Abstracts of Volume 50 (2025) |
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Abstracts appear in reverse order of publishing sequence.
Title: Physical evidence for past cold-climate events at Wombeyan Caves, NSW: Broken speleothems and other relict features within Fig Tree Cave and Victoria Arch
Authors: ROWLING, Jill
Published: Nov 2025, Helictite 50:1-24
Abstract by author: A preliminary study of broken speleothems and speleogens in Fig Tree Cave, Wombeyan Caves, NSW,
suggests that a combination of cave geometry, chimney effect and past climatic conditions caused ice build-up
in the cave during past ice ages. As temperatures fluctuated around freeze and thaw, stresses from ice expansion
broke large speleothems and fractured bedrock in flakes. This empirical approach is supported by physical
calculations of stress on a measured stalactite and extrapolated estimates of cave temperatures during the
last glacial maximum. Additional support for the argument is based on the appearance of possible cold-temperature
speleothems and bedrock grooves.
Includes: 35 figures (31 colour images, 3 maps), 2 tables, 22 refs
Keywords:
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