Yellowstone -Snake River Plain

Geography

-Snake River Valley is comprised of two sections. The Western is a fault bounded graben while the Eastern section is a downwarp due to weight of volcanic material

-Topographic depression, elevation 900- 1525m, increasing in elevation as you move east-ESRP is 600 km long, ~100km wide-WSRP is 300 km long and 70 km wide

ClimateDue to the Yellowstone hotspot, there is a 110km wide gap through the Rockies creating a moisture channel that brings moisture from the Pacific to Yellowstone, where it meets increasing elevation and therefore rains out. This results in Yellowstone having a very wet climate and lots of snow in the winter.

Hot Spot

Surface Geology

Basalt plains, Pleistocene and Pliocene. Associated with volcanic rifting

Felsic (upper Miocene to Pleistocene, 14-12Ma to 0.6Ma): rhyolitic domes, flows, and tuffs. Associated with hotspotAlluvium

Basalt, mid to late Miocene

Volcanism present from two main sources, hotspot and decompression of lithosphere due to rifting. Melting from rifts allowed for extensive dikes to cause further rifting.

Seismic Velocities and Gravity-WSRP velocities of Vp=~6.7km/s-WSRP velocities of Vp=<5.5km/s-Velocities of seismic waves travel faster through more rigid material-High gravity anomaly due to dense layer of basalt