Cave of the Mounds the Interior and the National Park Service. To be considered a NNL, "a site must be one of the best examples of a natural region's characteristic biotic or geologic features." Cave of the Mounds is home to many varieties of speleothems. As with most caves, stalactites and stalagmites are common. Formations found inside the cave include: These formations come in many different brilliant colors such as reds, browns, blues, and grays. The reds and browns are caused by the presence of iron oxide in the formation. Similarly, blues and grays are caused by manganese oxide. Some speleothems are even partially
Carbonate compensation depth oceans' elevated temperatures during this period. In the late Eocene the transition from a greenhouse to an icehouse Earth coincided with a deepened CCD. Today, increasing atmospheric concentration of from combustion of fossil fuels may lead to shallower CCD, with zones of downwelling first being affected. John Murray investigated and experimented on the dissolution of calcium carbonate and was first to identify the carbonate compensation depth in oceans. Carbonate compensation depth Calcite compensation depth (CCD) is the depth in the oceans below which the rate of supply of calcite (calcium carbonate) lags behind the rate of solvation, such that no