Carbon Peak, elevation 12,088 ft (3,684 m), is a summit in the West Elk Mountains of Colorado. The peak is southwest of Crested Butte in the Gunnison National Forest. Carbon Peak is one of several prominent laccoliths found in the West Elk Mountains.[3][4]
Geology
Carbon Peak is a laccolith, formed when magma intruded into sedimentary strata of the Mesaverde Formation approximately 30 million years ago. Subsequent erosion has removed the softer, overlying sedimentary rock thereby exposing the more resistant igneous rock that characterizes the mountain today. The mountain is composed of quartz monzonite porphyry and granodiorite porphyry. Carbon Peak was glaciated, and the most prominent glacial cirque is located on the north side of the mountain.[4][5][6]
Carbon Peak, along with adjacent Carbon Creek, are named after the coal (a carbon-rich rock) found in the Mesaverde Formation at the base of this and nearby laccoliths.[4]
See also
References
- ^ "CARBON". NGS Data Sheet. National Geodetic Survey, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, United States Department of Commerce. Retrieved 2013-06-20.
- ^ "Carbon Peak, Colorado". Peakbagger.com. Retrieved 2013-06-20.
- ^ a b "Carbon Peak". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved 2013-06-20.
- ^ a b c Prather, Thomas (1999). Geology of the Gunnison Country (2nd ed.). Gunnison, Colorado: B&B Printers. LCCN 82-177244.
- ^ Gaskill, D. L.; DeLong, J. E.; Cochran, D. M. (1987). Geologic map of the Mount Axtell quadrangle, Gunnison County, Colorado. Reston, Virginia: U.S. Geological Survey. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
- ^ Branda, Alex; Swanbom, Lief; Burton, Bradford R. (September 25, 2016). "Structural geology and emplacement history of the Carbon Peak laccolith, Gunnison County, Colorado". GSA Annual Meeting. Denver, Colorado: Geological Society of America. doi:10.1130/abs/2016AM-283853.
External links
Media related to Carbon Peak at Wikimedia Commons
