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Cave
Natural underground space large enough for a human to enter / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
For other uses, see Cave (disambiguation).
"Cavern" redirects here. For other uses, see Cavern (disambiguation).
A cave or cavern is a natural void in the ground,[1][2] specifically a space large enough for a human to enter. Caves often form by the weathering of rock and often extend deep underground. The word cave can refer to smaller openings such as sea caves, rock shelters, and grottos, that extend a relatively short distance into the rock and they are called exogene caves. Caves which extend further underground than the opening is wide are called endogene caves.[3][4]
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Speleology is the science of exploration and study of all aspects of caves and the cave environment. Visiting or exploring caves for recreation may be called caving, potholing, or spelunking.