The Pennsylvania Geological Survey has an informative publication on sinkholes that provides useful information that can be applied in areas far beyond the state. It includes information about how sinkholes form, where they might occur, how to identify them, the types of problems that they cause, remediation and lots of photos.
“Planetary scientists have been puzzling for years over the honeycomb patterns and flat valleys with squiggly edges evident in radar images of Saturn’s moon Titan. Now, working with a “volunteer researcher” who has put his own spin on data from NASA’s Cassini spacecraft, they have found some recognizable analogies to a type of spectacular terrain on Earth known as karst topography.” Quoted from the NASA press release.
Here is an article on the AZCentral.com website titled: “The Science Behind Kartchner Caverns”. It explores the discovery of the caverns, some of the science revealed there, and preservation of the caverns into the future.
Ice Age climate data has been preserved in calcium carbonate stalagmites at Cave of the Bells, located in the Santa Rita Mountains of Arizona. Findings from the limestone cave share similarities with data taken from Greenland ice cores.
“There are areas of the Devil’s Kitchen sinkhole north of Sedona that are identified as being high risk due to the potential for imminent collapse.” Quoted from the Arizona Geology Blog. This article by Paul Lindberg includes several photos and a hazard map.
A 26-year-old medical student died after getting stuck in a tight passage at Nutty Putty Cave near Salt Lake City, Utah. Rescue workers toiled for over 24 hours trying to free him.
“California experienced centuries-long droughts in the past 20,000 years that coincided with the thawing of ice caps in the Arctic, according to a new study by UC Davis doctoral student Jessica Oster and geology professor Isabel Montañez.” Quoted from the UCDavis press release.
About 30 years ago, oil companies created a brine well beneath an area near Carlsbad, New Mexico. Man-made caverns like this have collapsed nearby, which is causing concern that another collapse may occur.
Glen Cushing, a U.S. Geological Survey space scientist, suggests that craters near Mars’ Arsia Mons volcano could be collapse features above caves or lava tubes.
This is a photo slideshow of some new organisms found living underground in the Australian outback. The animals include tiny snails, eels, crustaceans, scorpions, spiders, beetles, cave eels and cave fish. Many of the creatures are eyeless or blind.
The Arizona Geological Survey has lots of geologic hazards information for homeowners and home buyers that can be downloaded and viewed immediately for free from their website.
Their webpage for real estate hazards includes information on floods, earthquakes, problem soils, mass movements, subsidence and earth fissures, radon, karst, abandoned mines, volcanic hazards, radon and more.
The largest cave in the world has been discovered: the Son Doong cave. It is located in Vietnam’s Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park. This article links to a few photos taken inside the limestone cavern.
A large artificial cave has been discovered near Jericho, in the West Bank. The cave may have initially been an underground quarry, and is thought to date to the year 1 A.D.
“Caves in northern Arizona and western New Mexico are being researched and inventoried by scientists with the U.S. Geological Survey and cooperating agencies. Southwestern caves have been little studied, and scientists are now finding that these lightless and nutrient-poor natural systems are home to life forms found nowhere else on Earth. This research has identified unique communities of arthropods (insects, arachnids, and crustaceans) that include 3 new genera, or groups of species, and at least 15 new species—some only known to exist in a single cave.” Quoted from the USGS release.
Many caves are being closed to the public by the Forest Service to prevent the spread of white nose syndrome in bats. The disease has already claimed the lives of 500,000 bats – that equates to over a million kilograms (2.4 million pounds) of extra insects flying around this summer!
Cave explorers in Vietnam believe that they may have discovered the world’s largest cave passage – 200 meters high and 150 meters wide. This article includes a photo gallery.
Protect your important field notes by writing them in a waterproof notebook with waterproof ink. You work hard to collect important field data, don’t take chances with it. Available in spiral and cloth-bound formats.
Some caves may retain local climate records in their stalagmites. Caves in the Nordeste region of Brazil have evidence of climate history preserved by speleothems.
This narrated slide show gives you a short tour of the Giant Crystal Cave discovered near Naica, Chihuahua, Mexico in 2000. The cave has crystals that are 36 feet long. The narrator is Dr. Chris McKay of NASA.
Thousands of bats have been affected with white-nose syndrome in the northeastern United States, and researchers are still unclear on how the disease is spread. People who come into contact with any bats are advised not to touch them, and inform their local wildlife authority of bats that are dead or seem to be sick. Additionally, special precautions should be taken by anyone who is planning on entering a cave or mine which houses bats.
This image from NASA’s Earth Observatory shows the karst topography of Croatia’s Biokovo mountain range. The mountains, which border the Adriatic Sea, are composed mostly of Mesozoic limestone.
There is a mysterious pillar of salt in Mount Sedom, near the Dead Sea in Israel. The pillar, which stands about 20 meters (almost 66 feet) tall, is likely the result of a karstic cave which collapsed during a large earthquake.
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Hobart King
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