159-4 Morphometric Analysis of Sarantaporos Sulfuric Caves in Light of Klimchouk’s Confined–Unconfined Speleogenesis Framework

Session: Hypogene Speleogenesis: An Overview of Research in Memory of Dr. Alexander Klimchouk

Presenting Author:

GEORGE VENI

Authors:

VENI, GEORGE¹, Dora, Despiona², Lazaridis, Georgios³, Vouvalidis, Konstantinos⁴, Tokmakidis, Konstantinos⁵, Stergiou, Christos L.⁶

(1) George Veni and Associates, Carlsbad, New Mexico, USA, (2) Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece, (3) Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece, (4) Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece, (5) Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece, (6) Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece,

Abstract:

Alexander Klimchouk not only laid the foundations for the study of hypogene speleogenesis, but also used morphometry as a diagnostic tool to distinguish between confined and unconfined speleogenetic settings. Using indices such as passage density and areal coverage, he demonstrated how the quantification of morphology can delineate the hydrogeological environment of cave development. In this study, we applied the approach proposed by Klimchouk to Sulfuric Acid Speleogenesis (SAS) caves formed in an unconfined setting along the Sarantaporos river in Vikos-Aoos UNESCO Global Geopark (Greece). The Kavasila–Pixaria cave system was mapped using terrestrial lidar and analyzed morphometrically. Its characteristics were compared to two active SAS caves: Skordili Cave in Greece and Atmos Cave in Albania. The Kavasila and Pixaria caves display very high passage densities (380.6 and 305.2 km/km², respectively) and relatively high areal coverage values (65.6% and 56.6%), consistent with confined hypogenic development. In contrast, Skordili and Atmos show markedly lower passage densities (56.9 and 40.1 km/km²), placing them between the unconfined and confined ends of the spectrum, and higher areal coverage (58.3% and 78.3%), which positions them within the range associated with confined hypogenic settings. These results highlight that SAS caves, although formed in unconfined settings, share the same morphometric characteristics as other hypogenic caves, reinforcing the consistency of hypogenic morphological expression across different hydrologic conditions.

Geological Society of America Abstracts with Program. Vol. 57, No. 6, 2025

doi: 10.1130/abs/2025AM-9962

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