stalactite

thumb|300px|right|Image showing the six most common speleothems with labels. Enlarge to view labels.

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I cannot write an accurate overview based on this context alone. The provided text only describes an image caption about speleothems but does not contain information about what stalactites are, how they form, or why they matter. To provide an accurate 2-sentence overview, I would need actual descriptive content about stalactites.

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Wikidata facts

Image: Stalactites at blue john images 2006.JPG

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Commons category: Stalactites
exact match: purl.obolibrary.org/obo/ENVO_00000331

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~12 min read

Article

15 sections

Contents

Formation and type
Limestone stalactites
Pillars
Lava stalactites
Shark tooth stalactites
Splash stalactites
Tubular lava stalactites
Ice stalactites
Concrete stalactites
Records
Etymology
Photo gallery
See also
References
External links

thumb|300px|right|Image showing the six most common speleothems with labels. Enlarge to view labels.

A stalactite (, ; , ) is a mineral formation that hangs from the ceiling of caves, hot springs, or man-made structures such as bridges and mines. Any material that is soluble and that can be deposited as a colloid, or is in suspension, or is capable of being melted, may form a stalactite. Stalactites may be composed of lava, minerals, mud, peat, pitch, sand, sinter, and amberat (crystallized urine of pack rats). A stalactite is not necessarily a speleothem, though speleothems are the most common form of stalactite because of the abundance of limestone caves.