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"Karst" redirects here. For the Classical Karst in Slovenia, from where the term originates, see Kras. KRAS is a gene encoding the KRas Proto-oncogene. Like other members of the Ras gene family the KRAS protein is a GTPase and is an early player in many For other meanings, see Karst (disambiguation)
A karst landscape
A karst landscape
The karst hills of the Burren on the west coast of Ireland
The karst hills of the Burren on the west coast of Ireland

Karst topography is a landscape shaped by the dissolution of a layer or layers of soluble bedrock, usually carbonate rock such as limestone or dolomite. The Burren ( Boirinn is the modern form used by the Ordnance Survey) is a unique Karst -landscape region in northwest County Clare, Solvation, commonly called dissolution, is the process of attraction and association of Molecules of a Solvent with molecules or Ions of a Bedrock is the native consolidated rock underlying the surface of a terrestrial planet usually the Earth. In Chemistry, a carbonate is a salt or Ester of Carbonic acid. Limestone is a Sedimentary rock composed largely of the Mineral Calcite ( Calcium carbonate: CaCO3 Dolomite (ˈdɒləmaɪt is the name of a Sedimentary Carbonate rock and a Mineral, both composed Due to subterranean drainage, there may be very limited surface water, even to the absence of all rivers and lakes. Many karst regions display distinctive surface features, with dolines or sinkholes being the most common. A sinkhole, also known as a sink, shake hole, swallow hole, swallet, doline or Cenote, is a natural depression However, distinctive karst surface features may be completely absent where the soluble rock is mantled, such as by glacial debris, or confined by a superimposed non-soluble rock strata. Some karst regions include thousands of caves, even though evidence of caves that are big enough for human exploration is not a required characteristic of karst. A cave is a natural underground void large enough for a human to enter

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Terminology and etymology

Different terms for karst topography exist in other languages - for example, yanrong in Chinese and tsingy in Malagasy (Jennings, Ch. 1 p. 1). The international community has settled on karst, the German name for Kras, a region in Slovenia partially extending into Italy where it is called Carso and where the first scientific research of a karst topography was made. The German language (de ''Deutsch'') is a West Germanic language and one of the world's major languages. KRAS is a gene encoding the KRas Proto-oncogene. Like other members of the Ras gene family the KRAS protein is a GTPase and is an early player in many Slovenia, officially the Republic of Slovenia (Republika Slovenija) is a Country in southern Central Europe bordering Italy to the west Italy (Italia officially the Italian Republic, (Repubblica Italiana is located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe, and on the two largest The name has a pre-Indo-European origin (from karra meaning "stone") and in antiquity it was called Carusardius in Latin. The Slovenian form grast is attested since 1177, and the Croatian kras since 1230.

Chemistry of karst landscapes

Karst lake (Doberdò del Lago, Italy), from underground water springing into a depression. This lake has no surface inlet or outlet.
Karst lake (Doberdò del Lago, Italy), from underground water springing into a depression. This lake has no surface inlet or outlet.

Karst landforms are generally the result of mildly acidic water acting on soluble bedrock such as limestone or dolostone. In Computer science, ACID ( Atomicity Consistency Isolation Durability) is a set of properties that guarantee that Database transactions are Bedrock is the native consolidated rock underlying the surface of a terrestrial planet usually the Earth. Limestone is a Sedimentary rock composed largely of the Mineral Calcite ( Calcium carbonate: CaCO3 Dolostone is a sedimentary Carbonate rock that contains a high percentage of the Mineral Dolomite. The carbonic acid that causes these features is formed as rain passes through the atmosphere picking up CO2, which dissolves in the water. Carbonic acid (ancient name acid of air or aerial acid) has the formula H2CO3 Rain is Liquid precipitation. On Earth it is the condensation of atmospheric Water vapor into drops heavy enough to fall often making it to Temperature and layers The temperature of the Earth's atmosphere varies with altitude the mathematical relationship between temperature and altitude varies among five Carbon dioxide ( Chemical formula:) is a Chemical compound composed of two Oxygen Atoms covalently bonded to a single Once the rain reaches the ground, it may pass through soil that may provide further CO2 to form a weak carbonic acid solution: H2O + CO2 → H2CO3. Soil, often typeset as SOiL, is a four piece rock band from Chicago Illinois United States founded by Shaun Glass Tom Schofield Tim King and Adam Zadel Recent studies of sulfates in karst waters suggests sulfuric and hydrosulfuric acids may also play an important role in karst formation. Sulfuric (or sulphuric acid, H 2 S[[oxygen O]]4 is a strong Mineral acid. Hydrogen sulfide (or hydrogen sulphide) is the Chemical compound with the formula H 2 S.

This mildly acidic water begins to dissolve the surface and any fractures or bedding planes in the limestone bedrock. In Computer science, ACID ( Atomicity Consistency Isolation Durability) is a set of properties that guarantee that Database transactions are Weathering is the decomposition of earth rocks, Soils and their Minerals through direct contact with the planet's Atmosphere. Over time these fractures enlarge as the bedrock continues to dissolve. Openings in the rock increase in size, and an underground drainage system begins to develop, allowing more water to pass through and accelerating the formation of underground karst features.

Somewhat less common than this limestone karst is gypsum karst, where the solubility of the mineral gypsum provides many similar structures to the dissolution and redeposition of calcium carbonate. Gypsum is a very soft Mineral composed of Calcium sulfate dihydrate with the Chemical formula Ca[[sulfur S]] O 4·2

Karst formations

Surface karst
Surface karst

The karstification of a landscape may result in a variety of large or small scale features both on the surface and beneath. On exposed surfaces, small features may include flutes, runnels, clints and grikes, collectively called karren or lapiez. A limestone pavement is a natural Karst landform consisting of a flat incised surface of exposed Limestone that resembles an artificial pavement Medium-sized surface features may include sinkholes or dolines (closed basins), vertical shafts, foibe (inverted funnel shaped sinkholes), disappearing streams, and reappearing springs. A sinkhole, also known as a sink, shake hole, swallow hole, swallet, doline or Cenote, is a natural depression Foiba (plural foibas or foibe) is a type of deep natural Sinkhole common in the Kras (Carso region a Karstic plateau region shared by A spring is a point where Groundwater flows out of the ground and is thus where the Aquifer surface meets the ground surface Large-scale features may include limestone pavements, poljes and blind valleys. A limestone pavement is a natural Karst landform consisting of a flat incised surface of exposed Limestone that resembles an artificial pavement A polje is a large flat plain in Karst territory with areas usually 5 to 400 km² Mature karst landscapes, where more bedrock has been removed than remains, may result in karst towers or haystack/eggbox landscapes. Beneath the surface, complex underground drainage systems (such as karst aquifers) and extensive caves and cavern systems may form. An aquifer is an underground layer of Water -bearing Permeable rock or unconsolidated materials ( Gravel, Sand, Silt, or Clay A cave is a natural underground void large enough for a human to enter

The Witch's Finger stalagmite in Carlsbad Caverns
The Witch's Finger stalagmite in Carlsbad Caverns

Erosion along limestone shores, notably in the tropics, produces karst topography that includes a sharp makatea surface above the normal reach of the sea and undercuts that are mostly the result of biological activity or bioerosion at or a little above mean sea level. Carlsbad Caverns National Park is a United States National Park located in the Guadalupe Mountains in southeastern New Mexico. The Tropics are centered on the Equator and limited in Latitude by the Tropic of Cancer in the northern hemisphere at approximately 23°26' (23 Bioerosion describes the Erosion of hard ocean substrates by living organisms by a number of mechanisms Some of the most dramatic of these formations can be seen in Thailand's Phangnga Bay and Halong Bay in Vietnam. Phang Nga Bay is a 400 km² bay in the Andaman Sea between the island of Phuket and the mainland of the Malay peninsula of Southern Thailand. Ha Long Bay (Vịnh Hạ Long is a UNESCO World Heritage site located in Quảng Ninh province, Vietnam.

Calcium carbonate dissolved into water may precipitate out where the water discharges some of its dissolved carbon dioxide. Rivers which emerge from springs may produce tufa terraces, consisting of layers of calcite deposited over extended periods of time. Tufa article--> Tufa is the name for an unusual geological In caves, a variety of features collectively called speleothems are formed by deposition of calcium carbonate and other dissolved minerals. A speleothem (from the Greek for "cave deposit" commonly known as a cave formation, is a secondary mineral deposit formed in a Cave.

A karst river may disappear underground a number of times and spring up again in different places, usually under a different name (like Ljubljanica, the river of seven names). The Ljubljanica is a River in Slovenia. It is 41 km long and some 20 km of its course lies underground in Caves so the river has seven names (six name

An example of this is the Popo Agie River In Fremont County, Wyoming. Simply named The Sinks and Sinks Canyon State Park, The river flows into a cave in a formation known as the Madison Limestone and then rises again ½ mile down the canyon in a placid pool. When the river was dyed, it took two hours for the dye to reach the rise such a short distance away.

Water drainage and problems

Farming in karst areas must take into account the lack of surface water. The soils may be fertile enough, and rainfall may be adequate, but rainwater quickly moves through the crevices into the ground, sometimes leaving the surface soil parched between rains.

Source of the river Loue, a karst spring
Source of the river Loue, a karst spring

A karst fenster is where an underground stream emerges onto the surface between layers of rock, cascades some feet, and then disappears back down, often into a sinkhole. The Loue is a River of eastern France, a left tributary of the Doubs, which it joins downstream of Dole. Karst fenster is a Geomorphic feature formed from the dissolution of carbonate Bedrock where a spring emerges then the discharge abruptly disappears into a Sinkhole A sinkhole, also known as a sink, shake hole, swallow hole, swallet, doline or Cenote, is a natural depression There is an example of this in Lycoming County, Pennsylvania. For other meanings of ' Lycoming', please see Lycoming. Lycoming County is a County located in the Commonwealth

Water supplies from wells in karst topography may be unsafe, as the water may have run unimpeded from a sinkhole in a cattle pasture, through a cave and to the well, bypassing the normal filtering that occurs in a porous aquifer. A sinkhole, also known as a sink, shake hole, swallow hole, swallet, doline or Cenote, is a natural depression An aquifer is an underground layer of Water -bearing Permeable rock or unconsolidated materials ( Gravel, Sand, Silt, or Clay Karst formations are cavernous and therefore have high rates of permeability, resulting in reduced opportunity for contaminants to be filtered out.

Groundwater in karst areas is just as easily polluted as surface streams. Groundwater is Water located beneath the Ground surface in Soil pore spaces and in the Fractures of lithologic formations Water pollution is the contamination of Water bodies such as Lakes Rivers Oceans and Groundwater caused by human activities Sinkholes have often been used as farmstead or community trash dumps. For other uses see Water treatment and Land reclamation. A landfill, also known as a dump (and historically as Overloaded or malfunctioning septic tanks in karst landscapes may dump raw sewage directly into underground channels. Description A septic tank generally consists of tanks between the size of 1000 and 2000 gallons (4000 - 7500 litres which is connected to an inlet wastewater pipe at one end and

The karst topography itself also poses some difficulties for human inhabitants. Sinkholes can develop gradually as surface openings enlarge, but quite often progressive erosion is unseen and the roof of an underground cavern suddenly collapses. Erosion is the carrying away or displacement of solids ( Sediment, Soil, rock and other particles usually by the agents of currents such as wind Such events have swallowed homes, cattle, cars, and farm machinery.

The Driftless Area National Wildlife Refuge in Iowa protects Discus macclintocki, a species of ice age snail surviving in air chilled by flowing over buried karst ice formations. Driftless Area National Wildlife Refuge is a United States National Wildlife Refuge in the northeastern corner of Iowa, southwestern corner of The State of Iowa ( is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States of America. The Iowa Pleistocene Snail ( Discus macclintocki) also known as the Pleistocene disk, is a tiny air-breathing land Snail, a terrestrial An ice age is a period of long-term reduction in the Temperature of the Earth 's surface and atmosphere resulting in an expansion of continental Ice sheets The word snail is a Common name that can be used for almost all members of the Molluscan class Gastropoda which have coiled shells in the

Pseudokarst

Pseudokarst refers to landscape features that are similar in form or appearance to karst features, but are created by different mechanisms. Examples include lava caves and granite tors (for example Labertouche Cave in Victoria, Australia), and paleocollapse features. Lava is molten rock expelled by a Volcano during an eruption When first expelled from a volcanic vent it is a Liquid at Temperatures Granite (ˈɡrænɪt is a common and widely occurring type of intrusive, Felsic, igneous rock. A tor is a rock outcrop formed by Weathering, usually found on or near the summit of a Hill. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. Paleocollapse is a rock structure resembling the Karst landform but is formed essentially by the dissolution of underlying Sedimentary rock.

List of notable karst areas

Africa

Asia

Phong Nha Cave in Phong Nha-Ke Bang, Vietnam
Phong Nha Cave in Phong Nha-Ke Bang, Vietnam

Europe

El Torcal (Antequera - Spain)
El Torcal (Antequera - Spain)

North America

Canada

United States

Caribbean

Mexico

South America

Oceania

List of notable pseudokarst areas

North America

United States

See also

References

External links

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