Channeled Scablands - Drumheller Channels

The remnants of a basalt lava flow sits beneath a heavily clouded sky

Photo By/Credit

Michael Melford/National Geographic Society

Date Shot/Created

03/27/2023

Media Usage Rights/License

Image

Tall as a five-story building, this wall of volcanic basalt in Drumheller Channels took shape 10 million years ago as lava cooled, shrank, and cracked vertically. Massive floods later ripped away sections, creating this pillared landmark.

Ecosystem

Desert

Subject tags

Floods

Geology

Physical geography

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