Michigan Is Home To One Of The Largest Lava Flows On The Planet
Most people recognize the state of Michigan by the Great Lakes that make up its iconic shape. While the state isn't known for volcanoes, it is home to one of the largest lava flows on Earth, and it can still be seen in one Michigan county.
Michigan Is Home To One Of The Largest Lava Flows On The Planet
According to the U.S. National Park Service (NPS), over a billion years ago a giant 2,000-mile-long underground crack stretched through Michigan, Lake Superior into Northern Ontario, parts of Minnesota, then runs south to Oklahoma and Alabama.
This midcontinent rift was caused by tectonic forces pulling the continent apart, resulting in volcanic activity. Huge amounts of lava poured out of the earth's crust and created thick layers of igneous rock which is the lava flow seen in Michigan today.
The lava flow caused by the Midcontinent Rift System is known as the Greenstone Flow. According to a Facebook post from Keweenaw National Historical Park, the Greenstone flow is a prominent feature of the Keweenaw Peninsula:
At over 1500 feet thick, the Greenstone Flow would have existed as a magma sea for hundreds if not a thousand years before it finally solidified. That would have been an impressive and terrible sight to see. It is one part of a series of lava flows and conglomerates that make up the Portage Lake Volcanics. These layers were deposited around 1.1 billion years ago and were thrust upwards nearer the surface along the Keweenaw fault.
You can drive to Keweenaw County to see the Greenstone Flow. See the pictures below of one of Earth's largest lava flows in the Great Lakes State.
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Gallery Credit: Lauren Gordon