Fate of ‘Queen’s Head’ uncertain despite efforts to save it

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2015/05/25
By: Sunrise Huang and Lilian Wu

Taipei, May 25 (CNA) The “Queen’s Head,” the most famous rock formation in Yehliu Geopark, faces an uncertain fate despite an all-out effort to prevent its thinning neck from snapping, the North Coast & Guanyinshan National Scenic Area said Monday.

Kuo Chen-ling (郭振陵), the secretary-general of the scenic area administration, said Monday that experiments done on four mushroom rocks near the Queen’s Head have found that nanotechnology can prevent erosion, but it still has some drawbacks that have yet to be overcome.

In the experiments done over the past nine months, nanotechnology has proven that it could reinforce the queen’s neck and delay the weathering process, Kuo said.

But it has also caused the rocks to whiten and slivers of the rocks’ surfaces to break off amid the dramatic changes in temperature, moisture and sunshine on the North Coast, he said.     [FULL  STORY]