Which one hangs from the ceiling? A stalactite? Or a stalagmite?
Stalagmite Stalagmite A stalagmite ( or ; from the Greek - ', from - ', "dropping, trickling") is a type of rock formation that rises from the floor of a cave due to the accumulation of material deposited on the floor from ceiling drippings. Stalagmites may be composed of lava, minerals, mud, peat, pitch, sand, sinter and amberat (crystallized urine of pack rats). The corresponding formation hanging down from the ceiling of a cave is a stalactite. Mnemonics have been developed for which word refers to which type of formation; one is that "stalactite" has a C for "ceiling", and "stalagmite"
Stalagmite secondary deposits can’t be referred to as “speleothems” due to the definition of the word. The largest known stalagmite in the world exceeds in height and is in Sơn Đoòng Cave, Vietnam. In the Zagros Mountains of south Iran, approximately from the ancient city of Bishapur, in the Shapur cave on the fourth of five terraces stands the 3rd-century colossal statue of Shapur I, second ruler of the Sassanid Empire. The statue, carved from one stalagmite, is nearly high. Stalagmite A stalagmite ( or ; from the Greek - ', from - ', "dropping, trickling") is a type of rock