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Anthodite
Speleothems composed of long needle-like crystals situated in clusters / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Anthodites (Greek ἄνθος ánthos, "flower", -ode, adjectival combining form, -ite adjectival suffix) are speleothems (cave formations) composed of long needle-like crystals situated in clusters which radiate outward from a common base. The "needles" may be quill-like or feathery. Most anthodites are made of the mineral aragonite (a variety of calcium carbonate, CaCO3), although some are composed of gypsum (CaSO4·2H2O).
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Anthodites are featured at the commercial Skyline Caverns in Virginia, US
The term anthodite is first cited in the scientific literature in 1965 by Japanese researcher N. Kashima,[1] who described "flower-like dripstone" composed of "an alternation of calcite and aragonite".[2][3]