On Sunday, October 22, 2023, fieldwork was organized in the Significant landscape Barać caves and in the Cave Park Grabovača. Spot measurements of cave CO2 concentration, air and soil temperature, and relative humidity were performed in the Lower and Upper Barać caves. The goal of the measurement was to obtain data on variations along the passage from the entrance to the interior. Since we still haven’t received the appropriate permission from the competent institutions for the installation of measuring equipment, an inspection of the previously installed equipment was carried out and locations were considered for the installation of new measuring stations in the caves and Baraćevac spring, which will be used to measure CO2 concentration in water. In the Lower Barać cave, which is not visited (Natura 2000 site), elevated values of CO2 concentration in the range of 3400-7930 ppm were recorded. In Upper Barać cave, despite the visiting season still going on, the values are significantly lower (1150-2500 ppm) due to a different ventilation regime. We also used the time for useful conversations with cave guides whose experiences can contribute to our knowledge and project outcomes. We also answered questions from visitors who were interested in what we do and measure in caves and what these measurements and research are for.
Text: Nenad Buzjak; Photo: Suzana & Nenad Buzjak, Mario Paral
In the Samograd cave, regular monthly spot measurements of microclimate parameters and CO2 concentration, reading of data from the data loggers and meteorological station were carried out. In addition, 9 new loggers based on the Arduino platform were installed in the cave, the development and implementation of which is one of the goals of the project. This is the first operating version of the logger, which was modified based on the experiences with the prototype and the experiences of colleagues from Greece. Modifications were made to the hardware, power supply and software, and the system for protecting the CO2 sensor from moisture was improved. The logger was developed in cooperation with Studio ZVIZ.
