Egyptian Secrets: Scientists Find 2 Unknown Chambers in the Great Pyramid of Giza

The Great Pyramid of Giza is hiding more secrets than previously thought. A team of researchers studying the ancient Egyptian tomb of pharaoh Khufu, built in 2560 BCC, has discovered two secret rooms, or cavities, hiding in the great structure.

The researchers discovered the secret chambers through Scan Pyramids Mission, a new technology that scanned the pyramid using muography, thermography and 3D simulation. Scan Pyramids Mission is a collaboration between the Heritage Innovation Preservation of the HIP Institute, Ministry of Antiques of the Arab Republic of Egypt and Faculty of Engineering at Cairo University.

In an interview with Discover Magazine, Mehdi Tayoubi, co-director of the Scan Pyramids mission, describes how the new technology works. "Just like X-rays pass through our bodies allowing us to visualise our skeleton, these elementary particles, weighing around 200 times more than electrons, can very easily pass through any structure, even large and thick rocks, such as mountains," Tayoubi said.

By using Scan Pyramids and muography, the team detected two previously unknown chambers located behind the pyramid's descending corridor and on the North Eastern edge of the Pyramid.

In a press release, the researchers wrote, "We are now able to confirm the existence of a “void” hidden behind the North Face, that could have the form of at least one corridor going inside the Great Pyramid. The precise shape, size, and exact position of this void is now under further investigation."

However, the researchers are not stopping there. They are still completing investigations of various architectural hypotheses using 3D simulation, collecting more data. Results and analysis are expected to come out in early 2017, Telegraph reports.