Speleology

Most caves are in limestone.

Limestone is a sedimentary rock laid down in beds and fractured into joints by tectonic processes. These discontinuities allow water to pass, initially extremely slowly, through the rock mass from catchment to spring.

Further, and crucially, limestone is slightly soluble in rain-water, so over time the water gradually dissolves out conduits that become cave passages.

The whole process is far more complex that that, with many local variables, but the foregoing is the gist of it.

The opening is called the cave entrance or cave mouth. It is usually an "exit" formed by flowing water.

By excavation.

It's not a cave but an underground stone quarry in, I think,the Portland rather than overlying PurbeckFormation, worked in the late 18C to early-19C. It is one of a whole series along the coast between St. Aldhelm's and Durlston Heads.

They should not be confused with the many sea-caves that also perforate these cliffs, and which are all natural.

Tilly Whim "Caves" (there are 2 adjacent galleries) were open to the public until the late 1970s or early '80s, when fears for their stability enforced closure.

You can fall INTO things (holes) things can fall ON you (rocks) and you can get stuck in tight spaces. Some caves may have health hazards from bats and bat droppings, or drowning hazards from water. Some caves may have ventilation problems and hold bad air. And they are all rather cool, and quite dark when the lights go out.

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They are more than "quite" dark if all your lights fail. They are totally, absolutely dark! In taking up the hobby of caving you learn how to recognise the intrinsic hazards and how to minimise the risks from them.

A stone column rising from the floor of a cave is called a stalagmite. It forms over thousands of years as mineral-rich water drips from the ceiling and deposits minerals on the cave floor, gradually building up into a column shape.

French Federation of Speleology was created in 1963.

In a sea cave, you would typically see dark and damp surroundings with water seeping through the rocky walls. The cave may have interesting rock formations, such as stalactites and stalagmites, and may be home to marine life like seals, sea birds, and sometimes even small fishes swimming in the water. It is a unique and mysterious environment shaped by the forces of nature.

There are many spectacular caves, known and not-so-well known throughout Australia. The Nullarbor Plain is a spelunker's paradise. A list of the better known caves can be found at the related link below.

The main ones are Stalactites (growing down from the roof) and Stalagmites (up from the floor). The central letters, C for ceiling and G for ground, form a useful mnemonic for remembering which is which.

They are formed of precipitated calcite, as are other, related formations like flowstone.

"Cave Nosferatu" does not have a specific meaning as it seems to be a combination of two separate words. "Cave" typically refers to a hollow space in the ground or a large underground chamber, while "Nosferatu" is a term often associated with vampires in folklore and popular culture. The phrase could potentially be interpreted as a reference to a vampire cave or a place associated with vampires.

Oh, what a wonderful question! There are many live caves all around the world, each with its own unique beauty waiting to be explored. While I can't give you an exact number, I can tell you that caves like Kartchner Caverns in Arizona are truly special places that remind us of the incredible wonders nature has to offer. If you ever get the chance to visit a live cave, I highly recommend it - you'll be amazed by the beauty that lies beneath the surface.

The state with the largest cave system in the United States is Kentucky. The Mammoth Cave National Park in Kentucky is home to the world's longest known cave system, with over 400 miles of explored passageways.

Crystal Caves was created on 1991-10-23.

The name for someone who studies caves is a speleologist or a spelunker.

There are a variety of gems that can grow in caves, including stalactites and stalagmites made of calcite, aragonite, or gypsum. Some caves also contain deposits of minerals such as quartz, amethyst, and agate. Different types of gems can form depending on the specific geological conditions within the cave.

The capacity of a cavern can vary significantly depending on its size and shape. Some caverns can hold a few dozen people, while larger ones can accommodate hundreds or even thousands. It ultimately depends on the specific cavern's dimensions and safety regulations.

It is accepted practice in the speleology community that if you believe you are in unexplored passage, that you should take the time to survey it properly before continuing down the passage. There are a few exceptions to the rule. Such as, you were not expecting to find virgin passage and didn't bring survey equipment. If your intentions are to map the passage later, then a short scouting trip up the passage will give you a good idea what survey gear will be needed. You won't get much credit for the discovery of the cave or passage unless you publish a map of it in a caving journal.

You can find prehistoric paintings in Chauvet Cave and Lascaux Cave in France.

Taking "largest" to mean longest...

Not easy to establish - different sources quote different lengths but the most extensive is the Flint Ridge - Mammoth Cave system, in Kentucky,with over 350 miles of surveyed passages.

Caves over 100 miles long are unusual; one of this magnitude rare.This length is notof a single passage but a complex network.

Most caves are in limestone, which is slightly soluble in rain-water acidified by carbon-dioxide absorbed from the atmosphere. This weak "carbonic acid" corrodes the limestone as it flows through the rock's joints, bedding-planes and faults fromsinks to risings (springs).

There are other caves formed in other ways, such as lava-tubes and mass-movement fissures.

Oh - and by definition caves are underground - you don't need the adjective!

The question could also be asked:

In an area dominated by sinkholes, the sinkholes can dominate the landscape to produce a series of pits with occasional spires of undissolved rock. This type of landscape is called?

Same answer below:

Away from entrance effects the mean air temperature is usually that of the mean annual air temperature outside.

It may be skewed by, for example, the cave descending to a blind choke. In that case it will tend to be colder at depth as air#s density increases inversely with temperature so ssinks to the lowest place.

The old-fashioned, pre-refridgeration Ice House used that principle to keep the food-preserving ice frozen as long as possible.

Stalactites form at the roof of the cave. These are mineral deposits that hang from the ceiling and are typically made of calcium carbonate. They form as water containing dissolved minerals drips from the roof and the minerals gradually accumulate over time, creating the elongated formations known as stalactites.

Speleologist

CAVES - just that.

The word "cavern" is occasionally applied to large chambers ("rooms" in US cavers' parlance,I think) and by their owners, to show-caves; but the normal word in all English-language caving speech and text, for any natural subterranean voidirrespective of type and size, is just, CAVE!