GIS-BASED CHARACTERIZATION AND SPELEOGENESIS OF GYPSUM KARST, ALABASTER CAVERNS STATE PARK, WOODWARD COUNTY, OKLAHOMA

Evaporite karst is common in western Oklahoma, eastern New Mexico, and west Texas primarily manifesting as caves in highly soluble gypsum facies. Alabaster Caverns State Park in Woodward County, Oklahoma is an extensive and unstudied example of evaporite karst development outside of initial investigations nearly five decades ago. Documented in the area are numerous hydration tumuli, surficial karren, well-developed sinkholes and extensive canyons. Known caves in the area primarily occur within the Permian aged Blaine Formation directly above the Flowerpot Shale and are mostly formed as epigene, phreatic structures that are experiencing vadose modification and conduit fragmentation due to collapse and canyon entrenchment. Dominant karst features include Alabaster Cavern, Bear Cave, Hoehandle Cave, Ice Stalactite Cave, Owl Cave, and Water Cave.

In order to assess the geologic controls and spatial distribution of karst development digital orthoimagery and digital elevation models were used to map the lithology and structure of the area. Lithologic mapping delineated outcrop boundaries of shale and gypsum facies. Brittle deformation was documented based on lineament analysis. Existing cave maps from the surveys were georeferenced and incorporated into the GIS-based geologic assessments. These assessments combined with water sample analyses have determined that the area was likely a much more expansive and integrated system that has been partitioned by breakdown. Water geochemistry and flow patterns have been used in an attempt to reconstruct the previous extent of the Alabaster Cavern system in order to build a model of the cavern’s extent based off of fluvial entrenchment in the system. Future studies of the area would benefit from high resolution color infrared imagery and high resolution orthoimagery to improve the accuracy of GIS analysis.