Richardson Mountains
Mountain range in northern Yukon, Canada
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Richardson Mountains are a mountain range located west of the mouth of the Mackenzie River in northern Yukon, Canada. They parallel the northernmost part of the boundary between Yukon and Northwest Territories.
| Richardson Mountains | |
|---|---|
Dempster Highway crossing the Richardson Mountains | |
| Highest point | |
| Peak | Manuel Peak |
| Elevation | 1,722 m (5,650 ft)[1] |
| Prominence | 1,292 m (4,239 ft)[1] |
| Coordinates | 67°59′36″N 136°35′07″W[1] |
| Naming | |
| Etymology | Named for Arctic explorer John Richardson[2] |
| Geography | |
  Richardson Mountains Location in the Northwest Territories | |
Country | Canada |
Territories | Northwest Territories, Yukon |
Range coordinates | 68°19′59″N 135°45′09″W[3] |
| Parent range | Brooks Range |
| Topo map | NTS 106L05[3] |
Although some sources[4] consider the Richardson Mountains to be part of the Canadian Rockies, the common northern limit of the Canadian Rockies is the Liard River, which is a long way south. The Richardson Mountains are a sub-range of the Brooks Range which lies mostly in Alaska.[2]
Geology
Richardson Mountains is in continuous permafrost region. Many areas are experiencing retrogressive thaw slump.[5][6]
This region contains well-exposed sedimentary rocks of Proterozoic to Cretaceous age and small Devonian granite intrusions.[7] Late Cretaceous to Tertiary compression inverted the original extensional structures, forming the Richardson Anticlinorium. This north-plunging structure is approximately 75 km wide and exposes rocks ranging from the Proterozoic to Carboniferous.[8]
