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This is the moment visitors to a remote beauty spot were almost blown off their feet by powerful gusts of icy wind blasting from a cave as outside temperatures topped 40°C.
The bizarre phenomenon is caused by cool air rushing out of the cave’s lower entrance while warm air is drawn into another entrance higher up the mountain.
This “chimney effect” has created the so-called “Cool Breeze Cave” in Youyang County, in Chongqing, China's largest municipality, where the stronger the summer heat, the more ferocious the wind becomes at its entrance.
Local resident Mr Zhang said he and a friend went to investigate after hearing of the unusual spot.
When they arrived, they could barely stand steady in the gale.
He said: “The temperature outside was around 40 degrees Celsius, but once we got near the cave entrance, it instantly became much cooler.
“There was a strong wind at the entrance, and thinner people could hardly stand there. The higher the temperature, the stronger the wind.”
Mr Zhang said the cave sits on the bank of the Youshui River, with an entrance several metres wide and less than two metres high.
Youyang County lies in a karst landscape in the Wuling Mountains and, according to locals, has an underground river flowing inside.
Mr Huang, another villager, said the cave blows cold air in summer and warm air in winter, creating a draft that reverses direction with the seasons.
Videos of the cave posted online on 30th July have drawn visitors from across China.
Geologist Li Yangbing, a professor at the School of Geography and Tourism at Chongqing Normal University, said the winds are likely caused by air convection inside the cave.
He explained that in karst caves with more than one entrance, height, temperature and air pressure differences combine to create the “chimney effect”, generating strong air currents.
Professor Li said similar caves exist in Sichuan, Guizhou, Hubei and other provinces, sometimes with other underground features such as rivers or waterfalls.
As the cave’s popularity has grown, many tourists have tried to enter it.
Professor Li warned against unauthorised exploration, saying underground conditions are complex and can be dangerous without specialist knowledge and experience.
(Mike Leidig / newsX)
Byline Journalist: Mike Leidig
Byline Sub editor: Simona Kitanovska
Byline Spotter: Ivica Stojanovski
Byline Commisioning Editor: Mike Leidig
Byline Senior Writer: Mike Leidig
Byline Picture Editor: Zorica Stojkovik
Byline Video Editor: Aloysius Fernandes
Byline Copychecker: Emily Wu
Byline Illustrator: Angela Trajkovska
Byline News Editor: Mike Leidig
Geography: Youyang_Tujia_and_Miao_Autonomous_County
Subject: Tourism Business, Weather, People, Social media
T4 Editor Story Rating: 7
T4 Editor Pic/Vid rating: 7
T4 Total rating: 7
