Natural Speleothem Damage in Postojnska Jama, Slovenia, Caused by Glacial Cave Ice? A First Assessment, 2004, Kempe, Stephan

Natural speleothem damage has been known from Postojnska jama for a long time. Schaffenrath was the first to depict broken and leaning stalagmites on his pictures from the interior of the cave. Hohenwart analysed some of these damages, clearly excluding rock fall or earthquakes as a cause. Here the author discusses the possibilities, which could cause natural speleothem breakage in general. The most promising cause is cave ice. It must have formed in caves during glacial maxima when permafrost spread throughout northern, eastern and central Europe. Consequently cave ice could be the most prominent factor in explaining non-recent speleothem damage. Next some of the historically known flowstone breakages from Postojnska jama are presented. These are discussed in view of cave ice and an ad hoc model for the genesis is given. In the side passages Pisani rov and Brezimenski rov there are masses of broken stalagmites and stalactites and speleothem fragments in precarious positions. Cave ice offers an overall process to explain these observations. Thus it is suggested that all or parts of the Postojnska jama were filled with ice during the Last and earlier Glacials. If accepting speleothem damage as a consequence of glacial cave ice, then it should be possible to use it as a marker facies for the extent of the zero temperature line during the various glacials.

Review on the use of natural cave speleothems as palaeoseismic or neotectonics indicators, 2005, Gilli E,

Collapses that affect cave speleothems have frequently been attributed to earthquakes, although this has not been proved. Observations after an earthquake and laboratory tests indicate that only slender speleothems break under coseismic solicitation. Other causes as subsidence, decompression and creeping of ice or cave sediments explain most of the breaks. Tectonics is also a major cause of speleothems breakages and it is possible to detect minute movements of faults. It seems possible to make the difference between brutal coseismic movements and aseismic slow ones. However, the interpretation is often difficult, as the damage can also be caused by gravity tectonics or glacitectonics. To cite this article: E. Gilli, C. R. Geoscience 337 (2005)

Dating large infrequent earthquakes by damaged cave deposits, 2005, Kagan Elisa J. , Agnon Amotz, Barmatthews Miryam, Ayalon Avner,

The long-term recurrence patterns of past earthquakes are of considerable consequence for hazard assessments, and have implications for earthquake physics. We introduce a rigorously dated record of earthquakes from an extensive number of well-preserved preseismic and postseismic precipitates from caves located off the Dead Sea transform. We dated events directly at the paleoseismic contact by means of a novel correlation method with the oxygen isotope record of the speleothems recovered in one of the caves. Within the 185 k.y. covered, we dated 38 seismite samples. These stem from 13-18 earthquakes with a mean recurrence interval of [~]10-14 k.y. We show that the deformational events dated in the study caves complement independent near-fault paleoseismic records by temporal correlation with the earthquakes recorded therein. This opens up a significant new avenue of earthquake research that will provide precise dating and observational constraints on large infrequent earthquakes

Variation of palaeostress patterns along the Oriente transform wrench corridor, Cuba: significance for Neogene-Quaternary tectonics of the Caribbean realm, 2005, Rojasagramonte Y. , Neubauer F. , Handler R. , Garciadelgado D. E. , Friedl G. , Gadodamas R. ,

In this study, we address the late Miocene to Recent tectonic evolution of the North Caribbean (Oriente) Transform Wrench Corridor in the southern Sierra Maestra mountain range, SE Cuba. The region has been affected by historical earthquakes and shows many features of brittle deformation in late Miocene to Pleistocene reef and other shallow water deposits as well as in pre-Neogene, late Cretaceous to Eocene basement rocks. These late Miocene to Quaternary rocks are faulted, fractured, and contain calcite- and karst-filled extension gashes. Type and orientation of the principal normal palaeostress vary along strike in accordance with observations of large-scale submarine structures at the south-eastern Cuban margin. Initial N-S extension is correlated with a transtensional regime associated with the fault, later reactivated by sinistral and/or dextral shear, mainly along E-W-oriented strike-slip faults. Sinistral shear predominated and recorded similar kinematics as historical earthquakes in the Santiago region. We correlate palaeostress changes with the kinematic evolution along the boundary between the North American and Caribbean plates. Three different tectonic regimes were distinguished for the Oriente transform wrench corridor (OTWC): compression from late Eocene-Oligocene, transtension from late Oligocene to Miocene (?) (D-1), and transpression from Pliocene to Present (D-2-D-4), when this fault became a transform system. Furthermore, present-day structures vary along strike of the Oriente transform wrench corridor (OTWC) on the south-eastern Cuban coast, with dominantly transpressional/compressional and strike-slip structures in the east and transtension in the west. The focal mechanisms of historical earthquakes are in agreement with the dominant ENE-WSW transpressional structures found on land. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

Tectonic sights of the Pivka basin, 2005, Š, Ebela S.

The important regional thrust called Snežnik thrust, that divides the Snežnik thrust sheet from the parautochthon of the Komen thrust sheet, runs through the Pivka basin. A tectonic window near Knežak is proof of older thrusting deformations. The landscape is cut by numerous younger faults among which the most important are Raša, Predjama and Selce faults. The area of Upper Pivka is tectonically quite active, which is shown by earthquakes in recent years. It looks as if the most active is the Raša fault or one of its northern parallel faults, for example Šembije fault or maybe Selce fault. Karst intermittent lakes of Upper Pivka are developed in Upper Cretaceous limestones. The lakes are situated 0.5-4.0 km NE from the Snežnik thrust. Most of the lakes are situated along the Selce fault.

The Earth Has a Future, 2006, Dutch Si,

An alternative to visualizing geologic time by looking into the past is to look into the future. Even geologically short future time scales completely outstrip our ability to forecast changes in human society, whereas most geologic changes in the same time will be modest. Many events that are infrequent on a human time scale, such as earthquakes and volcanic eruptions, become commonplace on longer time scales, and events that have not occurred in recorded history, such as major ice ages, large meteor impacts, giant pyroclastic eruptions, or collapses of Hawaiian shield volcanoes, become almost inevitable in a million years

SURFACE VERSUS UNDERGROUND MEASUREMENTS OF ACTIVE TECTONIC DISPLACEMENTS DETECTED WITH TM 71 EXTENSOMETERS IN WESTERN SLOVENIA, 2009, Gosar Andrej, Šebela Stanka, KoŠ?Ák Blahoslav & Stemberk Josef

The tectonic setting of W Slovenia is characterised by NW-SE trending dextral strike-slip fault systems and moderate seis-micity. Monitoring of tectonic movements along five presum-ably active faults or in their vicinity using TM 71 extensom-eters was set up in 2004. In five years of monitoring some clear trends of displacement were established. The morphologically most prominent fault in W Slovenia is Idrija Fault having a to-tal length of more than 120 km. The average lateral displace-ment measured along a crack in its inner fault zone in U?ja val¬ley was 0.26 mm/year. Short-term rates were even greater and reached 0.54 mm/year. Raša Fault monitoring site at the foot of Vremš?ica Mt. established first an average uplift of SW block for 0.16 mm/year and left-lateral displacement of 0.16 mm/ year. It was followed by down-slip of the same block at the rate of 0.37 mm/year. In Postojnska Jama two instruments, 260 m apart, were installed at the fault zone, which extends about 1 km northeast from Predjama Fault. We detect small tectonic deformations, dextral horizontal movement of 0.05 mm in 5 years for Postojna 1 and extension of 0.03 mm in 5 years for Postojna 2. Both devices recorded similar reactions to some earthquakes with magnitude range 3.1-5.2 and epicentral dis¬tance of 12-95 km. The amplitude of individual peaks is in the order of 0.08 mm. The monitoring at Kneža Fault started at the end of 2006. In two years clear oblique displacement was estab¬lished with left-lateral rate of 0.06 mm/year and uplift of SW block for 0.06 mm/year. Monitoring in Pološka Jama situated in vicinity of the Ravne Fault started in 2008. Preliminary re¬sults show 0.08 mm of horizontal displacement between two limestone beds. Established displacements proved the active tectonic movement of all monitored faults. Observed deforma-tion rates can be compared with the regional deformation rate in W Slovenia established from GPS measurement, which is in the order of 2 mm/year. Keywords: micro-tectonic displacements, 3D monitoring, TM 71 extensometer, Idrija Fault, Raša Fault, Kneža Fault, Predja¬ma Fault, Ravne Fault, Slovenia.

Direct measurement of present-day tectonic movement and associated radon flux in Postojna Cave, Slovenia, 2010, Sebela, S. , Vaupotic, J. , Kostak B. , Stemberk, J.

Micro-tectonic deformations have been monitored continuously in 3D in Postojna Cave, Slovenia with TM 71 extensometers since 2004. Two instruments, 260 m apart, were installed on the Dinaric oriented (NW-SE) fault zone that is situated about 1,000 m north of the inner zone of the regionally important Predjama Fault.Monitoring on both instruments has shown small tectonic movements (i.e., a general dextral horizontal movement of 0.05 mm in four years [Postojna 1] and extension of 0.03 mm in fouryears [Postojna 2]). Between the longer or shorter calm periods, eleven extremeshavebeen recorded regarding characteristic changes in displacement. The largest short-term movement was a compression of 0.04 mm in seven days, detected in March 2005, which coincided with the 25 km distant Ilirska Bistrica earthquake (ML 5 3.9). About twomonths before the earthquake an extension of 0.05 mm occurred and one month before the earthquake the strain changed into a compression of 0.05 mm. The largest permanent peak was detected at the end of 2004. Along the y-axis (Postojna 1) there was a dextral horizontal movement of 0.075 mm in one month (November 10 to December 15, 2004). After the sinistral horizontal movement of 0.02 mm (December 15–27, 2004), the y-axis retained its permanent position on 0.05 mm, where it remained for more than a year. Regarding the extremes, ten earthquakes were selected that coincided with tectonic micro-displacements. In terms of speleogenesis, the monitored fault zone represents a stable cave environment. Because radon flux is known to change significantly during tectonic and seismic activities, radon air concentrations were monitored in parallel since 2006. During horizontal movements, either dextral or sinistral, radon pathways underground were partly closed, thus hindering radon migration and reducing its concentration in the cave air. Extension movements do not appear to have affected radon transport. Alternatively, the compression process (Postojna 2, February–August 2007) appears to have opened some newroutesfor radon transport, facilitating radon migration and increasing its concentration in air.

Active Erosion of Flat Interfluve Summits Above the Multi-storey Artesian Ozark Aquifer , 2010, Elfrink, N. M.

Migrating regional ground water divides can create unstable zones of relatively stagnant flow in upland areas. Unlike traditional upland ground water divides, the process of flow reversal causes these zones to reject recharge. Artesian pressure surfaces limit the downward infiltration of precipitation and form the subenvelope above which ground water sapping can create a ‘peneplain’ (Stearns, 1967). Only regolith and rock above the pressure surface subenvelope is available for epigenic erosion. Inertia is eventually overcome and ground water circulation substantially increases as hydraulically-advantaged, ‘entrenched’ river systems capture the isolated packets of stagnant ground water. As artesian pressure is lost in the upper story, losing streams form. The losing streams may eventually be consumed by the steep slopes of an entrenching stream, thus completing the reversal of flow. Water level data suggest that the dewatering of stagnant divide areas can be hastened by distant earthquakes.

A variety of observations in Missouri, including recent studies using heat pulse flow meters, show that pressurized sandstone aquifers are widespread beneath upland divides and at surprisingly high elevations. The ground water in the sandstones is confined by relatively tight carbonates. Ground water leaves these confined aquifers by slowly percolating upward through the confining carbonate into shallow bedrock fractures. Storm events then flush shallow mineral-laden ground water into surface streams, which is why floodwaters tend to be dominated by ground water (Frederickson & Criss, 1999). In the major valleys, transverse speleogenesis reverses the hydraulic role of the carbonate beds (Klimchouk, 2003). Classic artesian hydrology generally ignores these mechanisms and cannot explain why most large Ozark caves are associated with sandstones. Unlike classic artesian systems, artesian aquifers in the Ozarks typically lack a marginal recharge zone. Artesian pressures are maintained by ongoing vertical movements. A subsidence rate of approximately 1 mm/yr in the Northern Mississippi Embayment (Calais, 2008) would cause the Ozark ground water divide to migrate to the north and west at approximately 0.7 meter per year, assuming a constant gradient. Flat interfluve summits form as the flow reversal process unfolds.

Once thought to be remnants of ancient peneplains formed near sea-level, isotopic evidence now indicates that modern Ozark summits are actually being sapped by relatively shallow but significant zones of chemical migration. The flat summit surfaces and the steep stream valleys form simultaneously as the landscape is lowered and drainages are rearranged. There is no need to postulate the prior existence of a low elevation peneplain. The uppermost artesian pressure surface acts as the base level, not sea level. Flat interfluve surfaces can form at any elevation, depending on hydrologic conditions. The summit surfaces appear flat because they are essentially created by a regional ground water surface that is widespread and relatively flat.

Active tectonics and earthquake destructions in caves of northern and central Switzerland, 2012, Becker Arnfried, Häuselmann Philipp, Eikenberg Jost, Gilli Eric

The present publication focuses on the study of caves in northern and central Switzerland in order to detect and date historical earthquakes and active tectonic displacements by investigations of broken and resealed or displaced speleothems datable by U/Th and 14C. While it can be shown that these methods are potentially suitable, the ages obtained are often beyond the range of historically recorded earthquakes, and it cannot be proved that the observed and dated events are related to a seismic event. Particularly this is true for the caves in central Switzerland, where most ages in the Melchsee-Frutt region were beyond the limits of the U/Th method, or of late Pleistocene age in the Siebenhengste-Hohgant region. A direct comparison with known historical (or prehistoric) earthquakes was not possible. In contrast to central Switzerland, the results in the Basle region of northern Switzerland indicates cave and speleothem damages in one cave within the epicentral area of the 1356 Basle earthquake. 14C datings allowed to directly relate the speleothem damages to this M 6.5 earthquake. Further dating results from caves in northern Switzerland on speleothems and organic material in cave deposits supplied ages which indicate older events not related to the historical Basle earthquake. The detection of active fault displacements and prehistoric strong earthquakes can only be achieved by a very careful deciphering of the palaeo-environmental records and many more age determinations which allow to separate active tectonic displacements and seismic events from other events not related to tectonics, i.e. glaciations, creep of sediments, catastrophic floods etc.

Possible relation between the sudden sinking of river Iška and the sequence of weak earthquakes in September-October 2010 near Iška vas (central Slovenia), 2012, Gosar A. , Brenč, Ič, M.

During heavy rainfalls between September 17 and 19, 2010 large part of Slovenia has suffered extensive floods that last for nearly two weeks. For the river Iška record discharge of 59.3 m3/s was measured on September 19 on the gauging station in Iška vas located at the southern rim of Ljubljansko barje. In the first hour of September 21, 2010 two weak earthquakes (ML=0.6 and ML=0.2) occurred within one minute near Iška vas. They were felt by some inhabitants who reported also a rumbling noise (brontides). During the flood recession period, the water of river Iška started to sink into the gravely stream bed or rocky left banks and the gauging profile completely dried on September 23, day and a half after the first earthquake. Water reappeared again on September 25. In the period September 21 − October 4 additional seven weak earthquakes occurred in the same area. All earthquakes from this series occurred at or near the surface and deviate in hypocentral depth from the seismicity pattern characteristic for the southern rim of Ljubljansko barje, which was analysed for comparison. The epicentres of the first two earthquakes are in good agreement with the location of the dried river bed. It is therefore probable that both phenomena are related. Analyses of seismograms have shown that it is not likely that the observed events are collapse earthquakes, but they are tectonic events. Although earthquakes were relatively weak, it seems that they could be accompanied by small near-surface tectonic movements, because they occurred at the position of a known fault. These movements are probably connected to the opening of pre-existing fissures in the karstified valley bottom, although the primary reason for sinking of the river is that high waters removed the clogged river bed that enables intensive sinking into the river bottom during the flood.

Possible relation between the sudden sinking of river Iška and the sequence of weak earthquakes in September-October 2010 near Iška vas (central Slovenia), 2012, Gosar Andrej, Brenč, Ič, Mihael

During heavy rainfalls between September 17 and 19, 2010 large part of Slovenia has suffered extensive floods that last for nearly two weeks. For the river Iška record discharge of 59.3 m3/s was measured on September 19 on the gauging station in Iška vas located at the southern rim of Ljubljansko barje. In the first hour of September 21, 2010 two weak earthquakes (ML=0.6 and ML=0.2) occurred within one minute near Iška vas. They were felt by some inhabitants who reported also a rumbling noise (brontides). During the flood recession period, the water of river Iška started to sink into the gravely stream bed or rocky left banks and the gauging profile completely dried on September 23, day and a half after the first earthquake. Water reappeared again on September 25. In the period September 21 − October 4 additional seven weak earthquakes occurred in the same area. All earthquakes from this series occurred at or near the surface and deviate in hypocentral depth from the seismicity pattern characteristic for the southern rim of Ljubljansko barje, which was analysed for comparison. The epicentres of the first two earthquakes are in good agreement with the location of the dried river bed. It is therefore probable that both phenomena are related. Analyses of seismograms have shown that it is not likely that the observed events are collapse earthquakes, but they are tectonic events. Although earthquakes were relatively weak, it seems that they could be accompanied by small near-surface tectonic movements, because they occurred at the position of a known fault. These movements are probably connected to the opening of pre-existing fissures in the karstified valley bottom, although the primary reason for sinking of the river is that high waters removed the clogged river bed that enables intensive sinking into the river bottom during the flood.

INVESTIGATIONS OF LARGE SCALE SINKHOLE COLLAPSES, LAIBIN, GUANGXI, CHINA, 2013, Gao Yongli, Luo Weiquan, Jiang Xiaozhen, Lei Mingtang, Dai Jianling

A series of sinkholes collapsed at Jili village and Shanbei village, Laibin Guangxi, China in June 2010. A large underground stream exists in the north-south transect of the study area and passes the collapse site. Preliminary investigations revealed that extremely heavy rainfall between May 31 and June 1 2010 may have triggered this collapse event. The precipitation, as high as 469.8 mm within one day, was a record high in the study area. A long period of drought in 2009 followed by extremely heavy rainfall along with cave roof collapse may have caused the collapse event on June 3 2010. The “water hammer” effect and collapse-triggered earthquakes caused severe ground failure and fractures in residential houses and Jili Dam. Several collapse events were caused by extreme weather conditions in Guangxi over the past few years. Further studies of the relationship between extreme weather events and sinkhole collapses will help minimize the damage or impact to human infrastructure by avoiding areas susceptible to collapse or by designing infrastructure to better withstand subsidence