Karst and caves

Timetable

Module aim (aims)

The aim of this course is to know and understand of a particular type of karst landscape and types of caves, interpret past conditions from karst features, caves and karst relation to the regional geologic history

Pre-requisites in terms of knowledge, skills and social competences (where relevant)

basic knowledge in Earth science (mainly geography) at the secondary school level

Syllabus

Week 1: introduction to karst phenomena and speleology (karst and cave terminology, karst rocks)
Week 2: geologic and geomorphic processes in caves
Week 3: surface karst features – sinkholes, springs, dry valleys, polje, cockpit karst, tower karst, etc.
Week 4: types of caves - their morphological, hydrological, geological, and microclimate characteristic (ice caves, volcano cave etc.)
Week 5: cave sediments - their occurrence, formation and dating, and their importance in paleoclimatic and paleoenvironmental studies
Week 6: cave and karst areas in the world (for example: the deepest and the longest cave system in the world)
Week 7: karst geohazards; application of karst and cave geology to other geosciences

Reading list

David C. and White W. - 2004 Encyclopedia of Caves, Academic Press
Ford D.C. and Williams P.W. - 2007 Karst hydrogeology and geomorphology: Chichester, U.K., John Wiley and Sons, Ltd.Gunn J.- 2004 Encyclopedia of Caves and Karst Science, Fitzroy Dearborn Publishers
Palmer A.N.- 2007 Cave Geology: Dayton, Ohio, Cave BooksWhite W.B. - 1988, Geomorphology and hydrology of karst terrains. New York, Oxford University Press