The Atlin Volcanic Field, also called the Llangorse Volcanic Field and the Surprise Lake Volcanic Field, is a group of late-
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 ...
to
Holocene
The Holocene () is the current geologic time scale, geological epoch, beginning approximately 11,700 years ago. It follows the Last Glacial Period, which concluded with the Holocene glacial retreat. The Holocene and the preceding Pleistocene to ...
cinder cone
A cinder cone or scoria cone is a steep, volcanic cone, conical landform of loose pyroclastic rock, pyroclastic fragments, such as volcanic ash, clinkers, or scoria that has been built around a volcanic vent. The pyroclastic fragments are forme ...
s that lies on the
Teslin Plateau east of
Atlin Lake
Atlin Lake (Tlingit language, Lingít: ''Áa Tlein'') is the largest natural lake in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of British Columbia. The lake is wide and long. The northern tip of the lake is in the Yukon, as is ...
, Canada. The largest volcanic feature is the 1880-m-high
Ruby Mountain which has been partially dissected by Pleistocene and post-Wisconsin glaciation. Two
basalt
Basalt (; ) is an aphanite, aphanitic (fine-grained) extrusive igneous rock formed from the rapid cooling of low-viscosity lava rich in magnesium and iron (mafic lava) exposed at or very near the planetary surface, surface of a terrestrial ...
ic cinder cones at the heads of
Cracker Creek and
Volcanic Creek lie within glacially dissected U-shaped valleys and may be of postglacial age.
November 8, 1898, eruption
A Yukon newspaper reported in 1898 that an eruption was occurring near Atlin about south of
Gladys Lake.
Miner
A miner is a person who extracts ore, coal, chalk, clay, or other minerals from the earth through mining. There are two senses in which the term is used. In its narrowest sense, a miner is someone who works at the rock face (mining), face; cutt ...
s working in the area reportedly were able to work during the dark nights, due to the glow of the eruption. The article also reported that a group of people were going down from the Yukon to investigate the eruption, but no further reports were apparently made. Several recent studies, including a summary by Edwards et al. (2003) published by the Geological Survey of Canada, have determined that Ruby Mountain was definitely not the site of a historic eruption,
nor were the Cracker Creek or Volcanic Creek cones.
One possible explanation for the story is that placer miners found gold-bearing gravels beneath an ancient lava flow at the base of Ruby Mountain, and were actively tunneling under the old lava flow to mine the gravels. As its name suggests, Ruby Mountain is ruby-colored due to the scoriaceous tephra that covers much of its summit and the summer sun shining off of the ruby-red flanks of the volcano may have started the rumour. There have been no evidence of the eruption found in the region and the 19th-century report is considered uncertain.
Volcanoes
Volcanoes within the field include:
*
Volcanic Creek Cone
*
Cracker Creek Cone
*
Ruby Mountain
*
Llangorse Mountain
See also
*
Northern Cordilleran Volcanic Province
*
List of volcanoes in Canada
List of volcanoes in Canada is an incomplete list of volcanoes found in Geography of Canada, mainland Canada, in the Islands of Canada, Canadian islands and in Canadian waters. All but two Provinces of Canada, provinces, Prince Edward Island and ...
*
List of volcanic fields
*
Volcanism of Canada
*
Volcanism of Western Canada
*
Volcanic history of the Northern Cordilleran Volcanic Province
References
{{Authority control
Volcanic fields of Canada
Cinder cones of Canada
Northern Cordilleran Volcanic Province
Atlin District
Quaternary British Columbia
Cenozoic British Columbia