A joint Sino-French cave exploration team has discovered a rare "cave cloud" in South China's Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, according to the Institute of Karst Geology of China Geological Survey.

据中国地质调查局岩溶地质研究所消息，中法联合洞穴科考探险队在广西进行探测，其间发现一处罕见的云朵石洞穴奇观，这也是在中国发现的第二个云朵石洞穴奇观。

[Photo/Xinhua]

The cave cloud covers an area of 300 square meters and is only the second such structure found in China. It is distributed in seven pools within a cave, with each pool having the shape of a pumpkin or loaf of bread, according to the team of experts.
本次科考探险队初步探明，云朵石分布于7处池水中，呈面包状、南瓜状，总面积达300平方米。

"The formation conditions of cave clouds are very harsh, and the surrounding rock of the cave is mostly dolomite, and karst caves formed by dolomite are not common,” said Zhang Yuanhai, a senior engineer with the institute.
该研究所高级工程师张远海表示:“云朵石的形成条件非常苛刻，其洞穴围岩多为白云岩，白云岩形成的溶洞并不是很常见。”