Mammoth Cave
National Park is a
U.S. National Park
in central Kentucky.
It is the longest cave
system known in the
world.
Here you can see the
waterfall into historical
entrance of Mammoth
Cave.
Unit 6 – Mammoth Cave
Many cave creatures are uniquely adapted to their
environment, which may seem strange to us but is normal
to them.
Unit 6 – Mammoth Cave
Here, a cave cricket sits on a limestone in Mammoth Cave. (From
tip of front leg to tip of back leg, the cricket is about 3 inches long.)
Unit 6 – Mammoth Cave
Broadway of Mammoth Cave is one of the many huge passageways
dissolved in the layered limestone of the park. The cave is
immense; this room is several stories high.
Unit 6 – Mammoth Cave
In Mammoth Cave you can see gypsum flowers. Limestone
(calcium carbonate) often has a little gypsum (calcium sulfate),
which makes formations with this distinctive appearance.
Unit 6 – Mammoth Cave
In Mammoth Cave there are channels in limestone produced by
dissolution of limestone in acidic groundwater.
Unit 6 – Mammoth Cave
Passage in Mammoth Cave probably started as a vertical crack, which
was widened by dissolution of the limestone rock into acidic
groundwaters flowing along the crack.
Unit 6 – Mammoth Cave
The National Park
Service offers several cave
tours to visitors. Many of
the most famous features
of the cave, such as Grand
Avenue, Frozen Niagara,
and Fat Man's Misery,
can be seen on lighted
tours ranging from one to
six hours in length. Two
tours, lit only by visitorcarried paraffin lamps,
are popular alternatives
to the electric-lit routes.
On the picture you can see
Frozen Niagara section of
Mammoth Cave.
Unit 6 – Mammoth Cave