RE: Mississippi Draining into Aquifers Instead of Flowing to the Gulf

"...maybe we should be concerned."

The water level in the underlying aquifer has been lowered by ~10M. That's where the Mississippi is going. The pic above well shows the reduction in flow and water reaching the Gulf.

"...they don’t suddenly vanish into them unless there’s something called "Karst", which is just limestone caverns, or even massive fractures in the river bed..."

The bed has been eroded away and fluidized, allowing the Mississippi to supply the depleted aquifer below it rather than deliver water into the Gulf. The video well explains the physical processes that have caused this to happen.

"...dry season is really good this year."

It's been a good year for precipitation. The river bed has been destroyed by channelization and flood control structures for decades, and suddenly the river broke through and began pouring into the aquifer below it.

"...the river itself is being drained underground..."

That's exactly what's happened. The volume of water flowing downstream reduced by ~half in three days, at a point upstream from St. Louis where the riverbed was finally punched through.

Thanks!