Cueva Llanio Cave Hydrology and Geochemistry Monitoring 2023-2024

14-month monitoring data from Cueva Llanio in Northern Spain includes spot measurements of drip water temperature, conductivity, pH, and chemical composition. The dataset also contains continuous logs of cave air temperature and drip rate, collected by the British Geological Survey between February 2023 and April 2024.

Use Cases

• Analyze correlations between drip water temperature, conductivity, and chemical composition like nitrate or calcium to study karst water-rock interactions.
• Model drip rate time series against continuous cave air temperature data to understand cave ventilation and hydrologic response.
• Investigate isotopic signatures of drip water oxygen and deuterium for paleoclimate proxy calibration in speleothem studies.
• Assess seasonal variability in phosphorus, magnesium, sodium, potassium, and strontium content from collated drip water spot samples.

Strengths

• Data spans a 14-month continuous monitoring period from February 2023 to April 2024.
• Includes both spot sample measurements (e.g., chemical composition) and continuous time-series data (cave air temperature, drip rate).
• Covers multiple analytical domains: physical parameters (temperature), chemical ions, and stable isotopes (oxygen, deuterium).

Limitations

• Sample size and temporal resolution for spot measurements (e.g., chemical composition) are unknown and may be sparse compared to continuous logs.
• Lack of metadata on sensor precision, calibration methods, or data gaps limits reproducibility for certain analyses.

Provenance

Source

British Geological Survey (BGS)

Collection Method

Spot samples and continuous monitoring of physical and chemical parameters in a cave environment.

Time Range

February 2023 to April 2024

Freshness

Data last updated in the platform on March 26, 2026, though collection ended in April 2024.

Geography

Cueva Llanio, Matienzo, Northern Spain