The relationship between lineaments and cave passages in unfaulted gently-folded strata, Snail Shell Cave, central Tennessee, USA

Authors

Mark Abolins, Middle Tennessee State University, USAFollow
Joseph Firkaly-Paciera, Tulane University, USAFollow
Blake King, Middle Tennessee State University, USAFollow
Cris Ocasio-Valentin, Middle Tennessee State University, USAFollow
Jackson Slighter, Middle Tennessee State University, USAFollow
Teagan Sullivan, Middle Tennessee State University, USAFollow
Justin Whited, Middle Tennessee State University, USAFollow

Highlights

• Lineaments provide insights into cave passage trend at depths commonly-targeted in groundwater exploration
• When used together, structure contour maps and lineament maps reveal potential sites for water wells
• Findings apply to cratonic strata (dip<5^o), lacking mapped macroscale faults

Abstract

Near Snail Shell Cave in central Tennessee, USA, seven image interpreters independently mapped lineaments using a 3DEP LiDAR DTM, revealing geomorphic and structural differences in and near different parts of the cave. MANOVA comparison of lineament and cave passage trend for Western, Central, and Eastern Snail Shell caves reveals statistically significant differences (p <0.05). The Western cave (mean depth 44 m) is in the gently-dipping limb of the Snail Shell anticline, and the Central cave (mean depth 31 m) is in the anticline hinge. In contrast, many Eastern cave passages (mean depth 40 m) cut across the anticline hinge and part of the limb of the Overall syncline. For both the Western and Central caves, a post-hoc Tukey’s HSD test fails to show that lineament trend within 235 m of the cave differs significantly from passage trend, and the test fails to show that the two differ significantly within 235 and 433 m of the Eastern cave. Additional statistical testing fails to show a difference between Western passage trend and bed strike, indicating the likelihood that lineaments and passages developed within strike-joints. However, testing shows a statistically significant difference between passage trend and bed strike for the Central and Eastern caves. The strike of joints inside the Eastern cave shows that it is within a joint zone which penetrates to depths of at least 80 m and is expressed at the surface as an ~4.2 km-long belt of elevated lineament line density. The lack of a statistically significant difference between Eastern passage trend and the trend of a nearby topographic escarpment suggests that many joints are stress release fractures formed during relatively recent erosion. For the Eastern cave, intersections between lineaments and structures would be attractive targets for groundwater exploration at depths typical of wells in carbonates.

DOI

https://doi.org/10.5038/1827-806X.ijs2544

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 4.0 License.

Recommended Citation

Abolins, M., Firkaly-Paciera, J., King, B., Ocasio-Valentin, C., Slighter, J., Sullivan, T., Whited, J., 2025. The relationship between lineaments and cave passages in unfaulted gently-folded strata, Snail Shell Cave, central Tennessee, USA. International Journal of Speleology, 54(2), ijs2544. https://doi.org/10.5038/1827-806X.ijs2544