Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Dispersion Of Artificial Tracers In Ventilated Caves, Claudio Pastore, Eric Weber, Frédéric Doumenc, Pierre-Yves Jeannin, Marc Lütscher

International Journal of Speleology

Artificial CO₂ was used as a tracer along ventilated karst conduits to infer airflow and investigate tracer dispersion. In the karst vadose zone, cave ventilation is an efficient mode of transport for heat, gases and aerosols and thus drives the spatial distribution of airborne particles. Modelling this airborne transport requires geometrical and physical parameters of the conduit system, including the cross-sectional areas, the airflow and average air speed, as well as the longitudinal dispersion coefficient which describes the spreading of a solute. Four gauging tests were carried out in one mine (artificial conduit) and two ventilated caves (natural conduits). …

Climate Monitoring In The Caumont Cave And Quarry System (Northern France) Reveal Near Oxygen Isotopic Equilibrium Conditions For Carbonate Deposition, Ingrid Bejarano-Arias, Carole Nehme, Sebastian Breitenbach, Hanno Meyer, Sevasti Modestou, Damase Mouralis

International Journal of Speleology

The study of modern cave deposits forming under near isotopic equilibrium conditions can potentially help disentangle the processes influencing the oxygen isotope system and suitability of stalagmites as archives of past hydrological or thermal changes. We used cave monitoring to evaluate the impact of kinetic isotope fractionation and assess the conditions under which modern cave carbonates form in the Caumont cave and quarry system, located in Normandy, northwest France. Over 20 months, we collected climatological data, dripwater, and modern carbonate samples at 2–4-week intervals at three different stations inside the Caumont cave and quarry system. We find highly stable (10.4 …

Climate Of A Cave Laboratory Representative For Rock Art Caves In The Vézère Area (South-West France), Delphine Lacanette, Léna Bassel, Fabien Salmon, Jean-Christophe Portais, Bruno Bousquet, Rémy Chapoulie, Faten Ammari, Philippe Malaurent, Catherine Ferrier

International Journal of Speleology

Leye Cave (Dordogne, France) is a laboratory cave in the Vézère area, a region that contains some of the most famous rock art caves in the world such as Lascaux, Font-de-Gaume and Combarelles, and is listed as Human World Heritage by UNESCO. Leye Cave was selected because it is representative of painted caves, with respect to parameters such as its geological stage, the presence of water and carbon dioxide, the geological state of its walls, and the size of the cave. These wall states are studied to better understand the conditions of conservation of rock art caves without damaging them. …

Preliminary Data Of Potentially Hazardous Radon Concentrations In Modrič Cave (Croatia), Robert Lončarić, Vanja Radolić, Maša Surić, Igor Miklavčić, Matea Šatalić, Dalibor Paar, Lukrecija Obšivač

International Journal of Speleology

Instigated by relatively high cave-air CO₂ concentrations in Modrič Cave (Croatia) recorded for the purpose of speleothem-based paleoclimate research, we established preliminary monitoring of radon (²²²Rn) concentrations within the cave for a 4.5-year period (2018–2022). As radioactive geogenic gas, radon, which often correlates with cave-air CO₂ concentrations, presents a potential health hazard in cases of longer exposure time in high concentration conditions. Since the Modrič Cave is open to tourists and long-term scientific research has been performed within, a safety assessment for radon concentrations was essential. The integrated measurements of radon concentrations were performed by passive …

Absence Of Visitors During Lockdown Reveals Natural Variation In Carbon Dioxide Level In The Glowworm Cave, Waitomo, New Zealand, David J. Merritt, Chris Hendy Dr, Shannon Corkill Ms

International Journal of Speleology

Waitomo Glowworm Cave is a highly visited cave where the highlight is viewing the bioluminescence display of a large colony of glowworms. Anthropogenic carbon dioxide build-up in the cave is prevented by management of chimney-effect ventilation aided by a network of microclimate sensors. A cave door prevents ventilationunder drying conditions and promotes it when necessary to clear CO₂ and when inflowing air has high relative humidity. A COVID-19-related nationwide “lockdown” in New Zealand from March 2020 resulted in neither staff nor visitors being present in the cave for 60 days, and provided an opportunity to assess the natural microclimate …

Hydrodynamic Model For Independent Cold And Thermo-Mineral Twin Springs In A Stratified Continental Karst Aquifer, Camou, Arbailles Massif, Pyrénées, France, Philippe Audra, Jean-Yves Bigot, Dimitri Laurent, Nathalie Vanara, Didier Cailhol, Gérard Cazenave

International Journal of Speleology

The Camou springs (Arbailles Massif, French Western Pyrenees) display an unusual close association of a typically cold karstic spring that drains the Urgonian western limb of the Arbailles, and a thermo-mineral spring (33.5°C; salinity 17.7 g/L). The latter gains its mineralization at the contact of Triassic evaporites mainly through a deep loop in the Apanicé syncline. The fast upflow of this deep water occurs at the cross of large active lines (the North-Pyrenean thrust located at depth, and the Saison transverse fault). Cave diving in the nearby Maddalen Cave allowed reaching the phreatic passage at the origin of the cold …

Anthropogenic Impacts On The Glowworm Cave, Waitomo, New Zealand: A Microclimate Management Approach, Chris Hendy, David J. Merritt, Shannon Corkill

International Journal of Speleology

Waitomo Glowworm Cave is a highly visited cave where the highlight is viewing the bioluminescence display of a large colony of glowworms. The visitation levels result in the build-up of anthropogenic CO₂, to the extent that it could cause corrosion of speleothems. The cave experiences chimney-effect ventilation with air flowing either upward or downward through the main cave chambers depending on air density differences between the cave and the outside environment. Lack of airflow leads to CO₂ build-up; however, unrestricted airflow can draw in cool, dry air which is harmful to the glowworms. Consequently, airflow is managed …

The Relative Importance Of Wind-Driven And Chimney Effect Cave Ventilation: Observations In Postojna Cave (Slovenia), Lovel Kukuljan, Franci Gabrovsek, Matthew Covington

International Journal of Speleology

Density-driven chimney effect airflow is the most common form of cave ventilation, allowing gas exchange between the outside and the karst subsurface. However, cave ventilation can also be driven by other mechanisms, such as barometric changes or pressure differences induced by the outside winds. We discuss the mechanism and dynamics of wind-driven ventilation using observations in Postojna Cave, Slovenia. We show how seasonal airflow patterns driven by the chimney effect are substantially modified by outside winds. Wind flow over irregular topography forms near-surface air pressure variations and thus pressure differences between cave entrances at different locations. These pressure differences depend …

Influence Of Some Climatic Elements On Radon Concentration In Saeva Dupka Cave, Bulgaria, Peter Nojarov, Petar Stefanov, Karel Turek

International Journal of Speleology

This study reveals the influence of some climatic elements on radon concentration in Saeva Dupka Cave, Bulgaria. The research is based mainly on statistical methods. Radon concentration in the cave is determined by two main mechanisms. The first one is through penetration of radon from soil and rocks around the cave (present all year round, but has leading role during the warm half of the year). The second one is through thermodynamic exchange of air between inside of the cave and outside atmosphere (cold half of the year). Climatic factors that affect radon concentration in the cave are temperatures (air, …

Breakdown Mechanisms In Iron Caves. An Example From Brazil, Marcelo R. Barbosa, Allan D.F. Da Silva, Rafael G. De Paula, Georgete M. Dutra, Airton Barata, Iuri V. Brandi, Chrystophe R.P. Da Silva, Robert A. Osborne

International Journal of Speleology

An iron cave in the vicinity of a mine in Carajás, Brazil, was selected to be mined within an assisted elimination project, planned to control all mine advancement operations towards the cave along with a strict speleological physical monitoring. It allowed, in a pioneering way, the recording of events in the cave from the first signs of damage until to the total collapse of the cave. The project lasted four years and it was possible to identify and describe four breakdown mechanisms in iron caves: Fragment downfall, Block downfall, Controlling structure reactivation, and Open discontinuity movement. The mechanisms occurred independently …

A Reply To The Comment On “Assessing Preservation Priorities Of Caves And Karst Areas Using The Frequency Of Endemic Cave-Dwelling Species” By Nitzu Et Al. (2018), Int. J. Speleol., 47 (1): 43-52, Eugen I. Nitzu, Ioana N. Meleg, Andrei Giurginca

International Journal of Speleology

No abstract provided.

Comment On “Assessing Preservation Priorities Of Caves And Karst Areas Using The Frequency Of Endemic Cave-Dwelling Species” By Nitzu Et Al. (2018), Int. J. Speleol., 47 (1): 43-52, Oana T. Moldovan, Traian Brad

International Journal of Speleology

No abstract provided.

First Assessment On The Air Co2 Dynamic In The Show Caves Of Tropical Karst, Vietnam, Duc A. Trinh, Quan H. Trinh, Angel Fernández-Cortés, David Mattey, Javier G. Guinea

International Journal of Speleology

In this study, air, water, and host rock in show caves in a Vietnam’s karst region was monitored and analyzed to identify the ventilation regime and track the cave air CO₂ sources. In general, the studied caves are well ventilated. In dynamic – multiple entrance caves, air ventilation is described with the use of U shape model. In static – single entrance cave, air circulation is explained by cold air trap model. Both ventilation models suggest that air is more circulated in winter than in summer. Seasonally, the cave air CO₂ increases from early spring to summer. Value …

The Blurred Line Between Photic And Aphotic Environments: A Large Mexican Cave With Almost No Dark Zone, Luis M. Mejía-Ortíz, Tanja Pipan, David C. Culver, Peter Sprouse

International Journal of Speleology

Sistema Muévelo Rico is a 1.2 km long cave in Quintana Roo, less than 2 km from the Caribbean Sea. We measured illuminance to a level of 0.1 lux, organic matter (weight loss on ignition), temperature, and relative humidity. The last two were measured at hourly intervals for nearly one year. Approximately one-third of the cave has illuminance values greater than 0.01 lux, and most of the rest of the cave has light as well. Temperature and relative humidity were relatively constant, but they showed a daily cycle at all stations, albeit with different strengths. Organic matter averaged 8%, intermediate …

Assessing Preservation Priorities Of Caves And Karst Areas Using The Frequency Of Endemic Cave-Dwelling Species, Eugen Nitzu, Marius Vlaicu, Andrei Giurginca, Ioana N. Meleg, Ionut Popa, Augustin Nae, Ştefan Baba

International Journal of Speleology

Endemic and rare species as bioindicators of habitat vulnerability were used to develop protection and management plans for biotope prioritization (mainly islands habitats, lava tubes or groundwaters). Due to their narrow distribution, the endemic species (species confined to a restricted geographic area) are more susceptible to ecological disequilibrium and habitat loss than the widespread ones. Consequently, endemics become endangered in the context of ecological disturbance caused by anthropogenic pressure, making them suitable candidates to assess environmental preservation needs. Taking into consideration that most of the stygobitic and troglobitic species are endemic and confined to specific karst areas, based on their …

Seasonal Temperature Variations Controlling Cave Ventilation Processes In Cueva Larga, Puerto Rico, Rolf Vieten, Amos Winter, Sophie Friederike Warken, Andrea Schrӧder-Ritzrau, Thomas E. Miller, Denis Scholz

International Journal of Speleology

Two years of cave monitoring investigate ventilation processes in Cueva Larga, a tropical cave in Puerto Rico. The cave is 1,440 m long with a large main passage (about 120,000 m³). Cave air pCO₂ in the main passage varies seasonally, between 600 ppm in winter and 1,800 ppm in summer. The seasonal variability in cave pCO₂ permits the estimation of a cave air exchange time of 36 ± 5 days and a winter ventilation rate of 3,300 ± 1,000 m³/day for the main cave passage. Calculations of virtual temperature and differences between cave and …

Creation Of A Map Of Paleozoic Bedrock Springsheds In Southeast Minnesota, Jeffrey A. Green, E. Calvin Alexander Jr.

Sinkhole Conference 2015

Springs are groundwater discharge points that serve as vital coldwater sources for streams in southeast Minnesota. The springs generally emanate from Paleozoic carbonate and siliciclastic bedrock aquifers. Use of systematic dye tracing began in the 1970s and continues through the present as a standard method for investigating karst hydrology and to map springsheds,. The work was accelerated in 2007 because of increased funding from the State of Minnesota’s Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund. A compilation springshed map of dye traces conducted over the last several decades has been assembled for the region. In southeast Minnesota, the springs are the …

Using Electrical Resistivity Imaging To Characterize Karst Hazards In Southeastern Minnesota Agricultural Settings, Toby Dogwiler, Blake Lea

Sinkhole Conference 2015

Much of the Driftless Area of southeastern Minnesota is underlain by karstified carbonate bedrock. Land use in this karst terrain is dominated by agriculture, including row crop and dairy operations. The karst in this region is often mantled with up to 15 m of soil and unconsolidated sediments. As a result, underlying karst hazards such as incipient sinkholes are often hidden until they are suddenly revealed by the collapse of subsurface voids. Regionally, the economics of the dairy industry is causing a trend toward the consolidation and expansion of existing operations. As concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFO) or feedlots expand, …

Characterization Of Karst Terrain Using Geophysical Methods Based On Sinkhole Analysis: A Case Study Of The Anina Karstic Region (Banat Mountains, Romania), Laurentiu Artugyan, Adrian C. Ardelean, Petru Urdea

Sinkhole Conference 2015

To understand karst topography, we must determine both the nature and the factors that are defining dissolution processes in soluble rocks, as well as the drainage network resulting from these processes. The goal of this paper is to understand the underground drainage direction configuration and, also, the factors that are involved in surface water drainage of the Anina karstic region. In this study we used two complementary geophysical methods, spontaneous potential (SP) and ground penetrating radar (GPR), applied in 5 sinkholes with a funnel shaped aspect. Four of these sinkholes are circular and one of them is elongated NW-SE direction. …

Tracking Of Karst Contamination Using Alternative Monitoring Technologies: Hidden River Cave Kentucky, Caren Raedts, Christopher Smart

Sinkhole Conference 2015

Karst groundwater contamination presents great challenges for efficient monitoring because of rapid, discrete transport and the diversity of contaminants. Here a low cost approach is described and applied to Hidden River Cave, Kentucky, where a long history of contamination has been experienced. Local knowledge was acquired through informal interviews and coupled with observations of contaminant residues, faunal distributions and fluorescence spectra in the cave. The resulting patterns were interpreted using Google Earth and Street View to identify specific contaminant sources in the affected sub-catchment of the cave. Despite success in matching contaminant sources with the contamination history and pattern, the …

Evaluation Of Veterinary Pharmaceuticals And Iodine For Use As A Groundwater Tracer In Hydrologic Investigation Of Contamination Related To Dairy Cattle Operations, Larry Boot Pierce, Honglin Shi

Sinkhole Conference 2015

Standard groundwater tracers such as Rhodamine WT, Fluorescein, Eosin and Tinopal CBX effectively provide a snapshot of hydrological conditions over a brief period of time and in a tightly controlled setting. However, in complex environmental situations with multiple potential sources, groundwater hydrologists are often seeking groundwater tracers that have extended longevity in the natural environment and the ability to directly pinpoint source locations. After reviewing operations of the nearby dairy it was determined that emerging contaminants, specifically two bovine veterinary pharmaceuticals (antibiotics), cephapirin sodium (CEPNa) and cephapirin benzathine (CEPB), and a sanitation agent, elemental Iodine (I) may have potential as …

Using Nitrate, Chloride, Sodium, And Sulfate To Calculate Groundwater Age, Kimm Crawford, Terry Lee

Sinkhole Conference 2015

Regression analysis is used to identify monotonic trends to assign water age using ion data from two large well water databases from southeast Minnesota (SE MN). Nitrate (NO3-N), chloride (Cl), sodium (Na), and sulfate (SO4) ions in the commonly used aquifers in SE MN can be used as groundwater tracers since they are either entirely or partly anthropogenic in their sources, their loading occurs on a regional scale, and they are almost entirely conserved. Ion concentrations over time are used to establish six trend patterns. Two patterns are unchanging (background and stable above background), and four are changing (linear up, …

Conduit Flow In The Cambrian Lone Rock Formation, Southeast Minnesota, U.S.A., John D. Barry, Jeffrey A. Green, Julia R. Steenberg

Sinkhole Conference 2015

The karst lands of southeast Minnesota contain more than one hundred trout streams that receive perennial discharge from Paleozoic bedrock springs. Several of the Paleozoic bedrock units that provide discharge are karst aquifers. Field investigations into the flow characteristics of these formations have been conducted using fluorescent dyes to map groundwater springsheds and characterize groundwater flow velocities for use in water resource protection. Recent field work has focused on the Cambrian Lone Rock Formation, a siliciclastic unit consisting of very fine-grained sandstone and siltstone with minor beds of shale and dolostone. The formation is mapped within tributary valleys of the …

Human Impacts On Water Quality In Coldwater Spring, Minneapolis, Minnesota, Sophie M. Kasahara, E. Calvin Alexander Jr., Scott C. Alexander

Sinkhole Conference 2015

Coldwater Spring in Minneapolis, Minnesota was the water supply for Fort Snelling from the 1840s to 1920. The spring site has been declared a sacred site by some federally recognized Native American tribes. The site is managed by the National Park Service. This project has monitored the water chemistry of Coldwater Spring to document human impacts on the spring’s water quality. Temperature, dissolved oxygen, conductivity, pH and anions were monitored weekly and cations and alkalinity monitored monthly at Coldwater Spring and the adjacent Wetland A from 15 February 2013 through 18 January 2015. Coldwater Spring’s water flows through fractures in …

Karst Hydrogeologic Investigation Of Trout Brook, Joel T. Groten, E. Calvin Alexander Jr.

Sinkhole Conference 2015

Trout Brook in the Miesville Ravine County Park of Dakota County Minnesota is the trout stream with the highest nitrate concentration in the karst region of southeastern Minnesota. Water quality data from 1985 and 1995 (Spong, 1995) and from 2001, 2002, 2006, 2010, and 2014, collected by the Dakota County Soil and Water Conservation District (Dakota SWCD, 2014) document an increasing level of nitrate in Trout Brook. A karst hydrogeologic investigation was designed to measure nitrate levels at sampling points along the stream and to increase our understanding of the source and movement of nitrates throughout the length of Trout …

Tracer Studies Conducted Nearly Two Decades Apart Elucidate Groundwater Movement Through A Karst Aquifer In The Frederick Valley Of Maryland, Keith A. White, Michael K. Cobb, Thomas Aley, Ethan Weikel

Sinkhole Conference 2015

A pair of groundwater tracer studies at a single karst test site were completed 18 years apart. The results of these studies have provided evidence of both relatively rapid advective transport via conduits and an extreme capacity for dye storage and retardation. The tracer results, coupled with other subsurface investigation data, are used to develop a conceptual model for groundwater movement through this karst aquifer in the Frederick Valley of Maryland, as well as identify implications for remediation. Three fluorescent tracer dyes used in the initial study were detected in several background monitoring locations established for the second study conducted …

Hydrogeological Dynamic Variability In The Lomme Karst System (Belgium) As Evidenced By Tracer Tests Results (Karag Project), Amaël Poulain, Gaëtan Rochez, Vincent Hallet

Sinkhole Conference 2015

Paleozoic carbonate aquifers represent major groundwater resources in Belgium. Karstification processes affect most of them and Belgium counts many hydrologically active karst networks. Given the intrinsic vulnerability of such geological objects, comprehensive studies are required in order to improve their protection and management. The KARAG project (Karst Aquifer ReseArch by Geophysic, 2013-2017) aims to identify the specific dynamic of karst aquifers by using geophysical and hydrogeological tools. This research is funded by the Belgium National Fund for Scientific Research (FNRS) and conducted by the University of Namur, University of Mons and the Royal Observatory of Belgium. The LKS – Lomme …

The Relationship Between Carbon Dioxide Concentration And Visitor Numbers In The Homothermic Zone Of The Balcarka Cave (Moravian Karst) During A Period Of Limited Ventilation, Marek Lang, Jiří Faimon, Camille Ek

International Journal of Speleology

The evolution of CO₂ levels with and without human presence was studied in a selected site (Gallery Chamber) of the homothermic zone of the Balcarka Cave (Moravian Karst, Czech Republic) during the fall, a period of limited ventilation. There were recognized various factors controlling the cave CO₂ levels under different conditions in the exterior and interior. When visitors were absent, CO₂ levels were controlled by the advective CO₂ fluxes linked to cave airflows and reaching up to ~1.5x10^-3 mol s^-1. These fluxes exceed by orders of magnitude the exchanged diffusive fluxes (up to …

Speleoclimate Dynamics In Santana Cave (Petar, São Paulo State, Brazil): General Characterization And Implications For Tourist Management, Heros Augusto Santos Lobo, Paulo Cesar Boggiani, José Alexandre De Jesus Perinotto

International Journal of Speleology

Show caves provide tourists with the opportunity to have close contact with natural underground spaces. However, visitation to these places also creates a need for management measures, mainly the definition of tourist carrying capacity. The present work describes the results of climate monitoring and atmospheric profiling performed in Santana Cave (Alto Ribeira State and Tourist Park – PETAR, Brazil) between 2008 and 2011. Based on the results, distinct preliminary zones with different levels of thermal variation were identified, which classify Santana Cave as a warm trap. Two critical points along the tourist route (Cristo and Encontro Halls) were identified where …

No More Hidden Secrets: Human Rights Violations And Remote Sensing, Tommy O'Connell, Stephen Young

Genocide Studies and Prevention: An International Journal

Aim: This study used both high resolution and medium resolution satellite imagery to test three semi-automated remote sensing methods, in an attempt to identify useful tools to support eye-witness testimony and reports on human rights violations. As huts are routinely burned down during attacks on a village, particularly in Sudan, the number of huts and villages burned can be used to corroborate on-the-ground reports.

Methods: Three remote sensing methods (Supervised Classification, Change Detection, and Feature Extraction) were performed on imagery from both before the attacks in February 2006 and after the attacks to examine any useful trends that could be …