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Karst

Definition

Terrain formed on soluble rock, typically limestone or dolomite, characterised by sinkholes, dolines, caves, and underground drainage. Surface material can enter the subsurface rapidly.

Related terms

Geomorphology
The branch of Earth science that studies landform origin, classification, and the physical processes that create and modify surface relief over time.
Grave subsidence
The formation of a shallow depression above a clandestine burial as backfill compacts and organic matter decomposes, creating a micro-topographic anomaly detectable...
Hydraulic sorting
The differential transport of skeletal elements by flowing water based on their size, density, and hydrodynamic shape. Small flat bones travel furthest;...
Mass movement
The downslope displacement of soil, sediment, or rock under gravity, including slow creep, debris flows, and shallow landslides. All can relocate buried...
Terrain ruggedness index (TRI)
A raster-based metric that quantifies local elevation variability by summing the absolute difference between a central grid cell and all adjacent cells....

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