Carlsbad Caverns is a solution cavern, unlike Mammoth Cave which is an erosional cavern. A solution cave forms by the dissolution of limestone by slow-moving water below the groundwater table. This process produces irregularly rounded- or scallop-shaped passages. The massive natural chambers in Carlsbad were once filled with water before erosion on the surface wore down the landscape surrounding the Guadalupe Mountains, allowing the great underground passages to slowly drain empty over time.
Erosional caverns form by flowing water through cracks and passages at, near, or above the water table. Erosional caves typically have sinuous, winding passages that reflect the flow of sometimes fast-moving water. Over time, underground streams in limestone carve canyon-like passages, much like canyons on the surface. Speleothems (stalactites, stalagmites, etc.) only form in open passages that are exposed above the water tables. |
