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Sinkholes

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Encyclopedia of Engineering Geology

Part of the book series: Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences Series ((EESS))

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Synonyms

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Definition

Sinkholes are among the most obvious karst phenomena. They are closed depressions in the ground surface resulting from downward movement into karst cavities of exposed soluble rocks; of soluble rocks together with covering soils, rocks, and particles; or of covering material only without dissolution. This movement can be the result of dissolution, erosion, and various hydraulic failures, as well as by gravitational failure of rocks and soils. Sinkholes may be full of water (Fig. 1). Old sinkholes that are filled with, and often covered by, younger sediments are termed buried sinkholes.

Fig. 1
figure 1

Sinkhole formed in 2012 in Belozerye village, Nizhny Novgorod region, Russia

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References

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. National Research Moscow State University of Civil Engineering, Moscow, Russia

    Victor P. Khomenko

  2. Nizhny Novgorod State University of Architecture and Civil Engineering, Nizhny Novgorod, Russia

    Vladimir V. Tolmachev

Authors
  1. Victor P. Khomenko
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  2. Vladimir V. Tolmachev
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Victor P. Khomenko .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Earth Sciences, Simon Fraser University, Kanata, Ontario, Canada

    Peter T. Bobrowsky

  2. London, United Kingdom

    Brian Marker

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© 2017 Springer International Publishing AG

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Khomenko, V.P., Tolmachev, V.V. (2017). Sinkholes. In: Bobrowsky, P., Marker, B. (eds) Encyclopedia of Engineering Geology. Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences Series. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-12127-7_262-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-12127-7_262-1

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-12127-7

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-12127-7

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