All About Stalagmites & Stalactites!

Welcome!

All About This Website.

On the 19th of July 2017, the Dainfern College grade 6's went on an outing to the Sterkfontein Caves & Maropeng. The next day we were tasked to find a topic we were interested in from our outing. When we had chosen our topic, we were put in groups according to our topic. Our group contained three members: Pares, Izyan & Joshua. The topic we chose was cave formation. We researched deeper into our topic and chose stalactites & stalagmites as our new topic. Our next task was to display the information we had gathered about our topic. Our group was fast do decide that it would be unique & fantastic to display our information on presentation boards & a website. We all got to work completing all the tasks successfully and having fun. This is the website we coded it includes all the information we put on our presentation boards & more. Now you can never forget the information we displayed at our expo on the 4th of August!


Pares with his hydraulic arm.

Introduction


On the 19th of July, the Grade 6's went on an outing to Maropeng & the Sterkfontein caves. Our job was to find a topic we were interested in and break it down to the specific part we liked. Our group chose cave formation & then broke it down to stalagmite & stalactite formation.

Pares with his hydraulic arm.

Formation


Stalactites are formed when water reacts with chemical elements in the ground & rock and flows slowly through the roof of the cave. Depositing calcium carbonate which hardens and builds up over time to form a stalactite.

Pares with his hydraulic arm.

Our Big Question


Can stalagmites & stalactites be formed with materials other than limestone?

Pares with his hydraulic arm.

The 5 questions that helped us answer our big question.


1. Question: How long does it take for stalagmites & stalactites to form?

Answer: Every 1,000 years a stalagmite or stalactite grows 10cm.


2. Question: What materials are required to make homemade stalagmites & stalactites?

Answer: Jars, a saucer, a spoon, paper clips, hot water, wool, baking soda and food colouring.



3. Question: What conditions are required to create stalagmites and stalactites?

Answer: The conditions required to create stalagmites & stalactites are moisture, oxygen & CO2.



4. Question: How do stalagmites & stalactites form?

Answer: Stalagmites & stalactites form when water reacts with chemical elements in the ground and rock, and seeps slowly through the roof of the cave, depositing calcium carbonate, which hardens and builds up over time to form a stalactite. Stalagmites are matching formations on the floors of caves, rising over time as drops of water, full of calcium carbonate, fall from the roof of the cave.



5. Question: Are stalagmites & stalactites made up of the exact same materials?

Answer: Yes, stalagmites & stalactites are made op of the exact same thing. The only difference between the two is that their starting points are situated opposite from one another.



Pares with his hydraulic arm.

Fun Facts


Stalactite has a c for ceiling.

Stalagmite has a g for ground.

The longest stalactite is 8.2m long in the White Chamber.

The highest stalagmite is 70m high in Son Doong Cave in Vietnam.

Pares with his hydraulic arm.

Conclusion


Yes, stalagmites & stalactites can be formed from materials other than limestone because there are also lava & ice stalagmites & stalactites. The key elements are: a solute, which is soluble, and a solvent, which is the solution the solute dissolves into.

Pares with his hydraulic arm.

More information & Questions


1. Question: Are there different types stalagmites & stalactites?

Answer: Yes, there are limestone, lava, ice & concrete stalagmites & stalactites. Limestone ones are the most common and concrete ones are the rarest.


2. Question: Do stalagmites & stalactites ever stop growing?

Answer: No, they never stop growing because the water keeps dripping.


Pares with his hydraulic arm.

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