Luray Caverns

Luray Caverns of northern Virginia

/ Big History, Live Reporting

The Luray Caverns in northern Virginia are one of the most touristed cave systems in the world, drawing about a half a million people a year. They are adorned with striking rock formations of stalagmites, stalactites, and columns, all made from white calcium carbonate, red-toned iron oxide, and grey magnesium oxide. These permeate the limestone ceilings and walls. The Luray Caverns formed in the Ordovician Period about 450 million years ago, created when carbonic acid in the soil seeped underground and dissolved the weaker minerals, leaving the limestone. Eventually, the water tables receded enough to create the cave, allowing for the slow accretion of the speleothems — the beautiful carbonate rock formations.

The shining white column you see in the upper right corner is called “Pluto’s Ghost,” after the Roman God of the underworld. The lower left image is of the Dream Lake, an area where the water reflects the ceiling with such clarity that the optical illusion of a mirror is created.

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