Natural arch
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Natural arch

by Alicia Morugán, Miguel Hernández University, Elche, Spain

This natural arch named Pirulico's tower is located in Mojácar, situated in the south east of the Province of Almería (Andalucia) in southern Spain. A natural arch, natural bridge or, less commonly, a rock arch is a natural rock formation where a rock arch forms, with an opening underneath. Most natural arches form as a narrow bridge, walled by cliffs, become narrower from erosion, with a softer rock stratum under the cliff-forming stratum gradually eroding out until the rock shelters thus formed meet underneath the ridge, thus forming the arch. Natural arches commonly form where cliffs are subject to erosion from the sea, rivers or weathering (subaerial processes); the processes "find" weaknesses in rocks and work on them, making them larger until they break through. When Stair Hole eventually collapses, it will form a cove.