Geofreak --
The U.S. Geological Service site in the section on the summit of Mt.
Rainier indicates that at least one the three peaks of Rainier lies
inside a caldera, or collapse of the volcanic cone:
USGS
"Description: Mt. Rainier Volcano"-- see Columbia Crest
(Topinka, June 25, 2002)
http://vulcan.wr.usgs.gov/Volcanoes/Rainier/description_rainier.html
The USGS notes, "Today there are three distinct summits, or high
points, at the top of Mount Rainier. The lower two, Liberty Cap and
Point Success, are remnants of the sides of an old, higher cone. The
third and highest summit, Columbia Crest (14,410 feet) lies in the rim
of a small recent lava cone. This cone is indented by two craters, the
larger of which is about 1/4 mile in diameter. Both craters are nearly
filled with snow and ice, into which a system of tunnels and caves are
melted by volcanic heat and steam."
Though Mt. Rainier hardly has a caldera on the scale of Crater Lake or
Mt. St. Helens, you'll find that a Google search strategy using the
following search terms produces geology pages referring to the
mountain as "caldera producing":
"Mt. Rainier" + geology + caldera
Google search strategy:
"Mt. Rainier" + summit + geology
By the way, I live in Seattle and have heard rumors of a lake under an
ice cap of the mountain. However, none of the Mt. Rainier park or
USGS sites mention any such permanent body of water.
Best regards,
Omnivorous-GA |