Stalagmite
Topic: Landforms and their Evolution: Rivers, Groundwater, Glaciers, Waves and Wind · NCERT: Class 9, Ch 2 "Shaping of the Earth's Surface"; Class 11, Ch 6 "Landforms and their Evolution"
Meaning
A stalagmite is a deposit of calcium carbonate that rises from the floor of a limestone cave. Water drips from the cave roof, or from the tip of a stalactite above. When a drop lands on the floor, it loses carbon dioxide or evaporates and leaves behind a little calcium carbonate. Over a long time this builds upwards into a mound. A stalagmite may be shaped like a column or a disc. Its top may be smooth and rounded, or it may have a small crater-like hollow where drops keep landing.
Example
The Belum Caves in Nandyal district, Andhra Pradesh, have stalagmites rising from the cave floor.
Don't confuse with
- Stalactite: it hangs down from the roof. A stalagmite grows up from the floor.
- Cave pillar: forms when a stalagmite grows up and joins the stalactite above it, making one column from floor to roof.