Painted Desert (Arizona)
Painted Desert | |
---|---|
Length | 160 miles |
Area | 93500 acres |
Naming | |
Native name | El Desierto Pintado (Spanish) |
Geography | |
Country | United States |
State | Arizona |
Borders on | Little Colorado and Puerco rivers |
Coordinates | 35°30′N 110°05′W / 35.500°N 110.083°W [1] |
The Painted Desert is a United States desert of badlands in the Four Corners area,[2] running from near the east end of Grand Canyon National Park and southeast into Petrified Forest National Park. It is most easily accessed from the north portion of Petrified Forest National Park. The Painted Desert is known for its brilliant and varied colors: these include the more common red rock, but also shades of lavender.
History
The Painted Desert was named by a Spanish expedition under
Much of the Painted Desert within Petrified Forest National Park is protected as
Geology
The desert is composed of stratified layers of
In the southern portions of the desert, the remains of a Triassic period
Area and climate
The Painted Desert extends roughly from Cameron–Tuba City southeast to past Holbrook and the Petrified Forest National Park. The desert is about 120 miles (190 km) long by about 60 miles (100 km) wide, making it roughly 7,500 square miles (19,420 km2) in area.[8] Bordering southwest and south is the Mogollon Plateau, and on the plateau's south border the Mogollon Rim, the north border of the Arizona transition zone.
Owing to the strong rain shadow of the Mogollon Rim, the Painted Desert has a cold desert climate (Köppen BWk), with hot, dry summers and chilly (though virtually snow-free) winters. The annual precipitation is the lowest in northern Arizona and in many places is lower even than Phoenix.[9]
Climate data for Petrified Forest National Park, Arizona, 1991–2020 normals, extremes 1973–present | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
Record high °F (°C) | 67 (19) |
73 (23) |
84 (29) |
89 (32) |
101 (38) |
103 (39) |
104 (40) |
101 (38) |
100 (38) |
90 (32) |
79 (26) |
69 (21) |
104 (40) |
Mean maximum °F (°C) | 60.1 (15.6) |
67.8 (19.9) |
75.2 (24.0) |
82.1 (27.8) |
89.7 (32.1) |
98.9 (37.2) |
99.0 (37.2) |
96.1 (35.6) |
91.4 (33.0) |
82.6 (28.1) |
72.4 (22.4) |
62.7 (17.1) |
100.1 (37.8) |
Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 47.6 (8.7) |
52.5 (11.4) |
60.7 (15.9) |
68.4 (20.2) |
77.6 (25.3) |
88.6 (31.4) |
91.5 (33.1) |
88.4 (31.3) |
82.0 (27.8) |
70.5 (21.4) |
58.2 (14.6) |
46.5 (8.1) |
69.4 (20.8) |
Daily mean °F (°C) | 35.0 (1.7) |
38.9 (3.8) |
45.4 (7.4) |
51.7 (10.9) |
60.6 (15.9) |
70.8 (21.6) |
75.5 (24.2) |
73.3 (22.9) |
66.6 (19.2) |
55.2 (12.9) |
43.1 (6.2) |
34.0 (1.1) |
54.2 (12.3) |
Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 22.3 (−5.4) |
25.3 (−3.7) |
30.1 (−1.1) |
35.0 (1.7) |
43.6 (6.4) |
52.9 (11.6) |
59.6 (15.3) |
58.3 (14.6) |
51.3 (10.7) |
39.9 (4.4) |
28.1 (−2.2) |
21.5 (−5.8) |
39.0 (3.9) |
Mean minimum °F (°C) | 5.1 (−14.9) |
9.9 (−12.3) |
17.4 (−8.1) |
24.2 (−4.3) |
31.2 (−0.4) |
43.9 (6.6) |
53.3 (11.8) |
52.4 (11.3) |
40.5 (4.7) |
26.1 (−3.3) |
14.9 (−9.5) |
8.2 (−13.2) |
4.1 (−15.5) |
Record low °F (°C) | −7 (−22) |
−5 (−21) |
8 (−13) |
16 (−9) |
24 (−4) |
31 (−1) |
38 (3) |
46 (8) |
30 (−1) |
11 (−12) |
−3 (−19) |
2 (−17) |
−7 (−22) |
Average precipitation inches (mm) | 0.93 (24) |
0.65 (17) |
0.70 (18) |
0.39 (9.9) |
0.46 (12) |
0.26 (6.6) |
1.36 (35) |
1.74 (44) |
1.12 (28) |
0.96 (24) |
0.62 (16) |
0.76 (19) |
9.95 (253.5) |
Average snowfall inches (cm) | 0.7 (1.8) |
0.1 (0.25) |
0.2 (0.51) |
0.2 (0.51) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.3 (0.76) |
0.1 (0.25) |
1.6 (4.08) |
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) | 4.3 | 4.3 | 4.3 | 3.1 | 3.3 | 2.1 | 8.0 | 8.6 | 5.6 | 4.8 | 4.2 | 5.0 | 57.6 |
Average snowy days (≥ 0.1 in) | 0.4 | 0.2 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.3 | 0.5 | 1.6 |
Source 1: NOAA[10] | |||||||||||||
Source 2: National Weather Service (mean maxima/minima 2006–2020)[11] |
Accessibility
Much of the region is accessible only by foot or unpaved road though major highways and paved roads cut across the area. The towns of Cameron and Tuba City, both on the Navajo Nation, are two major settlements. A permit is required for all backroad travel on the Navajo Nation.[12]
Gallery
-
The Painted Desert, Petrified Forest National Park
-
The gray and red colored bands across the landform are typical of most geologic features in the Painted Desert.
-
Painted Desert with logs of petrified wood, Petrified Forest National Park
-
360° panorama at Tiponi Point
See also
- Painted Hills, Oregon
- Painted Desert (South Australia)
References
- ^ "Painted Desert". Geographic Names Information System. USGS. February 8, 1980. Retrieved May 5, 2013.
- ^ Jaeger, Edmund C. The North American Deserts. (cited by Trimble. The Sagebrush Ocean. p. 10.)
- ^ Granger, Byrd H. (1960). Arizona Place Names. University of Arizona Press. p. 18. Retrieved 6 December 2011.
- ^ "Wilderness camping" (PDF). Petrified Forest National Park. NPS.
- ISBN 978-0-89886-680-3
- ISBN 0-8263-1587-9
- ISBN 0-8263-0599-7
- ^ "Grand Canyon and Other Spectacular Sights in Arizona", on-the-matrix.com, "North America on the Matrix: Grand Canyon, Painted Desert, Petrified Forest, Monument Valley". Archived from the original on 2013-02-20. Retrieved 2012-05-05.
- ^ Arizona Annual Precipitation Map
- ^ "U.S. Climate Normals Quick Access – Station: Painted Desert NP, AZ". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved March 25, 2023.
- ^ "NOAA Online Weather Data – NWS Flagstaff". National Weather Service. Retrieved March 25, 2023.
- ^ "Travel Navajo Nation". Navajo Nation Parks & Recreation. Archived from the original on July 28, 2014. Retrieved May 5, 2013.
External links
- Regional map for Navajo Lands
- Regional Map and Visitor Information for Hopi Lands
- National Park Services Website – Petrified Forest National Park
- Geology of the region
- Grand Canyon and Other Spectacular Sights in Arizona, on-the-matrix.com, (area of Painted Desert, 7500 sq mi
- Ecological Subregions of the United States – US Forest Service
- Petrified Forest Wilderness Area at Wilderness.net