Giant sinkhole opens into 60,000-year-old volcano in New Zealand

A giant sinkhole on a North Island farm as deep as four double-decker buses and almost the length of two football fields has grabbed the attention of New Zealand volcanologists. It had appeared after heavy rain near the town of Rotorua on the North Island, an area renowned for its geothermal activity. The chasm appeared and left a jagged scar on the landscape, exposing rock deposits from 60,000 years ago. Geologists believe that thousands of years of rain eroded underground limestone, causing the ground to collapse. "This is pretty spectacular, it's a lot bigger than the ones I'd normally see."- Volcanologist, Brad Scott Scott states that the dirt in the bottom of the sinkhole was "the original 60,000-year-old volcanic deposit that came out of this crater", he said. The farmer, Colin Tremain, said it had appeared overnight and was spotted by a worker on a morning run to handle the cows.