Tower karst

Tower karst are tall rock structures made up of soluble rock such as limestone. Tower karst forms as near-vertical joints and fractures are eroded downward by solution, leaving parts of a previously coherent rock mass isolated from each other.^[1] Tower karst is most common in tropical regions,^[1] although it may form in other climates as well.^[2]

Tower karst at Li River, Guilin, China

Examples include Khao Phing Kan, also known as James Bond Island, in Thailand, and Cat Ba Island in Vietnam.^[3]

See also

• Mogote – Steep-sided residual hill of limestone, marble, or dolomite on a flat plain

References

1. "Cave: Cone and tower karst". Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved April 8, 2019.
2. Brook, G. A.; Ford, D. C. (1978). "The origin of labyrinth and tower karst and the climatic conditions necessary for their development". Nature. 275 (5680): 493–496. doi:10.1038/275493a0.
3. Gleeson, Tom (November 4, 2017). "Of Karst! – short episodes about karst". Water Underground. American Geophysical Union. Retrieved November 23, 2020.