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| Lava tube,Hawaii. |
- A cave/cavern is a natural underground space.
- It is large enough for a human to enter.
- Caves form naturally by the weathering of rock extend deep underground.
- Cave refer to,such as;
-sea caves
-rock shelters
-grottos.
- Caves are formed by;
-A combination of chemical processes
-Erosion from water
-Tectonic forces
- Microorganisms
-Pressure
-Atmospheric influences
- Digging
- Most caves are formed in limestone by dissolution.
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| Lechuguilla Cave, New Mexico |
solutional caves
- Frequently occurring caves.
- Formed in rock.
- Soluble as;
dolomite marble
salt gypsum
- Rock is dissolved by natural acid in groundwater.
- The largest & abundant solutional caves located in limestone.
- Limestone dissolves under the action of;
-groundwater charged with H2CO3 (carbonic acid)
-naturally occurring organic acids
- The dissolution process landform known as karst.
- characterized by sinkholes.
- Limestone caves are adorned with calcium carbonate.
- Slow precipitation.
e.g.
Lechuguilla Cave,New Mexico
Carlsbad Cavern
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| Large sea cave, Santa Cruz Island, California |
Primary caves
- Lava tubes formed volcanic activity.
- Lava flows downhill.
- The surface cools and solidifies.
- The hotter lava continues to flow under that crust.
- The liquid lava beneath the crust flows out, a hollow tube remains, thus forming a cavity.
- Examples
Canary Islands, Hawaii
Kazumura Cave,Hilo
- Other caves formed through volcanic activity include;
-rift caves
-lava mold caves
-open vertical volcanic conduits
-inflationary caves
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| Ogof Craig a Ffynnon, South Wales. |
Sea caves
- Found along coasts.
- Littoral caves formed by wave action.
- Some wave-cut caves are above sea level .
- In places such as;
-Thailand's Phang Nga Bay
Erosional caves
- Formed by erosion.
- These can form in any type of rock.
- There must be some zone of weakness to guide the water,as a fault,joint.
- A sub type of the erosional cave is the wind/aeolian cave.
Fracture cave
- Glacier caves occur in ice & under glaciers.
- Formed by melting.
- Influenced by very slow flow of the ice.
- These are called ice caves.
Fracture caves
- Formed by layers of more soluble minerals.
- Dissolve out from between layers of less soluble rock.
- These rocks fracture & collapse in blocks of stone.
Talus caves
- It called as talus.
- Openings between rocks.
- That fallen down into a pile at the bases of cliffs.
Anchialine caves
- Usually in coastal areas.
- Containing a mixture of freshwater & saline water.
- Contain highly specialized and endemic fauna.
Branchwork caves
- They are made up of passages.
- That join downstream as tributaries.
- Formed near sinkholes
- Converges into other higher order branches downstream.
Angular Network caves
- Formed by intersecting fissures of carbonate rock.
- that have fractures widened by chemical erosion.
- These fractures form high, narrow, straight passages.
- That persist in widespread closed loops.
Anastomotic caves
- Largely resemble surface braided streams.
- Their passages separating.
- They usually form one bed/ structure.
- Only rarely cross into upper or lower beds.
Spongework caves
- Formed by solution cavities are joined by mixing of chemically diverse water.
- The cavities form a pattern.
- That is three-dimensional & random, resembling a sponge.
Ramiform caves
- Form as ;
irregular large rooms
galleries
passages
- These randomized three-dimensional rooms
- Form from a rising water table.
- Erodes the carbonate rock with hydrogen-sulfide enriched water.
Pit caves
- Called as;
vertical caves
potholes cave
- Consist of a vertical shaft
- They may or may not be associated with one of the above structural patterns.
World's five longest surveyed caves
- Mammoth Cave, Kentucky, USA
- Sistema Sac Actun/Sistema Dos Ojos, Mexico
- Jewel Cave, South Dakota, USA
- Sistema Ox Bel Ha, Mexico
- Optymistychna Cave, Ukraine
