something extraordinary , " lensman and expedition member Richard Bouda toldEuronews .

Last twelvemonth , with funding from the Neuron Foundation , the research worker return to the site with a lidar image scanner — a remote - sense instrument that uses a laser to measure length and make three-D models — to map out the lake in detail . The results indicate that the lake holds 294,350 cubic feet ( 8,335 three-dimensional beat ) of water system , equivalent to about 3.5 Olympic swimming pools .

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A picture of a large blue lake with a hilly, forested shoreline

Audy toldNational Geographic CZthey hope to return to Lake Neuron to hit the books it further . " It ’s something that could have a huge impact on understanding underground ecosystems and geological processes , " he said . " We require to face at other parts of the cave , learn more about the geology and biology of this area . "

Researchers previously found a standardised , albeit smaller underground thermal lake in Hungary , Reuters reportedin 2008 . That lake and its chamber , discovered beneath Turkish baths in the capital metropolis of Budapest , were " the biggest active , pee - filled thermal water system cave and student residence in the world " at the time they were found , spelunk Internet Explorer Sandor Kalinovits , one of the lake ’s discoverers , reportedly said .

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