Bimmah Sinkhole
23°02′10″N 59°04′19″E / 23.03611°N 59.07194°E
Hawiyyat Najm (Arabic: هوية نجم), known as Bimmah Sinkhole in English, is a water-filled depression, structurally a sinkhole, in the limestone of eastern Muscat Governorate in the Sultanate of Oman, very close to the Al Sharqiyah region just off the highway to Sur, few kilometers before Tiwi.
Location[edit]
To preserve the sinkhole, the local municipality developed a fenced and toilet-equipped park, Hawiyat Najm Park, around it, along with a stairway leading down to the hole.[1]
Geology[edit]
A lake of turquoise waters, it is 50 m by 70 m wide and approximately 20 m deep. It is only about 600 m away from the sea, between the coastal towns of Ḑibāb and Bamah (Bimmah). The sinkhole was formed by a collapse of the surface layer due to dissolution of the underlying limestone.[2] However, locals used to believe this sinkhole in the shape of a water well was created by a meteorite,[3][4] hence the Arabic name Hawiyyat Najm which means "the deep well of the (falling) star".
Bimmah Sinkhole ranges in depth from only a few feet to over 300+ feet in the deepest part.[5]
Gallery[edit]
-
Bimmah Sinkhole -
Inside the Bimmah Sinkhole
.jpg)
.jpg)
Notes and references[edit]
- ^ "You are being redirected..." www.omantripper.com. Retrieved 2019-12-01.
- ^ Rajendran, Sankaran; Nasir, Sobhi (2014). "ASTER mapping of limestone formations and study of caves, springs and depressions in parts of Sultanate of Oman". Environmental Earth Sciences. 71 (1): 133–146, figure 9d (page 142), page 144. doi:10.1007/s12665-013-2419-7. S2CID 128443371.
- ^ "Travel to Oman, Visit Muscat through Oman Travel Guide for Sultanate of Oman Adventure - Ministry of Tourism, Sultanate of Oman". www.omantourism.gov.om.
- ^ "منتزه "هوية نجم" مزار سياحي". جريدة وجهات (in Arabic). 2016-10-15. Archived from the original on 2019-12-09. Retrieved 2019-12-09.
- ^ "Everything You Need To Know Before Visiting Bimmah Sinkhole". Follow Me Away. 2019-04-04. Retrieved 2019-12-01.
