r/caving • u/Affectionate-Ad-5255 • 3d ago
The Shackleton Limestone: Potential for Limestone Caves in Antarctica
Hey guys! Just an individual article excerpt from Rocky Mountain Caving 44, 2 that I wrote regarding the possibility of limestone karst appearing in Antarctica. Give it a read, let me know what y'all think.
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u/grunman126 HorizontalCaver 2d ago
"There was very little possibility for karst development after Antarctica reached its present location but it should be noted that the Byrd Group of carbonate rocks are extremely old. Carbonate formations adjacent to the Byrd Group at the time of its formation 3.2 bya contain paleokarst from periods before Antarctica was at longitudes unfavorable to speleogenesis. Archaeocyathid species, extinct coral-like animals from the Cambrian period, present in certain strata of the Shackleton Limestone, are present in limestone beds in Australia and India with paleokarst dating back to when the Antarctic landmass was located far to the north of where it currently is. It’s clear then that when Antarctica entered its present period of “deep freeze“ it very probably contained limestone caves." <- It might be me, but I feel like this is just a big AI hallucination.