Middle Butte

Middle Butte
Northeast aspect
Highest point
Elevation6,391 ft (1,948 m)[1][2]
Prominence1,061 ft (323 m)[2]
Parent peakEast Butte (6,572 ft)[3]
Isolation3.73 mi (6.00 km)[3]
Coordinates43°29′26″N 112°44′18″W / 43.4904351°N 112.7382169°W / 43.4904351; -112.7382169[4]
Geography
Middle Butte is located in Idaho
Middle Butte
Middle Butte
Location in Idaho
Middle Butte is located in the United States
Middle Butte
Middle Butte
Middle Butte (the United States)
CountryUnited States of America
StateIdaho
CountyBingham
Parent rangeSnake River Plain
Rocky Mountains[2]
Topo mapUSGS Middle Butte
Geology
Rock ageQuaternary[5]
Mountain typeCryptodome[5]
Rock typeBasalt[5]

Middle Butte is a 6,391-foot elevation (1,948 m) summit located in Bingham County, Idaho, United States.

Description

Middle Butte is situated 40 miles east of Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve, 35 miles west of the community of Idaho Falls, and can be seen from Highway 20 midway between Idaho Falls and Arco at milepost 271. Middle Butte, so named because it is positioned between Big Southern Butte and line parent East Butte, were all landmarks for early explorers and pioneers.[4] Middle Butte is set on land belonging to the Idaho National Laboratory. Topographic relief is modest as the summit rises over 1,000 feet (300 meters) above the Eastern Snake River Plain in one-half mile. This landform's toponym has been officially adopted by the United States Board on Geographic Names.[4]

Geology

Middle Butte is a cryptodome composed of basalt which formed when an underlying mass of rhyolitic magma pushed up overlying layers of basalt of the Snake River Plain, but the magma never broke the surface.[6] This manner of formation is different than that of East Butte where rhyolitic magma did break through the surface layer of basalt.

Climate

Middle Butte is located in a cold semi-arid climate zone with warm summers and cold winters (Köppen BSk).[7] Winter temperatures can drop below 0 °F with wind chill factors below −20 °F. Precipitation is relatively sparse.

  • West aspect of Middle Butte centered with East Butte in the distance
    West aspect of Middle Butte centered with East Butte in the distance
  • West slope
    West slope
  • Northwest slope
    Northwest slope
  • North slope
    North slope
  • North slope with juniper above, and sagebrush in foreground
    North slope with juniper above, and sagebrush in foreground
  • Left to right: East Butte, Middle Butte, Big Southern Butte
    Left to right: East Butte, Middle Butte, Big Southern Butte
  • Middle Butte (center) and Big Southern Butte (upper left) rise above the Snake River Plain as seen from East Butte
    Middle Butte (center) and Big Southern Butte (upper left) rise above the Snake River Plain as seen from East Butte
  • Northeast aspect
    Northeast aspect
  • Aerial view
    Aerial view

See also

References

  1. ^ United States Geological Survey topographical map - Middle Butte
  2. ^ a b c "Middle Butte, Idaho". Peakbagger.com. Retrieved September 10, 2022.
  3. ^ a b "Middle Butte - 6,391' ID". listsofjohn.com. Retrieved September 10, 2022.
  4. ^ a b c "Middle Butte". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved September 10, 2022.
  5. ^ a b c Scott S. Hughes (1999), Guidebook to the Geology of Eastern Idaho, Idaho Museum of Natural History Publisher, ISBN 9780937834640, p. 146
  6. ^ The Land Volcanoes Made: the Buttes of the Snake River Plain from Idaho Falls to Arco, Idaho, railsback.org
  7. ^ Peel, M. C.; Finlayson, B. L.; McMahon, T. A. (2007). "Updated world map of the Köppen−Geiger climate classification". Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. 11: 1633–1644. ISSN 1027-5606.