Cerro Mohinora is an

extinct volcano A volcano is commonly defined as a vent or fissure in the Crust (geology), crust of a planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and volcanic gas, gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface. On Earth ...

that is part of the

Sierra Madre Occidental The Sierra Madre Occidental is a major mountain range system of the North American Cordillera, that runs northwest–southeast through northwestern and western Mexico, and along the Gulf of California. The Sierra Madre is part of the American C ...

mountain range in the Mexican state of Chihuahua located in the municipality of

Guadalupe y Calvo Guadalupe y Calvo is one of the 67 municipalities of Chihuahua, in northern Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States ...

. Cerro Mohinora is the highest point in the state of Chihuahua reaching an elevation of 3,300 m (10,827 ft) above sea level. The climate of the mountain is extremely cold in the winter and temperate to semi-cold in the summer.

Geology

The mountain began to form during

Paleogene The Paleogene Period ( ; also spelled Palaeogene or Palæogene) is a geologic period and system that spans 43 million years from the end of the Cretaceous Period Ma (million years ago) to the beginning of the Neogene Period Ma. It is the fir ...

geologic period characterized by intense volcanic activity in the area throwing lava and ash onto the surrounding plateau and creating the

. Cerro Mohinora was raised to an elevation over 3,300 m above sea level during the

Pleistocene The Pleistocene ( ; referred to colloquially as the ''ice age, Ice Age'') is the geological epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from to 11,700 years ago, spanning the Earth's most recent period of repeated glaciations. Before a change was fin ...

by intense tectonic activity. The mountain is mainly composed of

igneous Igneous rock ( ), or magmatic rock, is one of the three main rock types, the others being sedimentary and metamorphic. Igneous rocks are formed through the cooling and solidification of magma or lava. The magma can be derived from partial ...

rock.

Climate

Using the

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

the climate of the mountain is

humid continental climate A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers, and cold ...

(Dfb). Summers are cool with temperatures rarely reaching 25 °C (77 °F) and summer lows fall below 10 °C (50 °F) regularly. There are heavy rainstorms from June to October. Winters are very cold with maximum high reaching 0 °C (32 °F) and reaching a maximum low of -31 °C (-24 °F). Winter snowstorms with high winds are common and typically over 1 meter (~3 ft) of snow per season.

Cerro Mohinora Flora and Fauna Protection Area

Cerro Mohinora Flora and Fauna Protection Area was designated in 2015. It covers an area of 91.26 km², which includes the peak and extends to the north and east.

References

{{reflist Landforms of Chihuahua (state) Mohinora Mohinora Flora and fauna protection areas of Mexico Protected areas of Chihuahua (state) Protected areas of the Sierra Madre Occidental North American 3000 m summits