A drought in the Ozarks, Missouri, has exposed unexplored areas of a huge Civil War cave system that has been lost for thousands of years.
The Ozarks in Missouri state are experiencing an extreme drought, coming in from neighboring states also suffering dry conditions, such as Kansas and Oklahoma.
Caves in the Ozarks form over time with water pressure, and the process stops during droughts, but the dry weather also gives speleologists the chance to explore.
"The drought conditions are allowing cavers to enter passages that formed tens of thousands of years ago but have in recent times been filled with water," John Gunn, professor at the School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences at University of Birmingham, told Newsweek.
Owner of tourist attraction Smallin Civil War Cave, Kevin Bright, told news outlet KY3 that maps of the Civil War cave system in Ozark showed several unexplored areas.
The Smallin Civil War Cave was discovered in 1818 by explorer Henry Rowe Schoolcraft. Ozark was a hub of union activity during the Civil War from 1861 to 1865, and experts believe the caves may have been used for war-related activities during that time.
Since the drought, Bright told KY3 that his company has managed to map another 1,100 feet of cave, and there may be up to 2,000 feet in total.
"Now the 1,100 feet, most of that you can stand up in, and our trademark of Smallin Cave is rimstone dams, and it turns out, in this passageway, it continues with more rimstone dam after rimstone dam," Bright said.
Every time the Ozarks suffer a flood, it moves the gravel around. "It reveals things from the past that come in the cave system and have been preserved," Bright said. Findings include fossils from extinct species such as the mastodon elephant.
Gunn said drought gives explorers the chance to explore caves in other parts of the world. He likened the situation in the Ozarks to Bubble Springs cave in the Derbyshire Peak District of the U.K.
"Bubble Springs cave is water-filled for most, sometimes all, of the year, but during drought periods, we can descend and explore the cave," Gunn said.
He added that this natural feature at Bubble Springs goes back a century before the Smallin Civil War Cave: "An article in 1744 described how lead miners encountered a natural cavity containing a human skeleton."
The caves in Ozark, Missouri, are not the only discovery to be made during the severe drought conditions gripping parts of the U.S.
As water levels decrease, bodies of water such as Lake Mead in Nevada are drying up to reveal human corpses and shipwrecks.
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Robyn White is a Newsweek Nature Reporter based in London, UK. Her focus is reporting on wildlife, science and the ... Read more
