Sahand ( fa, سهند), is a massive, heavily eroded

stratovolcano A stratovolcano, also known as a composite volcano, is a conical volcano built up by many layers (strata) of hardened lava and tephra. Unlike shield volcanoes, stratovolcanoes are characterized by a steep profile with a summit crater and p ...

East Azerbaijan Province East Azerbaijan Province ( fa, استان آذربایجان شرقی ''Āzarbāijān-e Sharqi''; az-Arab, شرقی آذربایجان اوستانی) is one of the 31 provinces of Iran. It is located in Iranian Azerbaijan, bordering Armenia ...

, northwestern

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkm ...

. At , it is the highest mountain in the province of East Azarbaijan. Sahand is one of the highest mountains in

Iranian Azerbaijan Azerbaijan or Azarbaijan ( fa, آذربایجان, ''Āzarbāijān'' ; az-Arab, آذربایجان, ''Āzerbāyjān'' ), also known as Iranian Azerbaijan, is a historical region in northwestern Iran that borders Iraq, Turkey, the Nakhchivan ...

, in addition to being an important dormant volcano in the country. The Sahand mountains are directly south of

Tabriz Tabriz ( fa, تبریز ; ) is a city in northwestern Iran, serving as the capital of East Azerbaijan Province. It is the sixth-most-populous city in Iran. In the Quru River valley in Iran's historic Azerbaijan region between long ridges of vo ...

, the highest peak of which is Kamal at an elevation of . Approximately 17 peaks can be accounted for as being over in height. Due to the presence of a variety of flora and fauna, the Sahand mountains are known as the bride of mountains in

. The absolute dating of Sahand rocks indicates that this volcano has been sporadically active from 12 million years ago up to almost 0.14 million years ago. Sahand is made chiefly of

dacite Dacite () is a volcanic rock formed by rapid solidification of lava that is high in silica and low in alkali metal oxides. It has a fine-grained ( aphanitic) to porphyritic texture and is intermediate in composition between andesite and rhy ...

and associated felsic rocks.

Winter sports

Sahand Ski Resort is on the northern foothills of the mountain and near the city of Tabriz. In the complex the Sahand Skiing Stadium has a 1200 meters length ski area and skiing and snowboarding is practiced in the resort. The snow sculpture competition, which runs once a year at mid-winter in the stadium, is a famous entertainment that attracts spectators and competitors from all over the country.

References

* {{Portalbar, Iran Stratovolcanoes of Iran Mountains of Iran Mountaineering in Iran Landforms of East Azerbaijan Province Mounts of East Azerbaijan Province Miocene stratovolcanoes Pliocene stratovolcanoes Pleistocene stratovolcanoes

Winter sports

See also

References