Exploring Caves: Journeys into the Earth - Hardcover

Aulenbach, Nancy Holler

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 079227721X ISBN 13: 9780792277217

Publisher: National Geographic Kids, 2001

Synopsis

Readers share the adventures of two women cavers - a teacher and a microbiologist - as they explore ice caves in Greenland, underwater caves in Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula, and terrestrial caves in the southeastern United States. Their exploits form the basis for MacGillivray Freeman's large format film Journey Into Amazing Caves, which will be shown in IMAX theaters beginning in March 2001.

About this title

About the Author

Nancy Holler Aulenbach is an elementary school teacher from Norcross, Georgia, who feels most at home underground. Born into a caving family, she made her first trip into the Earth when she was jut a few months old. She is well known among cavers for her expertise in rigging, surveying, and performing cave-rescues. Hazel A. Barton, born and raised in England, lives near Boulder, Colorado, where she is a research associate of the Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology at the University of Colorado. Her interest in animal diseases led to a career in microbiology. An award-winning cave mapper, she is interested in studying unusual ecosystems deep underground. Marfé Ferguson Delano is a freelance writer who was introduced to caving by Nancy Aulenbach and Hazel Barton. She is a graduate of Duke University and currently lives in Alexandria, Virginia. She has assisted in writing 10 books for the National Geographic Society.

From the Back Cover

If you think caves are just dark, underground holes, you're in for a big surprise. An IMAX "RM" theatre film crew and two experienced cavers -- Nancy Aulenbach, an expert in cave rescue and in descending into tight places, and Hazel Barton, a microbiologist whose specialty is studying life-forms in extreme environments -- are about to open your eyes.

You'll be dazzled by the brilliant blue color of ice cave walls, as you follow Nancy and Hazel along passageways cut by rivers through Greenland's ice cap. You'll need scuba gear and a special scooter to keep up with Hazel, as she explores the spectacular underwater caves of Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula. And you'll gaze in awe at incredible limestone cave formations, while Nancy explains how they were created over millions of years by the steady drip of water.

But caves are more than just mysterious places to explore. They are living laboratories full of microscopic creatures that help scientists understand the origins of life on Earth and the possibility of its existence on other planets. Studying the chemical makeup of microbes could also lead to cures for cancer and other life-threatening diseases. You'll learn how scientists hunt for these "bugs" and what you can do to help protect the environments where they thrive.

So, strap on your headlamp and get ready to explore some truly amazing caves!

Edition details

• Publisher: National Geographic Kids
• Publication date: 2001
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 079227721X
• ISBN 13: 9780792277217
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 64