This story was created for the Google Expeditions project by ePublishing Partners, now available on Google Arts & Culture
Stalagmites grow up from the ground and are created as water from the roof of the cave hits the ground. In each case, minerals are deposited either hanging from the roof of the cave (stalactites) or on the ground (stalagmites).
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Caves and Speleothems
Slovak Karst National Park in Slovakia, together with a neighboring park in Hungary, boasts more than 700 caves. Domica is one of the longest and most famous caves in the park. A cave forms when water percolates down through cracks in soluble limestone (calcium carbonate).
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Acid in the water dissolves the limestone and carries it away, eventually forming an underground opening. Cave features like stalactites and stalagmites—called speleothems—form as water continues seeping into the cave.
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Stalagmites
The speleothems rising up from the floor of the cave are stalagmites. If water drips into the cave and falls to its floor, the calcium carbonate may crystallize out as calcite, forming a rock.
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More and more drips fall onto the rock, adding to the top of it. The 'g' in the word stalagmite can help you remember that stalagmites grow up from the ground.
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Pools
Calcite sometimes builds up around pools of water on the cave floor, damming the water in and creating deeper pools. These pools rest in shelf-like formations in Domica Cave.
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Stalactites
The speleothems hanging down from the ceiling of the cave are stalactites. As water drips into the cave, the calcium carbonate may crystallize out as calcite, forming a rock on the ceiling.
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More and more drips run down the slender rock, adding to the end of it. The c in the word stalactite can help you remember that stalactites come down from the ceiling like icicles.
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Soda Straws
Gombasek is another stalactite and stalagmite cave you’ll find in Slovak Karst National Park. It’s known for its many thin and delicate stalactites called soda straws.
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Plaque
Of the more than 700 caves in the area, 12 were designated together as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Berlin in December 1995. Gombasek Cave is one of them.
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Walkway
Visitors can take a 30-minute tour of Gombasek on this paved walkway, which runs about 1,740 feet (530 m) through the cave.
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Soda Straw
A soda straw is a hollow cylindrical tube of calcite that hangs from a cave’s walls or ceiling. They’re usually quite delicate—spelunkers need to be careful not to break them. They often occur in large groups. That’s just what they did at Gombasek Cave.
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If the bottom of a soda straw becomes blocked, it may develop into a regular stalactite. Many stalactites start out as soda straws.
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Flowstone
Flowstone forms when water runs down the walls of a cave, depositing calcite. Thin layers of calcite build up on each other and develop into rounded shapes. It can form speleothems such as mounds and draperies.
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Jasovska Cave, a stalactite cave in Slovakia Karst National Park, is well known for its flowstone draperies.
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Towers
Jasovska Cave is also well known for these tiered towers of flowstone draperies. They resemble pagodas.
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Draperies
When water zigzags left and right as it flows down a rock surface, draperies eventually form. They curve and ripple, giving you a sense of movement . Some draperies descend from overhanging portions of the cave wall.
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Flowstones
Flowstone can resemble a cascading waterfall. It has smooth, rippling surfaces.
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Aragonite
When calcium carbonite crystallizes out of cave water, it sometimes forms a mineral called aragonite rather than calcite. Aragonite has sharp, needle-shaped crystals. Ochtinska Aragonite Cave in Slovak Karst National Park is one of only three known aragonite caves in the world.
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Aragonite
When you look up at the high walls and ceiling of the cave, you can see the sharp bursts of aragonite. They resemble spiny needles. In Ochtinska’s Milky Way hall, they shine like stars.
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Flowstone
Ochtinska Aragonite Cave also has flowstone. These large flowstone draperies curve gracefully downward.
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Ice Cave
One of the UNESCO World Heritage Site caves in Slovak Karst National Park is the Dobsinska Ice Cave. Because its entrance at the surface faces north, heavy cold air flows down into the cave in winter. In summer warmer air, which is lighter, remains at the surface.
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The average annual temperature of the cave remains slightly below freezing. The main part of the cave is this icy corridor descending from the entrance.
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Floor Ice
Ice also forms on the floor of the cave. In some parts the cave is filled with ice almost to the ceiling.
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Ice Formations
Like other caves, Dobsinska features rock walls and speleothems formed from minerals like calcite. But ice also provides the building material for stalagmites, “icefalls” like frozen waterfalls, and columns.