Butte
Ingeomorphology,abutte(/bjuːt/) is an isolatedhillwith steep, often vertical sides and a small, relatively flat top; buttes are smallerlandformsthanmesas,plateaus,andtablelands.The wordbuttecomes from theFrenchwordbutte,meaningknoll(but of any size); its use is prevalent in theWestern United States,including thesouthwestwheremesa(Spanishfor "table" ) is used for the larger landform. Due to their distinctive shapes, buttes are frequently landmarks inplainsand mountainous areas.[1]To differentiate the two landforms, geographers use therule of thumbthat a mesa has a top that is wider than its height, while a butte has a top that is narrower than its height.[2][3]
Formation[edit]
Buttes form byweatheringanderosionwhen hardcaprockoverlies a layer of less resistantrockthat is eventually worn away. The harder rock on top of the butte resists erosion. The caprock provides protection for the less resistant rock below from wind abrasion which leaves it standing isolated. As the top is further eroded by abrasion and weathering, the excess material that falls off adds to thescreeor talus slope around the base.[4]On a much smaller scale, the same process formshoodoos.[5]
Notable buttes[edit]
TheMitten ButtesofMonument Valleyin theUtah–Arizonastate line are two of the most distinctive and widely recognized buttes. Monument Valley and the Mittens provided backgrounds in the scenes of manywestern-themedfilms,including seven movies directed byJohn Ford.[note 1]Another very well-known and frequently photographed butte in northern Arizona isThumb Butte,which overlooks the city ofPrescottand is the most prominent and distinctive geologic landmark in the vicinity. TheDevils Towerin northeasternWyomingis alaccolithicbutte composed ofigneous rockrather thansandstone,limestoneor othersedimentary rocks.[6]
The termbutteis sometimes applied more broadly to isolated, steep-sided hills with pointed or craggy, rather than flat, tops.[1]Three notable formations that are either namedbutteor may be considered buttes even though they do not conform to the formal geographer's rule areScotts BluffinNebraskawhich is a collection of five bluffs,Crested Butte,which is a 12,168 ft (3,709 m) mountain inColorado,andElephant Butte,which is now an island in Elephant Butte Reservoir inNew Mexico.
Among the well-known non-flat-topped buttes in the United States areBear Butte,South Dakota,Black Butte,Oregon,and theSutter ButtesinCalifornia.In many cases, buttes have been given other names that do not use the wordbutte,for example,Courthouse Rock,Nebraska. Also, some large hills that are technically not buttes have names using the word, examples of which areKamiak Butte,Chelan Butte andSteptoe ButteinWashington state.
Gallery[edit]
See also[edit]
- Caprock Escarpment– Geographical transition in Texas and New Mexico
- Megalith– Large stone used to build a structure or monument
- Monadnock– Isolated, steep rock hill on relatively flat terrain
- Monolith– Stone block made of one single piece; object made of one single rock piece
- Potrero– Long mesa that at one end slopes upward to higher terrain
- Table mountain (disambiguation)
- Tepui– Table-top mountain or mesa in the Guiana Highlands of South America
- Tuya– Flat-topped, steep-sided volcano formed when lava erupts through a thick glacier or ice sheet
- Volcanic plug– Volcanic object created when magma hardens within a vent on an active volcano
Footnotes[edit]
- ^The John Ford westerns with location work shot in Monument Valley wereStagecoach(1939),My Darling Clementine(1946),Fort Apache(1948),She Wore a Yellow Ribbon(1949),The Searchers(1956),Sergeant Rutledge(1960), andCheyenne Autumn(1964).
References[edit]
- ^abJackson, Julia A., ed. (1997). "butte".Glossary of geology(Fourth ed.). Alexandria, Virginia: American Geological Institute.ISBN0922152349.
- ^Allaby, Michael (2013). "butte".A dictionary of geology and earth sciences(Fourth ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press.ISBN9780199653065.
- ^"Mesa and Butte".Science Clarified.2008.Archivedfrom the original on 2 December 2013.
- ^Thornbury, William D. (1969).Principles of geomorphology(2d ed.). New York: Wiley. p. 133.ISBN0471861979.
- ^Davis, George Herbert (1999).Structural Geology of the Colorado Plateau Region of Southern Utah, with Special Emphasis on Deformation Bands.G.S.A. Special Paper 342. Boulder, Colorado: Geological Society of America. p.30.ISBN978-0-8137-2342-6.
- ^"Devils Tower National Monument – Geologic Formations".National Park Service. 10 Mar 2014.Retrieved13 Mar2014.
External links[edit]
- .Collier's New Encyclopedia.1921.
- .New International Encyclopedia.1905.