Mammoth Cave is typically associated with the Happy Hollow Member of the Girkin Limestone, which is a fossiliferous, marine limestone deposited in a shallow, tropical sea during the Mississippian Period. This limestone contains abundant fossilized shell fragments and marine organisms, reflecting the environment in which it was formed.
Not sure quite what you are asking about, but anyway it is more accurate to ask what kinds of rock hold the caves, not what rocks are in the caves. Most caves are in limestone, a sedimentary rock, irrespective of water-level. There are a few caves in igneous rock: lava-tubes in basalt-flows, but on land, not underwater. There are also a good many caves in marble, the metamorphic but still-soluble form of limestone; and again the water-level is secondary to the cave itself. A few caves exist in rock-salt, an evaporite.
Sedimentary
There is not a particular kind of limestone needed to make a canyon or valley. They and caves form through erosion of most limestones, but their development is subject to a good deal of local geological and hydrological control.
chemical weathering
Most limestone caves are created through a process called chemical weathering, specifically carbonation. This occurs when rainwater combined with carbon dioxide in the atmosphere creates a weak acid that dissolves the calcium carbonate in the limestone bedrock, gradually forming caves over time.
Carbonic acid
igneous rock
differential weathering water wears away some areas but not all
The weathering process is chemical weathering, specifically dissolution. The acid in the rain reacts with the calcium carbonate in the limestone, causing it to dissolve and wear away over time.
It depends on the cave. Since many caves are limestone (water carves it nicely), you usually find limestone. But granite is common in New Hampshire & Vermont.
Limestone is dissolved by carbonic acid through a process called chemical weathering. Carbonic acid forms when rainwater combines with carbon dioxide in the atmosphere or soil, creating a weak acid that gradually breaks down the calcium carbonate in limestone over time.
Limestone is the type of rock that is commonly dissolved by water to form stalactites and stalagmites in caves. This process occurs over thousands of years when calcium carbonate in the limestone is slowly deposited as water drips from the cave ceiling.
Physical weathering
The rocks found in most caves are typically sedimentary rocks such as limestone, shale, and sandstone. These types of rocks are more susceptible to erosion by water, which is a common process in cave formation. Additionally, sedimentary rocks often contain minerals that are easily dissolved by water, leading to the creation of cave features like stalactites and stalagmites.
The 2 kinds of weathering are the Mechanical or Physical Weathering and the Mechanical Weathering.
Mammoth Cave is typically associated with the Happy Hollow Member of the Girkin Limestone, which is a fossiliferous, marine limestone deposited in a shallow, tropical sea during the Mississippian Period. This limestone contains abundant fossilized shell fragments and marine organisms, reflecting the environment in which it was formed.