flowstone
Layered mineral sheet
Flowstone is a mineral deposit formed when water flows over cave surfaces, leaving behind layers of calcium carbonate that build up into smooth, sheet-like formations.
Unlike stalactites and stalagmites, which form from dripping water, flowstone covers floors, walls, and slopes in continuous sheets: The cave's flowstone terraces gleamed in the lamplight.
Large natural underground chamber
- grottoSmall scenic cavern
- karstEroded soluble rock terrain
- undergroundBelow ground or countercultural
- subterraneanBeneath earth's surface
chamber · passage · gallery · sinkhole · spelunking · caving · spelunker · speleology
Crystalline calcium carbonate
- limestoneCarbonate sedimentary rock
- travertineLimestone from thermal springs
- dripstoneCave mineral deposit
- stalagmiteUpward-growing cave deposit
stalactite · soda straw · moonmilk · boxwork · deposition · crystallization · precipitation · layering
Formed from deposited material
- stratigraphyStudy of rock layers
- geomorphologyStudy of terrain formation
- petrologyScientific study of rocks
- hydrologyScience of water distribution
percolation · groundwater · aquifer · fissure · bedrock · calcium carbonate · aragonite · silicate
cavern
Large natural underground chamber
- grottoSmall scenic cavern
- karstEroded soluble rock terrain
- undergroundBelow ground or countercultural
subterranean · chamber · passage · gallery · sinkhole · spelunking · caving · spelunker · speleology · darkness
calcite
Crystalline calcium carbonate
- limestoneCarbonate sedimentary rock
- travertineLimestone from thermal springs
- dripstoneCave mineral deposit
stalagmite · stalactite · soda straw · moonmilk · boxwork · deposition · crystallization · precipitation · layering · banding
sedimentary
Formed from deposited material
- stratigraphyStudy of rock layers
- geomorphologyStudy of terrain formation
- petrologyScientific study of rocks
hydrology · percolation · groundwater · aquifer · fissure · bedrock · calcium carbonate · aragonite · silicate · hydrothermal
- cavescave, cavern, caves, caverns, grotto
- undergroundunderground, subterranean, cave systems, tunnels, tunnel
- cave formationsstalactite, stalagmite, stalactites, stalagmites, dripstone
- Mammoth CaveMammoth Cave, cave entrance, cave tours, stalactites, stalagmites
- mineral depositslimestone, chalk, salt, gypsum, calcite
- calcium mineralscalcite, calcium carbonate, aragonite, gypsum, apatite