Middle Butte
{{Short description|Cryptodome in the state of Idaho}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2025}}
{{Infobox mountain
| name = Middle Butte
| photo = Middle Butte, ne.jpg
| photo_caption = Northeast aspect
| elevation_ft = 6391
| elevation_ref = United States Geological Survey topographical map - Middle Butte{{cite peakbagger|pid=77334|name=Middle Butte, Idaho|access-date=2022-09-10}}
| prominence_ft = 1061
| isolation_mi = 3.73
| isolation_ref = {{cite web|url=https://listsofjohn.com/peak/37836|title=Middle Butte - 6,391' ID|website=listsofjohn.com|access-date=2022-09-10}}
| parent_peak = East Butte (6,572 ft)
| map = Idaho#USA
| map_caption = Location in Idaho
| label_position = bottom
| map_size = 240
| location =
| country = United States of America
| state = Idaho
| region = Bingham
| region_type = County
| coordinates = {{coord|43.4904351|N|112.7382169|W|type:mountain_region:US-ID_scale:100000_source:gnis|format=dms|display=inline,title}}
| coordinates_ref = {{cite gnis|id=373916|name=Middle Butte|access-date=2022-09-10}}
| range = Snake River Plain
Rocky Mountains
| age = QuaternaryScott S. Hughes (1999), Guidebook to the Geology of Eastern Idaho, Idaho Museum of Natural History Publisher, {{ISBN|9780937834640}}, p. 146
| type = Cryptodome
| rock = Basalt
| topo = USGS Middle Butte
| easiest_route =
}}
Middle Butte is a {{convert|6391|ft|m|adj=mid|elevation}} summit located in Bingham County, Idaho, United States.
Description
Middle Butte is situated 40 miles east of Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve, 35 miles west of the community of Idaho Falls, and can be seen from Highway 20 midway between Idaho Falls and Arco at milepost 271. Middle Butte, so named because it is positioned between Big Southern Butte and line parent East Butte, were all landmarks for early explorers and pioneers. Middle Butte is set on land belonging to the Idaho National Laboratory. Topographic relief is modest as the summit rises over {{convert|1,000|ft|m|abbr=off|sp=us}} above the Eastern Snake River Plain in one-half mile. This landform's toponym has been officially adopted by the United States Board on Geographic Names.
Geology
Middle Butte is a cryptodome composed of basalt which formed when an underlying mass of rhyolitic magma pushed up overlying layers of basalt of the Snake River Plain, but the magma never broke the surface.[http://railsback.org/arco/VolcanoesPlus.pdf The Land Volcanoes Made: the Buttes of the Snake River Plain from Idaho Falls to Arco, Idaho, railsback.org] This manner of formation is different than that of East Butte where rhyolitic magma did break through the surface layer of basalt.
Climate
Middle Butte is located in a cold semi-arid climate zone with warm summers and cold winters (Köppen BSk).{{cite journal | author = Peel, M. C. |author2=Finlayson, B. L. |author3=McMahon, T. A. | year = 2007 | title = Updated world map of the Köppen−Geiger climate classification | journal = Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. | volume = 11 | pages = 1633–1644 | issn = 1027-5606}} Winter temperatures can drop below 0 °F with wind chill factors below −20 °F. Precipitation is relatively sparse.
Gallery
File:Middle Butte and East Butte.jpg|West aspect of Middle Butte centered with East Butte in the distance
File:Middle Butte (5034699010).jpg|West slope
File:Middle Butte (5034708076).jpg|Northwest slope
File:Middle Butte (5034716116).jpg|North slope
File:Middle Butte (5034090691).jpg|North slope with juniper above, and sagebrush in foreground
File:East Butte (5035994699).jpg|Left to right: East Butte, Middle Butte, Big Southern Butte
File:Middle Butte from East Butte.jpg|Middle Butte (center) and Big Southern Butte (upper left) rise above the Snake River Plain as seen from East Butte
File:Middle Butte (5034667242).jpg|Northeast aspect
File:Middle Butte (of Twin Buttes).jpg|Aerial view
See also
- List of mountain peaks of Idaho
- {{Portal-inline|Mountains|size=tiny}}
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- Middle Butte: [https://www.yr.no/en/forecast/daily-table/2-5600764/United%20States/Idaho/Bingham/Middle%20Butte weather forecast]
- Three Buttes: [https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=103818 Historical Marker Database]
Category:Landforms of Bingham County, Idaho