Sunset Crater

Last updated

Sunset Crater
Sunsetcrater13.JPG
Sunset Crater from the Cinder Hills
Highest point
Elevation 8,042 ft (2,451 m)  NAVD 88 [1]
Prominence 999 ft (304 m) [2]
Coordinates 35°21′52″N111°30′13″W / 35.36444°N 111.50361°W / 35.36444; -111.50361 [1]
Geography
USA Arizona relief location map.svg
Red triangle with thick white border.svg
Sunset Crater
Usa edcp relief location map.png
Red triangle with thick white border.svg
Sunset Crater
Location Coconino County, Arizona, U.S.
Topo map USGS Sunset Crater East
Geology
Rock age ~950 years
Mountain type Cinder cone [3]
Volcanic field San Francisco volcanic field
Last eruption 1075 ± 25 years [3]
Climbing
Easiest route Hike
Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument
Sunset Crater
Area3,138 acres (12.70 km2) [4]
EstablishedMay 26, 1930
Visitors104,583(in 2018) [5]
Governing bodyNational Park Service
Website Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument

Sunset Crater is a cinder cone located north of Flagstaff in the U.S. state of Arizona. The crater is within the Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument.

Contents

Sunset Crater is the youngest in a string of volcanoes (the San Francisco volcanic field) that is related to the nearby San Francisco Peaks. [6]

Formation

The date of the eruptions that formed the 340-meter-high cone (1,120 ft) was initially derived from tree-ring dates, suggesting the eruption began between the growing seasons of AD 1064–1065. [7] However, more recent geologic and archaeological evidence places the eruption around AD 1085. [8] The largest vent of the eruption, Sunset Crater itself, was the source of the Bonito and Kana-a lava flows that extended about 2.5 kilometers (1.6 mi) northwest and 9.6 kilometers (6 mi) northeast, respectively. Additional vents along a 10-kilometer-long fissure (6.2 mi) extending southeast produced small spatter ramparts and a 6.4-kilometer-long lava flow (4 mi) to the east. The Sunset Crater eruption peaked at VEI 4 (Sub-Plinian), produced a total 0.52 km3 of ejecta, [9] had an eruption column between 20-30km tall [10] and produced a blanket of ash and lapilli covering an area of more than 2,100 square kilometers (810 sq mi), which forced the temporary abandonment of settlements of the local Sinagua people. [3]

The volcano has partially revegetated, with pines and wildflowers. The crater is the namesake for the Sunset Crater Beardtongue (Penstemon clutei). The volcano is monitored by the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory [11] and is classified as a moderate threat.

Damage from hikers forced the National Park Service to close a trail leading to the crater, but a short trail at the base remains. [12]

The hiking trail below the summit skirts the substantial Bonito Lava Flow. This hardened lava is black and appears fresh as it has devastated the forest in its path. The lava flow also created an ice cave or tube that is now closed to the public after a partial collapse.

2015 eruption scare

On June 5, 2015, a website with satellite images reported steam rising from the crater, leading to fears that Sunset Crater was erupting. The cause of the steam was later determined to be a forest fire, and geologists stated that the volcano was extinct. [13]

Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument

Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument is a U.S. national monument created to protect Sunset Crater, a cinder cone within the San Francisco Volcanic Field. [14] The monument is managed by the National Park Service in conjunction with nearby Wupatki National Monument. In 1928, a Hollywood film company, Famous Players–Lasky Corporation, planned to detonate large quantities of explosives on the side of Sunset Crater in order to create an avalanche for Zane Grey's motion picture Avalanche . [15] Public outcry over this plan led in part to the proclamation of Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument by President Herbert Hoover in 1930. [16]

A 1-mile (1.6 km), self-guided loop trail is located at the base of Sunset Crater, but hiking to the summit is not permitted. A trail providing access to the summit and crater was closed in 1973 because of excessive erosion caused by hikers. [17] A visitor center is located near the park entrance, 15 miles (24 km) north of Flagstaff, Arizona, along U.S. Highway 89.

In April 2022, the Tunnel Fire burned over the entirety of the monument, though the visitor center was spared. [18] [19] In December 2022, 98 acres including the visitor center and administrative facilities were transferred from Coconino National Forest to the national monument. [20]

Climate

According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Sunset Crater has a Continental climate, abbreviated "Dsb" on climate maps.

Climate data for Sunset Crater, Arizona (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1969–present)
MonthJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecYear
Record high °F (°C)68
(20)
70
(21)
78
(26)
82
(28)
91
(33)
99
(37)
98
(37)
97
(36)
92
(33)
87
(31)
74
(23)
68
(20)
99
(37)
Mean maximum °F (°C)57.0
(13.9)
59.8
(15.4)
68.1
(20.1)
75.2
(24.0)
83.2
(28.4)
92.8
(33.8)
93.8
(34.3)
89.5
(31.9)
84.9
(29.4)
77.5
(25.3)
67.4
(19.7)
60.8
(16.0)
94.9
(34.9)
Mean daily maximum °F (°C)43.9
(6.6)
46.6
(8.1)
53.9
(12.2)
61.1
(16.2)
70.2
(21.2)
82.2
(27.9)
84.2
(29.0)
80.7
(27.1)
75.3
(24.1)
64.6
(18.1)
53.3
(11.8)
44.0
(6.7)
63.3
(17.4)
Daily mean °F (°C)28.4
(−2.0)
31.4
(−0.3)
37.4
(3.0)
44.1
(6.7)
51.9
(11.1)
62.0
(16.7)
66.6
(19.2)
63.9
(17.7)
57.5
(14.2)
46.3
(7.9)
35.8
(2.1)
28.2
(−2.1)
46.1
(7.9)
Mean daily minimum °F (°C)12.8
(−10.7)
16.3
(−8.7)
21.0
(−6.1)
27.0
(−2.8)
33.6
(0.9)
41.9
(5.5)
49.0
(9.4)
47.1
(8.4)
39.8
(4.3)
27.9
(−2.3)
18.4
(−7.6)
12.4
(−10.9)
28.9
(−1.7)
Mean minimum °F (°C)−4.1
(−20.1)
−0.3
(−17.9)
5.6
(−14.7)
11.9
(−11.2)
18.6
(−7.4)
27.1
(−2.7)
38.4
(3.6)
37.7
(3.2)
26.5
(−3.1)
15.5
(−9.2)
2.9
(−16.2)
−5.1
(−20.6)
−8.7
(−22.6)
Record low °F (°C)−26
(−32)
−28
(−33)
−9
(−23)
−1
(−18)
12
(−11)
16
(−9)
27
(−3)
27
(−3)
12
(−11)
−5
(−21)
−12
(−24)
−25
(−32)
−28
(−33)
Average precipitation inches (mm)1.41
(36)
1.10
(28)
1.08
(27)
0.65
(17)
0.69
(18)
0.31
(7.9)
2.65
(67)
3.45
(88)
1.72
(44)
1.39
(35)
0.87
(22)
1.72
(44)
17.04
(433)
Average snowfall inches (cm)12.2
(31)
9.4
(24)
6.1
(15)
4.2
(11)
0.8
(2.0)
0.0
(0.0)
0.0
(0.0)
0.0
(0.0)
0.0
(0.0)
1.2
(3.0)
3.5
(8.9)
11.9
(30)
49.3
(125)
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 inch)5.65.84.93.84.12.311.914.27.65.03.65.874.6
Average snowy days (≥ 0.1 inch)4.14.42.71.80.40.00.00.00.00.41.94.420.1
Source: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration [21] [22]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Crater Lake National Park</span> National park in Oregon

Crater Lake National Park is a national park of the United States located in southern Oregon. Established in 1902, Crater Lake is the fifth-oldest national park in the United States and the only national park in Oregon. The park encompasses the caldera of Crater Lake, a remnant of Mount Mazama, a destroyed volcano, and the surrounding hills and forests.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lava Beds National Monument</span> National monument in California, United States

Lava Beds National Monument is located in northeastern California, in Siskiyou and Modoc counties. The monument lies on the northeastern flank of Medicine Lake Volcano, which is the largest volcano by area in the Cascade Range.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Volcanic cone</span> Landform of ejecta from a volcanic vent piled up in a conical shape

Volcanic cones are among the simplest volcanic landforms. They are built by ejecta from a volcanic vent, piling up around the vent in the shape of a cone with a central crater. Volcanic cones are of different types, depending upon the nature and size of the fragments ejected during the eruption. Types of volcanic cones include stratocones, spatter cones, tuff cones, and cinder cones.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve</span> National monument in Idaho, United States

Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve is a U.S. national monument and national preserve in the Snake River Plain in central Idaho. It is along US 20, between the small towns of Arco and Carey, at an average elevation of 5,900 feet (1,800 m) above sea level.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Haleakalā</span> Massive shield volcano in Hawaii

Haleakalā, or the East Maui Volcano, is a massive, active shield volcano that forms more than 75% of the Hawaiian Island of Maui. The western 25% of the island is formed by another volcano, Mauna Kahalawai, also referred to as the West Maui Mountains.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mono–Inyo Craters</span> Volcanic chain in eastern California, United States

The Mono–Inyo Craters are a volcanic chain of craters, domes and lava flows in Mono County, Eastern California. The chain stretches 25 miles (40 km) from the northwest shore of Mono Lake to the south of Mammoth Mountain. The Mono Lake Volcanic Field forms the northernmost part of the chain and consists of two volcanic islands in the lake and one cinder cone volcano on its northwest shore. Most of the Mono Craters, which make up the bulk of the northern part of the Mono–Inyo chain, are phreatic volcanoes that have since been either plugged or over-topped by rhyolite domes and lava flows. The Inyo volcanic chain form much of the southern part of the chain and consist of phreatic explosion pits, and rhyolitic lava flows and domes. The southernmost part of the chain consists of fumaroles and explosion pits on Mammoth Mountain and a set of cinder cones south of the mountain; the latter are called the Red Cones.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lassen Volcanic National Park</span> National park in California, United States

Lassen Volcanic National Park is a national park of the United States in northeastern California. The dominant feature of the park is Lassen Peak, the largest plug dome volcano in the world and the southernmost volcano in the Cascade Range. Lassen Volcanic National Park is one of the few areas in the world where all four types of volcanoes can be found: plug dome, shield, cinder cone, and stratovolcano.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lassen Peak</span> Active volcano in California, United States

Lassen Peak, commonly referred to as Mount Lassen, is a 10,457 ft (3,187 m) lava dome volcano in Lassen Volcanic National Park in Northern California. Located in the Shasta Cascade region above the northern Sacramento Valley, it is the southernmost active volcano in the Cascade Range of the Western United States, and part of the Cascade Volcanic Arc stretching from southwestern British Columbia to northern California. It supports many flora and fauna among its diverse habitats, which reach high elevations and are subject to frequent snowfall.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cinder Cone and the Fantastic Lava Beds</span> Cinder cone in California, U.S.

Cinder Cone is a cinder cone volcano in Lassen Volcanic National Park within the United States. It is located about 10 mi (16 km) northeast of Lassen Peak and provides an excellent view of Brokeoff Mountain, Lassen Peak, and Chaos Crags.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mount Mazama</span> Complex volcano in the Cascade Range

Mount Mazama is a complex volcano in the western U.S. state of Oregon, in a segment of the Cascade Volcanic Arc and Cascade Range. The volcano is in Klamath County, in the southern Cascades, 60 miles (97 km) north of the Oregon–California border. Its collapse, due to the eruption of magma emptying the underlying magma chamber, formed a caldera that holds Crater Lake. Mount Mazama originally had an elevation of 12,000 feet (3,700 m), but following its climactic eruption this was reduced to 8,157 feet (2,486 m). Crater Lake is 1,943 feet (592 m) deep, the deepest freshwater body in the U.S. and the second deepest in North America after Great Slave Lake in Canada.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Capulin Volcano National Monument</span> U.S. National Monument in New Mexico

Capulin Volcano National Monument is a U.S. National Monument located in northeastern New Mexico that protects and interprets an extinct cinder cone volcano and is part of the Raton-Clayton volcanic field. A paved road spirals gradually around the volcano and visitors can drive up to a parking lot at the rim of the extinct volcano. Hiking trails circle the rim and lead down into the mouth of the volcano. The monument was designated on August 9, 1916, and is administered by the National Park Service. The volcano is located 5 kilometres north of the village of Capulin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">San Francisco volcanic field</span> Part of the San Francisco Peaks in northern Arizona

The San Francisco volcanic field is an area of volcanoes in northern Arizona, north of Flagstaff, US. The field covers 1,800 square miles (4,700 km2) of the southern boundary of the Colorado Plateau. The field contains 600 volcanoes ranging in age from nearly 6 million years old to less than 1,000 years, of which Sunset Crater is the youngest. The highest peak in the field is Humphreys Peak, at Flagstaff's northern perimeter: the peak is Arizona's highest at 12,633 feet and is a part of the San Francisco Peaks, an active stratovolcano complex.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Amboy Crater</span> Dormant cinder cone volcano in the Mojave Desert, California, United States

Amboy Crater is a dormant cinder cone volcano that rises above a 70-square-kilometer (27 sq mi) lava field in the eastern Mojave Desert of southern California, within Mojave Trails National Monument.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mount Tehama</span> Eroded Andesitic stratovolcano in Northern California

Mount Tehama is an eroded andesitic stratovolcano in the Cascade Volcanic Arc and the Cascade Range in Northern California. Part of the Lassen volcanic area, its tallest remnant, Brokeoff Mountain, is itself the second highest peak in Lassen Volcanic National Park and connects to the park's highest point, Lassen Peak. Located on the border of Tehama County and Shasta County, Brokeoff's peak is the highest point in the former. The hikers that summit this mountain each year are treated to "exceptional" views of Lassen Peak, the Central Valley of California, and many of the park's other features. On clear days, Mount Shasta can also be seen in the distance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lava Butte</span> Cinder cone in central Oregon, United States

Lava Butte is a cinder cone in central Oregon, United States, just west of U.S. Route 97 between the towns of Bend, and Sunriver in Deschutes County. It is part of a system of small cinder cones on the northwest flank of Newberry Volcano, a massive shield volcano which rises to the southeast. The cinder cone is capped by a crater which extends about 60 feet (20 m) deep beneath its south rim, and 160 feet (50 m) deep from the 5,020-foot (1,530 m) summit on its north side. Lava Butte is part of the Newberry National Volcanic Monument.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">West Crater</span> Lava dome in Washington, United States

West Crater is a small lava dome with associated lava flows in southern Washington, United States. Located in Skamania County, it rises to an elevation of 4,131 feet (1,259 m), and forms part of the Cascade Volcanic Arc. It is also part of the Marble Mountain-Trout Creek Hill volcanic field, a little-known Quaternary volcanic field in the southern Cascades of Washington state. The area can be hiked, and can be accessed by roads in the Gifford Pinchot National Forest.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">S P Crater</span> Cinder cone volcano in Arizona, United States

S P Crater is a cinder cone volcano in the San Francisco volcanic field, 25 miles (40 km) north of Flagstaff, Arizona, United States. It is surrounded by several other cinder cones which are older and more eroded. It is a striking feature on the local landscape, with a well-defined lava flow that extends for 4.3 miles (7 km) to the north. American astronauts use the crater to train for moonwalking.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Strawberry Crater</span> Cinder cone volcano in Coconino County, Arizona, US

Strawberry Crater is a cinder cone volcano, more than 1,000 feet (300 m) high, in the San Francisco volcanic field, 20 miles (32 km) north of Flagstaff, Arizona. It is along Forest Road 545 between the Wupatki National Monument and Sunset Crater National Monument in the Strawberry Crater Wilderness. The crater lies in a volcanic field at a base elevation of about 5,500 feet (1,700 m), and prominence heights of about 6,526 feet (1,989 m). The northwestern end of the crater is covered with lava flows, while the southern end is filled with low cinder cones. Several of the surrounding cones include the better known, taller and younger Sunset Crater in the adjacent Sunset Crater National Monument.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Devastation Trail</span> Trail in Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park


Devastation Trail is a trail in Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park. The paved trail allows visitors to explore the site of 1959 eruption of Kīlauea Iki crater.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lenox Crater</span> Cinder cone in Coconino County, Arizona

Lenox Crater is a cinder cone located in the San Francisco Volcanic Field in Coconino County, near Flagstaff, Arizona, an area known for volcanic activity. The volcano erupted approximately 1,000 years ago, filling a small depression with ash and volcanic cinders. The lava flow from the eruption flowed near the base of Sunset Crater.

References

  1. 1 2 "Sunset Crater". NGS Data Sheet. National Geodetic Survey, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, United States Department of Commerce . Retrieved December 23, 2008.
  2. "Sunset Crater, Arizona". Peakbagger.com. Retrieved August 19, 2016.
  3. 1 2 3 "San Francisco Volcanic Field". Global Volcanism Program . Smithsonian Institution . Retrieved December 23, 2008.
  4. "Listing of acreage – December 31, 2022" (XLSX). Land Resource Division, National Park Service. (National Park Service Acreage Reports)
  5. "NPS Annual Recreation Visits Report". National Park Service. Retrieved June 15, 2019.
  6. Priest, Susan S.; Wendell A. Duffield; Karen Malis-Clark; James W. Hendley II; Peter H. Stauffer (December 21, 2001). "The San Francisco Volcanic Field, Arizona – U.S. Geological Survey Fact Sheet 017-01". United States Geological Survey. Archived from the original on April 21, 2008. Retrieved August 12, 2008.
  7. Pilles, Peter J. Jr. (1979). "Sunset Crater and the Sinagua: A New Interpretation" . In Sheets, Payson D.; Grayson, Donald K. (eds.). Volcanic Activity and Human Ecology. New York: Academic Press. pp.  459–485. ISBN   9780126391206.
  8. Elson, Mark D.; Ort, Michael H.; Sheppard, Paul R.; Samples, Terry L.; Anderson, Kirk C.; May, Elizabeth M. (2011). A.D. 1064 No More? A Multidisciplinary Re-evaluation of the Date of the Eruption of Sunset Crater Volcano, Northern Arizona (PDF). 76th Annual Meeting of the Society for American Archaeology. Sacramento, California. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 4, 2016. Retrieved September 5, 2015.
  9. Allison, Chelsea M.; Roggensack, Kurt; Clarke, Amanda B. (January 11, 2021). "Highly explosive basaltic eruptions driven by CO2 exsolution". Nature Communications. 12 (1). doi:10.1038/s41467-020-20354-2. PMC   7801484 .
  10. "Understanding origins of Arizona's Sunset Crater eruption from 1,000 years ago | ASU News".
  11. "Dispersed volcanic fields are found through the western U.S. | U.S. Geological Survey".
  12. "Lava Flow Trail". Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument. National Park Service. September 14, 2006. Retrieved August 12, 2008.
  13. "Despite rumors, Arizona's Sunset Crater Volcano remains extinct". The Arizona Republic. June 5, 2015.
  14. "Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument". National Park Service. September 14, 2007. Retrieved August 12, 2008.
  15. "America's Best Idea: Sunset Crater nearly destroyed by Hollywood". KNAU, NPR. October 2, 2009.
  16. "Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument – People". National Park Service. March 20, 2007. Retrieved January 27, 2012.
  17. "Frequently Asked Questions". National Park Service. Retrieved June 18, 2011.
  18. Sainty, Lane. "Tunnel Fire burns Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument 'in its entirety'". The Arizona Republic. Retrieved May 5, 2022.
  19. "The Tunnel Fire Swept Through Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument Overnight Tuesday". Great Circle Media. Retrieved April 20, 2022.
  20. "S. Rept. 117-61 - SUNSET CRATER VOLCANO NATIONAL MONUMENT BOUNDARY ADJUSTMENT". January 31, 2022. (incorporated into the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023)
  21. "NOWData - NOAA Online Weather Data". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration . Retrieved August 14, 2022.
  22. "U.S. Climate Normals Quick Access – Station: Sunset Crater NM, AZ". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved January 28, 2023.