Andy BakerNew Global Cave Monitoring Database: Insights into Drip Rates and Isotopes
The PAGES-SISAL (Past Global Changes – Speleothem Isotope Synthesis and AnaLysis) team has created a new global database of cave monitoring data consisting of drip rates and drip water isotopes, and the modern carbonate precipitates that form from these drip waters (so called farmed carbonates, grown on artificial substrates). The preprint is now available for community comment at:
https://essd.copernicus.org/preprints/essd-2026-31/
Read more at:
http://andy-baker.org/2026/05/29/new-global-cave-monitoring-database-insights-into-drip-rates-and-isotopes/
SISAL_monv1: a global database of cave monitoring observations
Abstract. Cave monitoring is the process of collecting observational data such as microclimate conditions, hydrogeochemistry and water movement in cave systems. The most common motivation is for speleothem science – the reconstruction of past climate and environmental variability from cave formations such as stalagmites. Applications also include the monitoring of potential recharge to aquifers, as well as cave conservation. PAGES-SISAL (Past Global Changes – Speleothem Isotope Synthesis and AnaLysis), an international working group focused on speleothem science, has created a new global database of cave monitoring data consisting of drip rates and drip water isotopes, and the modern carbonate precipitates that form from these drip waters (so called farmed carbonates, grown on artificial substrates). Moreover, we report meteoric precipitation amounts and water isotopes at or near to cave sites. The draft version of the database can be found at https://repo.researchdata.hu/privateurl.xhtml?token=43a43257-f06e-4dc5-9e96-6603eabe775f, which will be available under doi: 10.5158/ARP/29W5J3 upon publication. The database contains datasets from 75 caves, with summary information including meta-data on location, elevation, cave depth, lithology, measurement methods and citations for original publications. Speleothem records previously curated by SISAL in SISAL speleothem database versions and corresponding to monitored drip sites are also identified in the new SISAL monitoring database. To supplement observational data gaps and provide accessible and consistent climate data for users, surface climate (precipitation, evaporation, temperature) and meteoric water isotope data extracted from global climate model products are also included in the database.
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