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Continental Flood Basalts pp 1–33Cite as

The Columbia River Basalt

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Part of the book series: Petrology and Structural Geology ((PESG,volume 3))

Abstract

The Columbia River Basalt Group (CRBG) is one of the younger continental flood basalt provinces (17.5–6.0 My B.P.). The flows form a high plateau in northwestern USA, covering large parts of the states of Washington, Oregon, and Idaho between the actively rising Cascade Range to the west and the main ranges of the Rocky Mountain system to the east (Fig. 1). Of moderate size (164,000 km2 and an estimated 170,000 km3; Tolan et al., 1987) the CRBG is an order of magnitude smaller than the Karoo or Deccan provinces. The flows are fresh, almost horizontal, and well preserved by a semi-arid climate. Deep canyons, cut by rivers rising in the mountains to the east, provide a plexus of natural cross sections. These geographic advantages, combined with a systematic research effort by many groups over the last fifteen years, have provided a detailed picture of the physical development of the province and of its chemical and isotopic composition.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Geology Department, Washington State University, Pullman, WA, 99164, USA

    P. R. Hooper

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  1. P. R. Hooper
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, San Diego, California, USA

    J. D. Macdougall

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© 1988 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht

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Hooper, P.R. (1988). The Columbia River Basalt. In: Macdougall, J.D. (eds) Continental Flood Basalts. Petrology and Structural Geology, vol 3. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-015-7805-9_1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-015-7805-9_1

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht

  • Print ISBN: 978-90-481-8458-3

  • Online ISBN: 978-94-015-7805-9

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