PARTIAL BIBLIOGRAPHY OF THE COLUMBIA RIVER BASALTS
with addendum on the Glacial Floods of the CR Plateau

Geology 208, Spring 2000
Joseph Hull

copyright 2000 Joseph Hull

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Columbia River lava flows and related articles

  Carson RJ and Pogue KR (1996), Flood basalts and glacier floods: roadside geology of parts of Walla Walla, Franklin and Columbia Counties, Washington; Wash. Div. Geol. Earth Res. Info. Circular 90, 47 pp.  Good introduction and excellent road logs.

 Carson RJ, Tolan TL and Reidel SP (1987), Geology of the Vantage area, south-central Washington; Geol. Soc. Am. Centennial Field Guide, Cordilleran Section, pp. 357-362.  A technical field guide for the exact area of our field trip.  Good details.

Chitwood, Lawrence A. (1994), Inflated basaltic lava-examples of processes and landforms from central and southeast Oregon; Oregon Geology, vol. 56, # 1, pp. 11-21.  Not the CRB but an excellent paper, well illustrated, on features associated with inflation.  Highly recommended.  Intermediate level.

 DeGraff JM and Aydin A (1987), Surface morphology of columnar joints and its signficance to mechanics and direction of joint growth; Geol. Soc. Am. Bull., v. 99, pp. 605-617.  Jim DeGraff used surface features on fractures (feathering, primarily) to sort out the relative timing of fracturing, to see how the cracks really developed.   Technical but very well illustrated.

 Dickinson WR (1997), Tectonic implications of Cenozoic volcanism in coastal California; Geol. Soc. Am. Bull., v. 109, pp. 936-954.  Bill suggests that Tanya Atwater's idea about rifting of the "soft" western edge of the NAM plate better explains CRB lava flows than the hot spot model.  Technical but of highest quality.

 Geist D and Richards M (1993), Origin of the Columbia Plateau and Snake River plain: deflection of the Yellowstone plume; Geology, v. 21, pp. 789-792.  Provocative but the best technical paper on a hotspot origin for the CRB, first paper to really discuss interaction of the hot spot with the downgoing Farallon plate.

 Goff, F (1996), Vesicle cylinders in vapor-differentiated basalt flows; J. Volc. Geothermal Res., v. 71, pp. 167-185.   Vertical pipes filled with vesicles can be found at the top of the Museum Flow at the Vantage Interpretive Center and elsewhere; Fraser explains their origin.  Highly technical.  Do not confuse these beasts with pipe vesicles, which form at flow bottoms.

 Ho AM and Cashman KV (1997), Temperature constraints on the Ginkgo flow of the Columbia River basalt group; Geology, v. 25, pp. 403-406.  An important paper about flow temperatures in the CRB that seems to support the inflation model of lava flows (see Self).  Technical.  Kathy is one of 3 sisters, all geologists.

 Hooper PR (1997), The Columbia River flood basalt province: current status; Amer. Geophys. Union Monograph 100 ("Large Igneous Provinces"), pp. 1-27.   Review of CRB with emphasis on chemistry, technical.  Peter  at Wazoo has studied the basalt chemistry for many years.

 Long PE and Wood BJ (1986), Structures, textures and cooling histories of Columbia River basalt flows; Geol. Soc. Am. Bull., v. 97, pp. 1144-1155.  Nice relationships between fracture style, cooling history and microstructure.  Technical.

 McKee, B (1972), Cascadia: The Geologic Evolution of the Pacific Northwest; McGraw-Hill, New York.  pp. 271-279 on the Columbia Plateau give a nice background.  Middle-Introductory.

 Mueller, M & T (1997), Fire, Faults and Floods: A Road and Trail Guide Exploring the Origins of the Columbia River Basin; Univ. Idaho Press, 288 pp.  A great introduction to the geology along the Columbia, very accessible writing.  One of many fine books from Marge and Ted.

  Prakash U and Barghoorn ES (1961), Miocene fossil woods from the Columbia basalts of central Washington; Arnold Arboretum Journal, v. 42, pp. 165-203, 347-362.   Two technical articles on the fossil flora, with special emphasis on the Vantage area.

 Reidel SP and Hooper PR (1989), Volcanism and tectonism in the Columbia River flood-basalt province; Geol. Soc. Am. Spec. Paper 239.  Many technical papers by many authors in this comprehensive volume.  The paper by Tolan et al on CRB stratigraphy is especially worthwhile for its many fine diagrams and tables.

 Self S and 7 others (1996), A new model for the emplacement of Columbia River basalts as large, inflated pahoehoe lava flow fields; Geop. Res. Letters, v. 23, pp. 2689-2692.  Challenges the earlier ideas of CRB flows as instantanteously lava floods, advocates a continuous inflation or supply model.  Technical.  see Self et al 1997

 Self S, Thordarson T and Keszthelyi L (1997), Emplacement of continental flood basalt lava flows; Amer. Geophys. Union Monograph 100, pp. 381-410.  A very long but well illustrated paper in the Large Igneous Province volume that applies the inflation model to the CRB.  Many structures shown.

 Swanson DA, Wright TL and Helz RT (1975), Linear vent systems and estimated rates of magma production and eruption for the Yakima basalt on the Columbia Plateau; Am. J. Science, v. 275, pp. 877-905.  A landmark paper that calculates magma production values that are comparable to Hawaiian lava flows, and supports the lava flood model (big blorp).  Technical.
 
 

Eastern Washington Glacial Floods

     Allen JE, Burns M and Sargent, SC (1986), Cataclysms on the Columbia; Timber Press, Portland, OR, 211 pp.  Very good overview of J. Harlan Bretz and the flood hypothesis, good illustrations and text.  An excellent read.  Introductory.

     Amara MS and Neff GE (1996), Geologic Road Trips in Grant county, Washington; Adam East Museum and Art Center, 93 pp. Very fine road guide to the geology of Grant County, with many examples of Missoula Flood geology.  Introductory.

     Bretz JH (1959), Washington's Channeled Scabland; Wash. Div. Geol. Earth Res. Bull. 45, 57 pp. Nice introductory pamphlet on the Scablands.

     Bretz JH (1969), The Lake Missoula floods and the Channeled Scabland; J. of Geology, v. 77, pp. 505-543.  Comprehensive review by The Man.  Technical, but the photos and diagrams are accessible.

 Carson RJ and Pogue KR (1996), Flood basalts and glacier floods: roadside geology of parts of Walla Walla, Franklin and Columbia Counties, Washington; Wash. Div. Geol. Earth Res. Info Circ. 90, 47 pp.  Good introduction and excellent road logs.

 Mueller, M & T (1997), Fire, Faults and Floods: A Road and Trail Guide Exploring the Origins of the Columbia River Basin; Univ. Idaho Press, 288 pp.  A great introduction to the geology along the Columbia, very accessible writing.  The "Floods" part deals with the great glacial floods.

 Parfit M (1995), The floods that carved the west; Smithsonian Mag., v. 26, # 1, pp. 48-58.  Very good short article on the great glacial floods.  Nice color photos.

  Waitt RB (1985), Case for periodic colossal jökulhlaups from Pleistocene Lake Missoula; Geol. Soc. Am. Bull., v. 96, pp. 1271-1286.  Technical article that summarizes Waitt's important contribution on the multiplicity of floods.
 

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