About 1.2 million years ago, a spectacular volcanic eruption created a 14-mile-wide circular depression in the earth now known as Valles Caldera. The preserve is known for its huge mountain meadows, abundant wildlife, and meandering streams. The area also preserves the homeland of ancestral native peoples and embraces a rich ranching history.

The Valles Caldera (or Jemez Caldera) is a 13.7-mile (22.0 km) wide volcanic caldera in the Jemez Mountains of northern New Mexico. [1] Hot springs, streams, fumaroles, natural gas seeps, and volcanic domes dot the caldera landscape. [4] The highest point in the caldera is Redondo Peak, an 11,254-foot (3,430 m) resurgent lava dome located entirely within the …

2025年2月7日 · Every year, thousands of people visit Valles Caldera National Preserve for recreation, special events, learning opportunities, and inspiration. For the best trip planning experience on a mobile device, get the NPS App and download Valles Caldera National Preserve's information for offline use. Otherwise, check out the following pages.

The Valles caldera-forming eruption occurred approximately 1.25 million years ago when huge volumes of Bandelier tuff were explosively evacuated from a underground magma storage region. As a result of the "supereruption," the ground subsided along a network of nearly circular faults, called a ring fracture , leaving the caldera, a 20 x 23 km ...

2024年4月1日 · Valles Caldera National Preserve welcomes everyone. Whether you delight in the challenge of a strenuous hike or prefer to sit quietly and watch the sunset, the park offers a great variety of activities for you to enjoy. Select an activity below to learn more! ...

Valles Caldera’s Biodiversity: Wildlife Encounters Await! Valles Caldera is a nature lover’s paradise. With abundant plant life to graze upon, large herds of elk are found here, as are packs of coyotes, Gunnison’s prairie dog colonies, black bears, and many species of birds.

2017年6月1日 · Valles Caldera also chronicles the history of New Mexico’s enchantment and exploitation, from 19 th-century land use after the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo and sheep-grazing under the partido system, to subsequent cattle-grazing, timber-harvesting, and geothermal exploration. Beginning as a land grant in 1860, the caldera was held in private ...

Valles Caldera National Preserve. Among the newest additions to the National Park System, the 89,000-acre Valles Caldera National Preserve encompasses a caldera formed by volcanic eruptions 1.25 million years ago that possesses exceptional value in illustrating and interpreting massive explosive volcanic eruptions, caldera formation, and the functioning of active …

The Valles Caldera National Preserve is one of the most geologically unique and significant areas in North America. The preserve encompasses much of the Valles caldera, a huge volcanic crater that formed 1.2 million years ago during an enormous volcanic eruption that spread ash over large parts of New Mexico. The caldera is located near the ...

2023年5月29日 · Landsat-7 satellite image of Jemez Mountains and Valles Caldera, New Mexico. The Valles and Toledo Caldera margins are approximated by dashed yellow lines, and the resurgent dome and lava domes are labeled. The Banco Bonito lava flow is the youngest in the region at 68,000 years old. The town of Los Alamos is located just east of the caldera.