Arizona Geography
Arizona is usually thought of as a large desert state, in truth, more than half of the state consists of mountain and plateau areas and the Grand Canyon is the home to the largest Ponderosa Pine forest in the United States. Arizona can be divided into three major land areas; the Colorado plateau (northwest to central east), the Transition Zone (west to east in the middle) and the Basin and Ridge Region (primarily mid west to south east with a small section extending toward the northwest).
The Colorado River is the primary water source in Arizona on the Colorado Plateau, an area of dry plains more than 4,000 ft (1,220 m) high, featuring the Grand Canyon. Another water source is the Little Colorado River, joining the Colorado river northwest through the plateau. A beautiful natural feature is the Painted Desert, where erosion has left a tableau of colorful layers of exposed sedimentary rock. The Petrified Forest National Park, is one of the world's most extensive areas of petrified wood. The San Francisco Peaks, which include Humphreys Peak, the highest point of elevation (12,655 ft/3,857 m) in the state are South of the Grand Canyon. The Mogollon Rim, a large escarpment is found at the southern edge of the Colorado Plateau.
Arizona is best known for its desert landscape, which is rich in xerophyte plants such as cactus. It is also known for its climate, which presents exceptionally hot summers and mild winters. Less well known is the pine-covered high country of the Colorado Plateau in the north-central portion of the state, which contrasts with the desert Basin and Range region in the southern portions of the state.
Arizona like other states of the Southwest, has many topographical characteristics different from its desert climate. Mountains and plateaus comprise more than half of the state. Arizona is home to the largest stand of Ponderosa pine trees in the world. Marking the southwestern edge of the Colorado Plateau is a 2,000 foot escarpment named the Mogollon Rim.
The southern half of the state has desert basins broken up by mountains with rocky peaks and extending NW to SE across central Arizona. To the south, the Gila River, a major tributary of the Colorado, flows west across the entire state. This area has desert plains separated by mountain chains running north and south; in the west the plains fall to the relatively low altitude of c.140 ft (43 m) in the region around Yuma
The southern half of Arizona has desert basins interrupted by mountains with rocky peaks traversing Northwest to Southeast across central Arizona. The Gila River, another major tributary of the Colorado, bisects the state flowing west where the elevation drops to 140 ft above sea level around Yuma.
One of the seven natural wonders of the world, the Grand Canyon is primarily found within the boundaries of Grand Canyon National Park. One of the first designated National Parks in the country, this colorful, steep-sided gorge was carved by the Colorado River, and scoured by the winds creating caverns, and holes in its sedimentary rock faces. Taking well over millions of years, and at a length of 277 miles long, it ranges in width from 4 to 18 miles and attains a maximum depth of more than 1 mile.
The Barringer Meteorite Crater is one of the largest and most well-preserved meteorite impact sites in the world. Simply known as "Meteor Crater" this gigantic hole in the middle of the high plains of Arizona's Colorado Plateau, is located about 25 miles west of Winslow. The rim is a splash pattern of smashed and jumbled boulders, some of them the size of small houses, rises 150 feet (46 m) above the level of the surrounding plain. Barringer Metorite crater itself is almost a mile wide, and 570 feet deep.
