STALACTITES AND STALAGMITES.
In caves, stalactites are very often found - "icicles" of various sizes hanging from the ceiling, and stalagmites - "icicles" growing from the floor of the cave.
Word " stalactite"translated from Greek means" dripping drop by drop ". The fact is that even the highest stone mountains on Earth are not a solid monolith - they have microcracks through which water seeps from the surface of the mountain into the caves. But water enters the caves through the thickness is very slow - literally rare drops.These droplets of water are slightly washed out of the rock calcium - this is how stalactites are obtained.
Dripping on the floor of the cave, the water brings with it calcium crystals, which begin to fold into a "hill" - stalagmite. Stalagmites are usually thicker than stalactites, because the water splashes when falling and the crystals crumble.
Both stalactites and stalagmites grow very slowly - hundreds and thousands of years. If the cave is not very high, then the stalagmites and stalactites coalesce over time.
On the polished section of the stalagmite, growth rings are clearly visible.
By the way, there is a very simple method of how to remember what to call a stalactite and what a stalagmite - in the word "stalag m it "is the letter M, as in the word" ze m la". So, a stalagmite is something that grows on the ground!
The longest, free-hanging stalactite is considered to be a huge stone icicle in Gruga do Janelao, Brazil, 12 meters long, and the record holder among stalagmites has a height of 32 meters. It is located in the Krasnogorska cave near Roznava, Slovakia.
We have a huge number of caves in Russia where you can see this miracle of nature. If you have the opportunity to visit the caves with a tour - be sure to go - we guarantee impressions of a lifetime!
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Nature never ceases to amaze us, there are so many unusual and interesting things in the world that, upon seeing them, a person freezes with delight. It is almost impossible to travel the whole planet and see all the sights, learn about all kinds of plants and animals, but still some natural monuments are found in many countries, which allows a large number of people to get to know them.
The extraordinary creations of nature include stalactites and stalagmites. there are in many states, so inquisitive tourists can easily satisfy their curiosity and inspect them from the inside. You should not go to distant lands, since such a miracle exists in Russia, Ukraine, stalactites and stalagmites of amazing beauty are found in Israel, China, and Slovakia.
Their size and shape depends on the size of the cave and its location. Many are interested in the question of how stalactites and stalagmites differ. It is worth noting that both are formed from calcium and other minerals. Even in the highest rocky caves there are small gaps through which water enters. Since you have to go a very long way before you can get into the cave, on their way they wash out the existing mineral deposits. Water never runs in a stream: because the hole is too small, it comes in small droplets.
Stalactites in translation from Greek mean "leaked drop by drop". This is nothing but chemogenic deposits in karst caves. They come in different types and types, mainly icicles, combs, straws and fringes. Stalagmite in Greek means "drop", these are mineral growths on the ground that rise over time in the form of cones or pillars. They can be limestone, salt or gypsum. The main difference between these two growths is that stalactites grow from the ceiling, while stalagmites grow from the bottom of the cave.
Stalactites and stalagmites can, in some cases, join together to form a column called a stalagnate. This may take thousands, or even millions of years, because these huge blocks grow from billions of small droplets. This process takes place most quickly in low caves. It can be impossible to pass there because of the densely erected pillars.
Karst caves are considered a favorite place to visit for tourists. People are interested in looking at stalactites and stalagmites, taking pictures next to them, touching them with their hands. Being next to this miracle of nature, you understand that it existed hundreds of thousands or millions of years ago and has survived to this day. In Cuba, in the Las Villas cave, the highest stalagmite on the planet was discovered, its height reaches 63 m. The largest stalactite is considered to be a stone icicle hanging in Gruga do Janelao in Brazil, its height is 32 m. Europe also has its own giants, So, in Slovakia in the Buzgo cave, a stalagmite 35.6 m high was found.
Stalactites and stalagmites have the same origin, although they look different. The former are thinner and more graceful, while the latter are thick and wide.
Why do caves appear
The earth's surface has a structure that is complex in composition and configuration. At one time, when the formation of land and oceans took place, various minerals were also formed. For example, basalt appeared at high temperature and pressure as a result of volcanic activity. Granite also arose under the same conditions. But limestone, marble, chalk, gypsum and salt, which can be composed of stalactites and stalagmites, were formed according to a different mechanism, in less extreme circumstances. All of them dissolve in water - this is their distinctive property. When water washes these elements out of the composition of rocks, voids appear inside. They are called caves.
Geological processesEmpty space inside any body is karst. In accordance with this term, most of the caves known to people began to be called karst. I must say that caves can also be formed as a result of other processes occurring in the earth's crust, but this is a topic for a separate discussion. It is important to emphasize that stalactites and stalagmites appear precisely in karst formations. In these voids, natural processes do not stop even for a moment, although they continue for many millions of years. Scientists have calculated that stalactites and stalagmites grow by about 1 cm in 100 years.
According to experts, the largest karst cave on the planet is located in the United States. Kentucky is famous for its Mammoth Caves, whose stalactites and stalagmites attract both tourists and scientists. These caves communicate with each other. The total length of underground halls and passages is 560 kilometers. On the island of Crete there are almost one and a half thousand caves. The most interesting of them is Sfedoni. Its age is estimated from seven to fifteen million years. It has modest dimensions, only 145 meters. However, its interior (so to speak) is remarkable for its amazing proportions and beauty. It looks like it was made by human hands.
At first, acquaintance with the caves, some people have a question about how stalactites and stalagmites differ? Speaking in everyday language, stalactites are "icicles" that hang from the ceiling. Water seeps through soil and rock, eroding along the way those minerals that dissolve in it. Getting into the cave room, water evaporates, and minerals remain in the dry residue. The icicle gradually grows and increases in size. In the case when the mineral solution is formed weakly saturated, its drops fall from a height and reach the floor. In this place, an "icicle" is also formed, only with the tip up. This is a stalagmite.
Experts and lovers of underground routes do not get tired of being surprised by the variety of caves on the planet. It would seem that everything has already been studied and explained. However, new facts make us return to the same questions again and again. It is well known that stalactites and stalagmites are formed as a result of the evaporation of moisture that penetrates from the outside. However, recent studies have shown that this is not always the case. From what has been said, it follows that the caves have not yet revealed all their secrets. Curious and energetic researchers have yet to break their heads over their solution.
Nature has always been and remains a mystery to man, both in ancient times and in the modern world. One of these mysteries of modern times are caves. Previously, people were not interested in where they came from - the main thing is that they served as a reliable shelter from bad weather and enemies. Today, the study of caves is engaged in a special science - speleology. Speleologists study in detail all the regularities in the appearance of depressions, the composition of rocks, the characteristics of flora and fauna, and also give forecasts for their development. The caves contain a lot of interesting things: unknown living creatures, various water sources, processes - stalactites and stalagmites. We will talk about them in this article.
How are stalactites and stalagmites formed?
Such processes are formed mainly in karst and caves - where a large number of mineral rocks. These include limestone, chalk, dalamit, marble, gypsum, salt. Under the influence of rain moisture, which contains dissolved carbon dioxide, the rocks are eroded, and sedimentary water flows into such caves. The appearance of one or another type of processes depends on the rate of water runoff.
- a process consisting of mineral rock and formed from the ceiling of the cave. It is formed when water flows slowly and drops linger for a long time at the top of the cave recess. In the caves, a lower temperature prevails, and it is precisely this that contributes to the solidification of drops. So gradually flowing and solidifying drops form a kind of stone formation in the form of a thick needle, but most of all, the shape of a stalactite resembles an icicle.
Stalagmite- an outgrowth consisting of mineral rock and formed from the lower surface of the cave. It occurs when sedimentary water flows quickly from the ceiling of the cave space and hits one point on the floor. On the lower surface of the cave, the temperature is even lower than at the top, and the drops solidify even faster. Under the force of gravity, the drop hits the floor and spreads a small distance in a circle from the place where the drop fell. Such solidification of drops forms a thick and dense base of the stalagmite, and it looks like a cone-shaped process with a pointed top.
The frequency of location of stalactites and stalagmites depends on the degree of permeability of the cave surface and on the composition of mineral rocks. If the rocks are mostly limestone or gypsum, they will dissolve faster and the water will run down the top of the cave faster. Stalactites and stalagmites in such a rock will be fragile, therefore, when examining such caves, one must be careful - do not touch the processes, neither scream, nor stomp, otherwise injuries from the fall of such formations are inevitable. Sometimes stalactites and stalagmites merge into one continuous column - stalagnate; such columns can form whole columns inside the caves.
Stalactites can look different, it depends on the composition of the rocks and the chemical processes that occur under the influence of carbon dioxide and water. The temperature and air circulation in the cave also have a great influence, if the wind often walks inside, then the threads, processes can be indirect, curved, arched. So in the cave you can see a fringe of stalactites, scallops, drapery, threads, various figures, fungi. The shape of stalagmites can also be different - from simple conical columns to flattened fungi.
Formations in the form of offshoots in karst caves can grow for centuries. Some grow faster, some take longer. There are thousands of karst caves all over the globe, many of them have already been studied, many are still unknown to the world.
The world's most famous stalactite and stalagmite caves
"Mammoth Cave" (USA, Kentucky)
According to scientists, it arose about 10 million years ago, got its name due to its size, its length is about 600 km. Inside there is a whole system of mines and branches. Mineral outgrowths in this cave are located on whole floors, in many of its departments and halls, stone blocks stick out directly from the water. The spectacle impresses both speleologists and tourists, but you need to be careful - it is very easy to get lost in it.
"Crystal Cave" (Mexico)
Inside the cave is filled with gypsum crystals, the largest outgrowth reaches 11 meters in height, and its mass is 54 tons! It is unlikely that ordinary tourists will be able to visit such a cave, because the temperature inside reaches +50 degrees.
"Cave of Throat Barloga" (Russia)
The height of the cave is about 2800 meters, inside there is a whole system of halls, wells and streams of various sizes. The filling in the halls varies from large pyramidal crystalline processes to various clay and calcium deposits. Going down into such a cave is dangerous even for professionals.
Despite all the dangers associated with traveling through such masterpieces of nature, the caves will always beckon with their unique and enchanting beauty, and mysterious silence, where there is its own chronology and its own special course of life.
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From the surface of the earth, water seeps into the earth's interior. And where soluble rocks lie in them - limestone, chalk, gypsum - there gradually water and time create an underground miracle - a cave.
Caves are different. Huge, stretching underground for many kilometers, and small. Ice and no ice. With underground lakes and rivers that you can sail on a boat, and without them...
Caves are no joke. In no case should you go there without an experienced escort. There is nothing to get lost and lost forever.
And yet, researchers, tourists and just curious people often visit the caves. Once in the cave hall, a person experiences surprise and admiration. Stone icicles - stalactites - hang from majestic vaults. Some of them are very small, others are large and very old. Gray, snow-white, white-pink, these stone icicles are a real decoration of the cave.
Water is constantly running down them. And various substances are dissolved in it. At the very end of the icicle is a drop of water
delayed. The time that a droplet spends on the tip of a stalactite is enough for some of these substances to remain on its hard edge. So, very slowly, for many centuries, a stalactite grows.
The drop breaks off and falls down. And there, from the floor of the cave, a stalagmite, a stone tower, grows towards the stalactite. Many years will pass, they will meet and grow together, forming a column.
In the mysterious world of caves, you can see absolutely amazing stalagmites. In one of the caves there is a stalagmite "Candlestick". This snow-white stone marvel is really very reminiscent of a candlestick.
In addition to stalactites, stalagmites, columns, there are lush stone curtains, stone flowers and other amazing formations in the caves. All of them are creations of tireless water...
When you are in a cave and admire it, it is especially unpleasant to suddenly find a can of soda water, a candy wrapper or something like that. You involuntarily think with annoyance: oh, even here people have already been here who do not respect nature, do not appreciate its mysterious, unique beauty.
Yes, there are different people in the caves, and not only those who value earthly stone beauty. Among them, to the greatest regret, there are those who do not have to break off the stalactite and destroy the stalagmite. Or make some kind of inscription on the wall of the cave. Or leave trash here.
Sometimes people even build a fire in the cave. For the cave, this is harmful, because the temperature regime that has developed here for centuries is violated. For the unfortunate tourists themselves, this can end tragically: they can suffocate and die in the smoke.
Caves - "underground palaces", are created by nature over many millennia, and it is possible to break, spoil the underground wonder in a matter of minutes.
Therefore, no one, ever and nowhere, can break stalactites, stalagmites and other natural “decorations” in caves. You can not make any inscriptions, burn fires and throw garbage. It is necessary to respect the caves, these unique creations of nature, to respect and protect.
If you ever find yourself in a cave, then try not to forget about it.
AND THE STONE WORTH RESPECT
On a school trip, the mischievous Lyosha began to bring down the edge of a small cliff with his foot. In this place, layers of clay and sand were visible. Once local hills were formed from them. The cliff was with a small overhanging ledge-cornice. That's what the boy was trying to bring down.
He did not think that he himself could fall. And he didn’t think at all that the cliff and its cornice were beautiful in their own way and that this simple beauty should also be protected. The boy did not even think about the fact that there might be someone's minks on a steep slope, for example, shore swallows or some insects, and that these minks would be destroyed. Fortunately, Lyosha did not have time to do anything wrong - the teacher stopped him. But after all, a teacher is not always next to the guys ...
What makes up the beauty of our planet? Flowers and trees, birds and butterflies, seas and rivers - this is only part of its beauty. Everything that nature has created is beautiful in its own way. And this little break too. And here is the stone-boulder that lies nearby.
Imagine that we have come to such a boulder. It may be the size of a soccer ball, or it may be larger than an adult. A smooth, rounded stone warmed up on the sunny side, and cool on the shady side. How nice to put your hands on it. Looking at this mighty stone, touching it, you feel some kind of majestic, exciting wisdom of the ages. Well, that's the way it should be. After all, a boulder lying quietly somewhere in a forest or on a river bank is not just a stone. It is a kind of natural monument left by a very old time.
