Science starts with discoveries

In December 2022, a paper on exceptional speleological discoveries in central China was published in the Geoheritage journal. These discoveries are credited to cavers of the Czech Speleological Society, naturally in collaboration with Chinese partners. The expeditions and the paper were contributed by Michal Filippi of the Institute of Geology. The paper is a descriptive one, reporting no classical “scientific data”. It is, however, the first to present as yet unknown karst areas of great potential to the scientific community. The discoveries, collectively called “The Hanzhong Tiankeng Group“, have been vastly (immediately after they were made) covered by Chinese and global media including the National Geographic or CNN. The presented results are a good example of how discoveries of natural phenomena may affect the lives of local people. In some areas, roads leading to karst phenomena were repaired, several hotels were built, and selected sites were made accessible for tourists. Besides, the “International Research Base of Hanzhong Tiankeng Group” was founded in Hanzhong in 2019.