In the case of earthquake, in peri-timed semi consolided speleothems, we can see "soft sediment fold deformations", and when they are more consolided, we can find some "step-like" structures very often. They can be dated f.e. by U.

Check these papers on speleothems and earthquakes in Israel:

Braun, Y., Kagan, E., Bar-Matthews, M., Ayalon, A., Agnon, A. 2012. Dating speleoseismites near the Dead Sea Transform and the Carmel Fault: Clues to coupling of a plate boundary and its branch. Isr. J. Earth Sci. 58: 257-273.

KAGAN, E.J., AGNON, A., BAR-MATTHEWS, M., AYALON, A., 2005. Dating large, infrequent earthquakes by damaged cave deposits. Geology, v. 33; no. 4; p. 261-264.

Dear Mohammad,

I agree, the speleothems can records earthquakes in some conditions but each case have to be precisely studied. Fallen blocks in big rooms produce the same results for examples. Ice flowing in cave, bears occupation or human settlements can also do the same but often displaces the broken parts.

But speleothems can also sometime register floods (thin clayey layers), basis level rise (unconformity with cupolas for example), or aerology modifications with condensation/corrosion (opening of an entrance, bats colonies...).

Furthermore, they also register all the impacts on the surface, such as vegetation and soils. Human impact for example can be recognised by several ways in the speleothems. See for more details about that point, the researches of Yves Perette (Edytem, Chambery, France).

Best regards,

Laurent Bruxelles.

Hi everybody

Good question!! Speleothems reveal a lot of disasters because of sharp perturbation of the delicate balance between precipitation/disolution, which is marked into the sedimentary record. Earthquakes affected mainly dripstones: stalactites and estalagmites, and other speleothems, as pop-corns and travertines are also affected. There are a lot of descriptions in the bibliography suggested by the answers posted above.

Volcanic eruptions are more difficult to recognize, but I have been working on Mexico and we found evidence of volcanic eruptions in detrital sedimentation inside the cave. Therefore, you have to carry out analysis of the mineralization of your speleothems in order to determine a chronological sequence of potential volcanic eruptions.

Regarding the Laurent's opinion of earthquake record in caves, it is true that other processes mimic the deformation similar than earthquakes, but only in a similar way. A detailed description of the pattern of deformation of broken speleothems reveals the origin of the deformation: ice tectonic, human impact or earthquake.

Cheers

Check : Pérez-López R., Rodríguez-Pascua, M.A., Giner-Robles, J.L., Martínez-Díaz, J.J., Marcos-Nuez, A., Silva, P., Bejar, M. and Calvo, J.P. 2009. Spelaeoseismology and palaeoseismicity of the “Benis Cave” (Murcia, SE of Spain): coseismic effects of the 1999 Mula earthquake (mb 4.8). Geological Society of London, Special Publications 316 : 207- 216.DOI: 10.1144/SP316.13.

Have you come across the paper "Neotectonic extrusion of the Eastern Alps: Constraints from U/Th dating of tectonically damaged speleothems" by Lukas Plan et al.(http://dx.doi.org/10.1130/G30854.1)? Definitely worth a read.

As has been stated before, just because a speleothem has been broken doesn't necessarily mean that it has been displaced/damaged by tectonic activity. However, in the paper above, Plan et al. discuss a flowstone that has been shear faulted, which can only have happened as a result of tectonic activity.

As for recording flood events, layers of detrital sediments or clay rich layers in speleothems may be good indicators of flooding. I have in my own experience also seen flood debris that has been incorporated in to stalactites in the Easegill cave system, UK. However, I have not come across any literature regarding this.

If there is movement of the floor, or a slope that has stalagmites attached to it,

the stalagmite will record each lateral movement as an offset in the center of growth

of the stalagmite. The source of the growth from mineral laden laden water

dripping from the ceiling did not change, so the change was recorded in the

offset, as each lateral movement of the slope occurred. Since speleothems

tend to grow at 5,000 years to the inch of vertical growth, the small lateral

steps in movement can be calculated from the vertical differences in

height between successive steps. Lower Cave in Carlsbad Caverns,

has several formations with several steps each all on the same steep

slope. The formations are on the slope down to the Lake of the Clouds

off the left hand tunnel from the lunchroom in Carlsbad Caverns.

In the lowest portion of Cottonwood Cave in Eddie County, New Mexico,

back beyond the lake, there are a series of false floors one below another,

with about 15 feet vertical elevation differences between false floors that

formed on the surface of lakes the deposited materials on the edge of the false

solely by evaporation of water that entered the lake one drop at a time.

Since it takes about 60,000 years to grow a foot of false floor toward the

center of the lake, each of the false floors is about 500,000 years old,

every half a million years, the continents moves upward about 15 feet,

or every half a million years the water table suddenly becomes lower

by about 15 feet.

Notice here the methods can only tell the duration of stability, and the difference

in time between events that make sudden changes. At this time there is

no ( Dendro - Speleological - Chronological methodology ) that would

provide absolute dating of events, but that may change in the future .

In the future, signature event like specific volcanic eruptions may be detectable

is specific layers in various types of cave formations ( speleothems ), or

elements from impact events carried in the mineral laden waters that form the

formations at about one five-thousandth of one inch per each year.

I understand they are working on this in China in caves far away from the

coastal areas where growth is more intermittent as climate changes

between wetter periods, and dryer periods.

The formation's layers have been correlated to changes in Dynasties

associated with multi-year crop failures that led to warfare, and replacement

of ruling powers.

If you think about it, tall vertical cave formations, like the 105 foot tall

Stalagmite in Cottonwood Cave, if cored vertically could provide a

6.3 million year record of cave formation growth records, with some

missing periods when growth was interrupted by lack of rainfall.

Even lack of rainfall would probably only mean periods of thin annual

growth bands.

This would need to be done in countries, like...... Laos, Thailand,

Cambodia, Vietnam, China, or others that do not yet have cave

protection laws. A very small diameter core drill would suffice

to obtain vertical cores for use for spectrographic analysis.

The hole could be plugged, and the formation would continue to

grow upward if it was cleaned of all oils.

Cave speleothems or sediments are very good natural recorders.

You will find on my page several references on that topics. Don't hesitate to contact me if you cannot upload teh documents