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KarstBase a bibliography database in karst and cave science.
Latest news:
Karst conference in spectacular Dinaric Karst
The call for papers for the international karst conference “Karst without Boundaries” is now out. This conference is organized within the UNESCO’s DIKTAS project framework and will be held in June 2014 in the lands of spectacular classic Dinaric karst.
The call for papers for the international karst conference “Karst without Boundaries” is now out. This conference is organized within the UNESCO’s DIKTAS project framework and will be held in June 2014 in the lands of spectacular classic Dinaric karst.
NSS Bookstore Moving Sale
The National Speleological Society (NSS) of the USA is moving its headquarters and you benefit!
The National Speleological Society (NSS) of the USA is moving its headquarters and you benefit!
Tourism and Karst Areas - Special Issue: Geoparks and other approaches for territorial management and tourism in karst areas
This special issue will be dedicated to geoparks and other approaches for territorial management and tourism in karst areas - Call for Papers
This special issue will be dedicated to geoparks and other approaches for territorial management and tourism in karst areas - Call for Papers
Caves and Karst of the Yorkshire Dales
The British Cave Research Association is proud to announce the publication of its new book, Caves and Karst of the Yorkshire Dales (Volume 1)
The British Cave Research Association is proud to announce the publication of its new book, Caves and Karst of the Yorkshire Dales (Volume 1)
Book project on karst, caves, conflicts and war
A book about the use of karst and caves during wars and other conflicts.
A book about the use of karst and caves during wars and other conflicts.
Did you know?
That spring, periodic is a spring that shows variation in flow that is either regular or irregular. it may be due to siphonic action [20]. synonyms: (french.) source periodique; (german.) periodische quelle, intermittierende quelle; (greek.) periodhiki piyi; (italian.) sorgente periodica; (spanish.) fuente periodica; (turkish.) periyodik kaynak; (yugoslavian.) periodicini izvor (izvir). see ebb-and-flow spring. related to intermittent spring.?
Checkout all 2699 terms in the KarstBase Glossary of Karst and Cave Terms
Featured articles from Cave & Karst Science Journals
Geomorphogenesis of astructural slopes of the Inner Range of the Mountainous Crimea: the role of hypogenic karst in the formation and retreat of cliffs, Tymokhina, Å.².; Klimchouk, A.B.; Amelichev, G.M.
Isotopic composition of atmospheric precipitation and karstic springs of the north-west slope of the Crimean Mountains, Dublyansky Y.V.; Klimchouk À.B.; Amelichev G.N.; Tokarev S.V.; Spötl, C
Thermomineral waters of inner Dinarides Karst, Milenić, Dejan; Krunić, Olivera; Milanković, Djuro
The hydrogeology and hydrochemistry of the thermal waters at Taffs Well, South Wales, UK, Farr, G.; Bottrell, S.H
A new speleogenetic paradigm from Central Scandinavia and its relevance for northern caves., Faulkner, Trevor
Featured articles from other Geoscience Journals
Palaeo-mixing zone karst features from Palaeocene carbonates of north Spain: criteria for recognizing a potentially widespread but rarely documented diagenetic system, Bacetaa, J.I.; Wrightb, V.P.; Pujalte, V.
Influence of conduit network geometry on solute transport in karst aquifers with a permeable matrix, Ronayne, M.J.
Effective porosity of a carbonate aquifer with bacterial contamination: Walkerton, Ontario, Canada, Worthington, S.R.H.; Smart, C.C.; Ruland, W.
Evaluation of permeability and non-Darcy flow in vuggy macroporous limestone aquifer samples with lattice Boltzmann methods, Sukop, M.C.; Huang, H.; Alvarez, P.F.; Variano, E.A.; Cunningham, K.J.
Development of a deep karst system within a transpressional structure of the Dolomites in north-east Italy, Sauro, Francesco; Zampieri, Dario; Filipponi, Marco
Featured article from geoscience journal
Willey-Blackwell
Earth Surface Processes and Landforms, 2010, Vol 36, Issue 2, p. 143-157
On the formation of dissolution pipes in Quaternary coastal calcareous arenites in Mediterranean settings
De Waele Jo, Lauritzen Steinerik, Parise Mario
Abstract:
A large number of uniform cone-shaped dissolution pipes has been observed and studied in Quaternary coastal calcareous arenites in Apulia and Sardinia (Italy) and Tunisia. These cylindrical tubes have a mean diameter of 52·8 cm and are up to 970 cm deep (mean depth for sediment-free pipes is 1·38 m). They generally have smooth walls along their length, are perfectly vertical and taper out towards their bottoms. Their development is not influenced by bedding nor fractures. Sometimes their walls are coated by a calcrete crust. Their morphology has been studied in detail and their relationships with the surrounding rocks and with the environment have been analysed. The perfectly vertical development is a clear evidence of their genesis controlled by gravity. The depth of the dissolution pipes can be described by an exponential distribution law (the Milanovic distribution), strongly suggesting they developed by a diffusion mechanism from the surface vertically downward. We believe dissolution pipes preferentially form in a covered karst setting. Local patches of soil and vegetation cause infiltration water to be enriched in carbon dioxide enhancing dissolution of carbonate cement and local small-scale subsidence. This process causes the formation of a depression cone that guides infiltrating waters towards these spots giving rise to the downward growth of gravity-controlled dissolution pipes. A change of climate from wetter phases to drier and hotter ones causes the formation of a calcrete lining, fossilizing the pipes. When the pipes become exposed to surface agents by erosion of the sediment cover or are laterally breached the loose quartz sand filling them may be transported elsewhere.
A large number of uniform cone-shaped dissolution pipes has been observed and studied in Quaternary coastal calcareous arenites in Apulia and Sardinia (Italy) and Tunisia. These cylindrical tubes have a mean diameter of 52·8 cm and are up to 970 cm deep (mean depth for sediment-free pipes is 1·38 m). They generally have smooth walls along their length, are perfectly vertical and taper out towards their bottoms. Their development is not influenced by bedding nor fractures. Sometimes their walls are coated by a calcrete crust. Their morphology has been studied in detail and their relationships with the surrounding rocks and with the environment have been analysed. The perfectly vertical development is a clear evidence of their genesis controlled by gravity. The depth of the dissolution pipes can be described by an exponential distribution law (the Milanovic distribution), strongly suggesting they developed by a diffusion mechanism from the surface vertically downward. We believe dissolution pipes preferentially form in a covered karst setting. Local patches of soil and vegetation cause infiltration water to be enriched in carbon dioxide enhancing dissolution of carbonate cement and local small-scale subsidence. This process causes the formation of a depression cone that guides infiltrating waters towards these spots giving rise to the downward growth of gravity-controlled dissolution pipes. A change of climate from wetter phases to drier and hotter ones causes the formation of a calcrete lining, fossilizing the pipes. When the pipes become exposed to surface agents by erosion of the sediment cover or are laterally breached the loose quartz sand filling them may be transported elsewhere.