Tag: Arizona

The Wave, Arizona, USA

Leave a comment

The Wave is a rock formation in the Colorado Plateau of Arizona in the United States that was formed by erosion of the Jurassic Navajo Sandstone. It is known for its many undulating structures and contains large sets of cross bedding in aeolian sandstones, which reflect the migration of sand dunes and ripples across an ancient desert environment. The cyclically alternating laminae seen in the Wave result from periodic changes in the prevailing wind directions at the time of deposition.

Information source: Vermillion Cliffs National Monument Service

Image: Cross-bedded aeolian sandstones of the Wave in the Colorado Plateau of Arizona, USA. Source: Sehara, Wikimedia Commons.

Antelope Canyon, Arizona, USA

Leave a comment

Antelope Canyon is a slot canyon in the Colorado Plateau of Arizona in the United States. It consists of two different sections, the Upper Antelope Canyon and the Lower Antelope Canyon. Both have been formed by erosion of the Navajo Sandstone, mainly by flash floods associated with heavy rain. Antelope Canyon is well known for beams of light illuminating flowing shapes in the rocks.

Information source: Antelope Canyon National Park Service

Image: Walls of Antelope Canyon in the Colorado Plateau of Arizona, USA. Source: Luca Galuzzi, Wikimedia Commons.

Grand Canyon, Arizona, USA

Leave a comment

The Grand Canyon is a colossal canyon system in Arizona in the United States that has been eroded by the Colorado River and its tributaries during the uplift of the Colorado Plateau. The Grand Canyon is 446 km long and up to 29 km wide, and reaches a depth of over 1.6 km at its deepest point. In this giant scar across the land, almost 2 billion years of geological history are revealed in well-preserved stratigraphic sections, ranging from the Precambrian Vishnu Schist at the base of the Inner Gorge to the Permian Kaibab Limestone at the Rim.

Information source: Grand Canyon National Park Service

Image: The Grand Canyon and Horn Creek Rapid in the Colorado Plateau of Arizona, USA. Source: Luca Galuzzi, Wikimedia Commons.

Colorado Plateau, Southwestern USA

Leave a comment

The Colorado Plateau is a geological province in the southwestern United States, located in the Four Corners of Utah, Arizona, Colorado and New Mexico. It is bounded by the Rocky Mountains to the north and east, and the Basin and Range Province to the west and south. Having suffered relatively little deformation through geological time, the stratigraphy of the Colorado Plateau is exceptionally well preserved. The landscape is mostly characterized by hot, high desert plateaus and dramatic weathering and erosion structures, dominated by the massive Grand Canyon.

Information source: United States Geological Survey

Image: The Organ, a rock structure in the Colorado Plateau of Utah, USA. Source: Sanjay Acharya, Wikimedia Commons.