Bethers wrote:Yay for the hot shower, Judy.
Today's been a long day. But I'm on the road. I'm at Valley of Fires rec area in New Mexico. Most people automatically think of the similarly named place in Nevada. My feet and ankles are both badly swollen so I couldn't do the hike I wanted to here. Anne and Sandi, I'm too tired to write all about it, but I think you'd find this geology quite interesting. From the website "Valley of Fires
Valley of Fires recreation area is located immediately adjacent to the Malpais Lava Flow. Approximately 5,000 years ago, Little Black Peak erupted and flowed 44 miles into the Tularosa Basin, filling the basin with molten rock. The resulting lava flow is four to six miles wide, 160 feet thick and covers 125 square miles. The lava flow is considered to be one of the youngest lava flows in the continental United States." And hopefully you can read this from a picture I took near the trail.
And now I'm heading to bed.
Thanks, Beth!
I always find this kind of stuff extremely interesting.
But, first of all, what is the matter with your feet and ankles? Nothing serious, I most sincerely hope.
I'll comment a bit more tomorrow, but I'm wondering about the statement (contained in the poster you photographed) that a five-thousand-year-old lava flow is "considered to be one of the youngest lava flows in the continental United States".
Hrm! Lassen Peak here in California (about fifty miles from me as the crow flies) last erupted 1914 - 1917, just a little more than a hundred years ago. This eruption produced a very short lava flow, but a lava flow nonetheless.
Medicine Lake Volcano, (east of Mt. Shasta volcano) last erupted about one thousand years ago, and produced extensive lava flows and lava tube caves. I think I remember that one of the basaltic lava flows traveled about twenty miles, but I will check on that tomorrow.
Those are the stats of two of the volcanoes here that I know off the top of my head, I'll also look into other California volcanoes that have erupted over the recent geologic past. There are quite a few of them. Then there are the Cascade volcanoes of Oregon and Washington to consider as well.
Here is a fun graphic showing the major west coast volcanoes (California, Oregon and Washington - and there are an enormous number of "minor" west coast volcanoes as well, not listed here) and their eruptive history over the last 4,000 years (note the "200" on the bottom right of the graphic, with the
red dashed line above - these are the west coast volcanoes that have erupted within the last
two hundred years!)
I don't know which of these produced lava flows - the famous eruption of Mt. St. Helens in 1980 was massively explosive, but did not produce a lava flow - although earlier eruptions of St. Helens did produce lava flows that also created lava tube caves.
Thanks, Beth!! You have got my juices flowing!!
Anne