Clearwater Mountains
The Clearwater Mountains are part of the Rocky Mountains, located in the panhandle of Idaho in the Western United States. The mountains lie between the Salmon River and the Bitterroot Range and encompass an area of 8,499 square miles; the North Clearwater Mountains is the shortest subrange. The subrange is 4,321 square miles in area. Only two of its peaks — the 7,139-foot Pot Mountain and the 7,077-foot Black Mountain — rise above 7,000 feet; the Selway Crags lie between the South Clearwaters both in latitude and mean elevation. The Selway Crags encompass 885 square miles and its two highest peaks are the 8,282-foot Grave Peak and the 7,424-foot McConnell Mountain; the South Clearwater Mountains is the southernmost and tallest subrange, with 6 peaks above 8,000 feet. The South Clearwaters encompass 3,292 square miles and its two highest peaks are the 9,001-foot Stripe Mountain and the 8,943-foot Salmon Mountain
Mountain range
A mountain range or hill range is a series of mountains or hills ranged in a line and connected by high ground. A mountain system or mountain belt is a group of mountain ranges with similarity in form and alignment that have arisen from the same cause an orogeny. Mountain ranges are formed by a variety of geological processes, but most of the significant ones on Earth are the result of plate tectonics. Mountain ranges are found on many planetary mass objects in the Solar System and are a feature of most terrestrial planets. Mountain ranges are segmented by highlands or mountain passes and valleys. Individual mountains within the same mountain range do not have the same geologic structure or petrology, they may be a mix of different orogenic expressions and terranes, for example thrust sheets, uplifted blocks, fold mountains, volcanic landforms resulting in a variety of rock types. Most geologically young mountain ranges on the Earth's land surface are associated with either the Pacific Ring of Fire or the Alpide Belt.
The Pacific Ring of Fire includes the Andes of South America, extends through the North American Cordillera along the Pacific Coast, the Aleutian Range, on through Kamchatka, Taiwan, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, to New Zealand. The Andes is 7,000 kilometres long and is considered the world's longest mountain system; the Alpide belt includes Indonesia and Southeast Asia, through the Himalaya, Caucasus Mountains, Balkan Mountains fold mountain range, the Alps, ends in the Spanish mountains and the Atlas Mountains. The belt includes other European and Asian mountain ranges; the Himalayas contain the highest mountains in the world, including Mount Everest, 8,848 metres high and traverses the border between China and Nepal. Mountain ranges outside these two systems include the Arctic Cordillera, the Urals, the Appalachians, the Scandinavian Mountains, the Great Dividing Range, the Altai Mountains and the Hijaz Mountains. If the definition of a mountain range is stretched to include underwater mountains the Ocean Ridges form the longest continuous mountain system on Earth, with a length of 65,000 kilometres.
The mountain systems of the earth are characterized by a tree structure, where mountain ranges can contain sub-ranges. The sub-range relationship is expressed as a parent-child relationship. For example, the White Mountains of New Hampshire and the Blue Ridge Mountains are sub-ranges of the Appalachian Mountains. Equivalently, the Appalachians are the parent of the White Mountains and Blue Ridge Mountains, the White Mountains and the Blue Ridge Mountains are children of the Appalachians; the parent-child expression extends to the sub-ranges themselves: the Sandwich Range and the Presidential Range are children of the White Mountains, while the Presidential Range is parent to the Northern Presidential Range and Southern Presidential Range. The position of mountains influences climate, such as snow; when air masses move up and over mountains, the air cools producing orographic precipitation. As the air descends on the leeward side, it warms again and is drier, having been stripped of much of its moisture.
A rain shadow will affect the leeward side of a range. Mountain ranges are subjected to erosional forces which work to tear them down; the basins adjacent to an eroding mountain range are filled with sediments which are buried and turned into sedimentary rock. Erosion is at work while the mountains are being uplifted until the mountains are reduced to low hills and plains; the early Cenozoic uplift of the Rocky Mountains of Colorado provides an example. As the uplift was occurring some 10,000 feet of Mesozoic sedimentary strata were removed by erosion over the core of the mountain range and spread as sand and clays across the Great Plains to the east; this mass of rock was removed as the range was undergoing uplift. The removal of such a mass from the core of the range most caused further uplift as the region adjusted isostatically in response to the removed weight. Rivers are traditionally believed to be the principal cause of mountain range erosion, by cutting into bedrock and transporting sediment.
Computer simulation has shown that as mountain belts change from tectonically active to inactive, the rate of erosion drops because there are fewer abrasive particles in the water and fewer landslides. Mountains on other planets and natural satellites of the Solar System are isolated and formed by processes such as impacts, though there are examples of mountain ranges somewhat similar to those on Earth. Saturn's moon Titan and Pluto, in particular exhibit large mountain ranges in chains composed of ices rather than rock. Examples include the Mithrim Montes and Doom Mons on Titan, Tenzing Montes and Hillary Montes on Pluto; some terrestrial planets other than Earth exhibit rocky mountain ranges, such as Maxwell Montes on Venus taller than any on Earth and Tartarus Montes on Mars, Jupiter's moon Io has mountain ranges formed from tectonic processes including Boösaule Montes, Dorian Montes, Hi'iaka Montes and Euboea Montes. Peakbagger Ranges Home Page Bivouac.com
Hyndman Peak
Hyndman Peak, at an elevation of 12,009 feet above sea level, is the ninth highest peak in Idaho and the highest point in the Pioneer Mountains, Sawtooth National Forest, Blaine County. Hyndman Peak is located on the border of Blaine counties; the towns of Hailey and Sun Valley are west of the peak. The mountain was named after Major William Hyndman, an early settler, businessperson in the local mining industry; the first recorded ascent of Hyndman Peak was made in 1889 by E. T. Perkins; the primary route to the summit is class 2, which along with its proximity to Sun Valley makes it a popular destination. The trailhead to hike to Hydman Peak is located at the end of Sawtooth National Forest road 203 along Hyndman Creek; the primary route is six miles one way from the trailhead and traverses through Hyndman Basin, bordered by Hyndman, Old Hyndman, Cobb Peaks. The route follows an unmaintained trail and ascends the Hyndman-Old Hyndman saddle before reaching the summit. "Thompson Peak". Geographic Names Information System.
United States Geological Survey. Retrieved 2010-02-15. Hyndman Peak trip report SummitPost.org - HyndmanPeak Sawtooth National Forest - Official Site Idaho Summits - Hyndman Peak Idaho 12ers
Challis, Idaho
Challis is the largest city in Custer County, United States. It is the county seat and its population was 1,081 at the 2010 census, up from 909 in 2000. Challis was founded in 1878 and named for A. P. Challis, a surveyor when the townsite was laid out. Challis post office was established in 1878. Twin Peaks Sports, the I. O. O. F. Hall, a number of other buildings in Challis are individually listed on the National Register of Historic Places, most as a result of an Idaho State Historical Society study of historical resources in the town. - US 93 - to Salmon and Mackay SH 75 - to Stanley The Salmon River Scenic Byway uses both highways, from Stanley to Salmon. The junction with Highway 75 is south of Challis. On Friday, October 28, 1983, the Borah Peak earthquake occurred at 8:06 am MDT; the shock measured 6.9 on the moment magnitude scale and had a maximum Mercalli intensity of IX. The Challis-Mackay region experienced rather thorough damage, with 11 commercial buildings and 39 homes with major damage.
Mackay in particular, about 50 miles southeast of Challis, experienced the most severe damage. Most of the city's large buildings on its Main Street were damaged, to some extent. Most of these buildings were built from materials such as brick, concrete block, stone, each varying; the two fatalities of the earthquake were in Challis. Challis is located at 44°30′15″N 114°13′42″W, at an elevation of 5,253 feet above sea level. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 1.88 square miles, of which, 1.85 square miles is land and 0.03 square miles is water. Challis experiences a semi-arid climate with cold winters, hot summers, low precipitation throughout the year; as of the census of 2010, there were 1,081 people, 502 households, 277 families residing in the city. The population density was 584.3 inhabitants per square mile. There were 598 housing units at an average density of 323.2 per square mile. The racial makeup of the city was 93.6% White, 0.1% African American, 0.8% Native American, 0.3% Asian, 3.5% from other races, 1.7% from two or more races.
Hispanic or Latino of any race were 7.2% of the population. There were 502 households of which 26.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.4% were married couples living together, 7.2% had a female householder with no husband present, 4.6% had a male householder with no wife present, 44.8% were non-families. 39.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.6% had someone living alone, 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.14 and the average family size was 2.84. The median age in the city was 42 years. 21.3% of residents were under the age of 18. The gender makeup of the city was 55.0% male and 45.0% female. As of the census of 2000, there were 909 people, 410 households, 248 families residing in the city; the population density was 510.8 people per square mile. There were 525 housing units at an average density of 295.0 per square mile. The racial makeup of the city was 97.14% White, 0.88% Native American, 1.21% from other races, 0.77% from two or more races.
Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.85% of the population. There were 410 households out of which 29.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.4% were married couples living together, 5.1% had a female householder with no husband present, 39.3% were non-families. 35.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 17.6% had someone living alone, 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.21 and the average family size was 2.90. In the city, the population was spread out with 25.0% under the age of 18, 4.7% from 18 to 24, 26.0% from 25 to 44, 24.9% from 45 to 64, 19.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.3 males. The median income for a household in the city was $29,904, the median income for a family was $39,444. Males had a median income of $38,250 versus $21,964 for females; the per capita income for the city was $15,803. About 8.5% of families and 12.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.2% of those under age 18 and 18.5% of those age 65 or over.
Challis Chamber of Commerce Challis Idaho.com - community site Challis School District #181 Challis Messenger - newspaper Salmon-Challis relocation guide 2010-11 Salmon Valley Chamber of Commerce Salmon-Challis National Forest Salmon River Scenic Byway Custer County - official site
U.S. National Geodetic Survey
"United States Coast Survey" and "United States Coast and Geodetic Survey" redirect here. They are former scientific agencies of the United States government which should not be confused with the United States Coast Guard, a seagoing U. S. government law enforcement and safety agency, the modern Coast Survey, a U. S. government agency that makes nautical charts, or the United States Geological Survey, a U. S. government agency that studies earth science and makes topographical maps. The National Geodetic Survey the United States Survey of the Coast, United States Coast Survey, United States Coast and Geodetic Survey, is a United States federal agency that defines and manages a national coordinate system, providing the foundation for transportation and communication. Since its foundation in its present form in 1970, it has been part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, of the United States Department of Commerce; the National Geodetic Survey's history and heritage are intertwined with those of other NOAA offices.
As the U. S. Coast Survey and U. S. Coast and Geodetic Survey, the agency operated a fleet of survey ships, from 1917 the Coast and Geodetic Survey was one of the uniformed services of the United States with its own corps of commissioned officers. Upon the creation of the Environmental Science Services Administration in 1965, the commissioned corps was separated from the Survey to become the Environmental Science Services Administration Corps. Upon the creation of NOAA in 1970, the ESSA Corps became the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps. Thus, the National Geodetic Survey's ancestor organizations are the ancestors of today's NOAA Corps and Office of Coast Survey and are among the ancestors of today's NOAA fleet. In addition, today's National Institute of Standards and Technology, although long since separated from the Survey, got its start as the Survey's Office of Weights and Measures; the National Geodetic Survey is an office of NOAA's National Ocean Service.
Its core function is to maintain the National Spatial Reference System, "a consistent coordinate system that defines latitude, height, scale and orientation throughout the United States." NGS is responsible for defining the NSRS and its relationship with the International Terrestrial Reference Frame. The NSRS enables precise and accessible knowledge of where things are in the United States and its territories; the NSRS may be divided into its geometric and physical components. The official geodetic datum of the United States, NAD83 defines the geometric relationship between points within the United States in three-dimensional space; the datum may be accessed via NGS's network of survey marks or through the Continuously Operating Reference Station network of GPS reference antennas. NGS is responsible for computing the relationship between NAD83 and the ITRF; the physical components of the NSRS are reflected in its height system, defined by the vertical datum NAVD88. This datum is a network of orthometric heights obtained through spirit leveling.
Because of the close relationship between height and Earth's gravity field, NGS collects and curates terrestrial gravity measurements and develops regional models of the geoid and its slope, the deflection of the vertical. NGS is responsible for ensuring the accuracy of the NSRS over time as the North American plate rotates and deforms over time due to crustal strain, post-glacial rebound, elastic deformation of the crust, other geophysical phenomena. NGS will release new datums in 2022; the North American Terrestrial Reference Frame of 2022 will supersede NAD83 in defining the geometric relationship between the North American plate and the ITRF. United States territories on the Pacific and Mariana plates will have their own respective geodetic datums; the North American-Pacific Geopotential Datum of 2022 will separately define the height system of the United States and its territories, replacing NAVD88. It will use a geoid model accurate to 1 centimeter to relate orthometric height to ellipsoidal height measured by GPS, eliminating the need for future leveling projects.
This geoid model will be based on airborne and terrestrial gravity measurements collected by NGS's GRAV-D program as well as satellite-based gravity models derived from observations collected by GRACE, GOCE, satellite altimetry missions. NGS provides a number of other public services, it maps changing shorelines in the United States and provides aerial imagery of regions affected by natural disasters, enabling rapid damage assessment by emergency managers and members of the public. The Online Positioning and User Service processes user-input GPS data and outputs position solutions within the NSRS; the agency offers other tools for conversion between datums. The original predecessor agency of the National Geodetic Survey was the United States Survey of the Coast, created within the United States Department of the Treasury by an Act of Congress on February 10, 1807, to conduct a "Survey of the Coast." The Survey of the Coast, the United States government's first scientific agency, represented the interest of the administration of President Thomas Jefferson in science and the stimulation of international trade by using scientific surveying methods to chart t
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, which along with the United States House of Representatives—the lower chamber—comprises the legislature of the United States. The Senate chamber is located in the north wing of the Capitol, in Washington, D. C; the composition and powers of the Senate are established by Article One of the United States Constitution. The Senate is composed of senators; each state, regardless of its population size, is represented by two senators who serve staggered terms of six years. There being at present 50 states in the Union, there are presently 100 senators. From 1789 until 1913, senators were appointed by legislatures of the states; as the upper chamber of Congress, the Senate has several powers of advice and consent which are unique to it. These include the approval of treaties, the confirmation of Cabinet secretaries, Supreme Court justices, federal judges, flag officers, regulatory officials, other federal executive officials and other federal uniformed officers.
In addition to these, in cases wherein no candidate receives a majority of electors for Vice President, the duty falls to the Senate to elect one of the top two recipients of electors for that office. Furthermore, the Senate has the responsibility of conducting the trials of those impeached by the House; the Senate is considered both a more deliberative and more prestigious body than the House of Representatives due to its longer terms, smaller size, statewide constituencies, which led to a more collegial and less partisan atmosphere. The presiding officer of the Senate is the Vice President of the United States, President of the Senate. In the Vice President's absence, the President Pro Tempore, customarily the senior member of the party holding a majority of seats, presides over the Senate. In the early 20th century, the practice of majority and minority parties electing their floor leaders began, although they are not constitutional officers; the drafters of the Constitution created a bicameral Congress as a compromise between those who felt that each state, since it was sovereign, should be represented, those who felt the legislature must directly represent the people, as the House of Commons did in Great Britain.
This idea of having one chamber represent people while the other gives equal representation to states regardless of population, was known as the Connecticut Compromise. There was a desire to have two Houses that could act as an internal check on each other. One was intended to be a "People's House" directly elected by the people, with short terms obliging the representatives to remain close to their constituents; the other was intended to represent the states to such extent as they retained their sovereignty except for the powers expressly delegated to the national government. The Senate was thus not designed to serve the people of the United States equally; the Constitution provides that the approval of both chambers is necessary for the passage of legislation. First convened in 1789, the Senate of the United States was formed on the example of the ancient Roman Senate; the name is derived from Latin for council of elders. James Madison made the following comment about the Senate: In England, at this day, if elections were open to all classes of people, the property of landed proprietors would be insecure.
An agrarian law would soon take place. If these observations be just, our government ought to secure the permanent interests of the country against innovation. Landholders ought to have a share in the government, to support these invaluable interests, to balance and check the other, they ought to be so constituted. The Senate, ought to be this body. Article Five of the Constitution stipulates that no constitutional amendment may be created to deprive a state of its equal suffrage in the Senate without that state's consent; the District of Columbia and all other territories are not entitled to representation allowed to vote in either House of the Congress. The District of Columbia elects two "shadow U. S. Senators", but they are officials of the D. C. City Government and not members of the U. S. Senate; the United States has had 50 states since 1959, thus the Senate has had 100 senators since 1959. The disparity between the most and least populous states has grown since the Connecticut Compromise, which granted each state two members of the Senate and at least one member of the House of Representatives, for a total minimum of three presidential electors, regardless of population.
In 1787, Virginia had ten times the population of Rhode Island, whereas today California has 70 times the population of Wyoming, based on the 1790 and 2000 censuses. This means some citizens are two orders of magnitude better represented in the Senate than those in other states. Seats in the House of Representatives are proportionate to the population of each state, reducing the disparity of representation. Before the adoption of the Seventeenth Amendment in 1913, senators were elected by the individual state legislatures. Problems with repeated vacant seats due to the inability of a legislature to elect senators, intrastate political struggles, bribery and intimidation had led to a growing movement to amend the Constitution to allow for the direct election of senators; the party composition of the Senate during the 116th Congress: Art
United States Geological Survey
The United States Geological Survey is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, the natural hazards that threaten it; the organization has four major science disciplines, concerning biology, geography and hydrology. The USGS is a fact-finding research organization with no regulatory responsibility; the USGS is a bureau of the United States Department of the Interior. The USGS employs 8,670 people and is headquartered in Reston, Virginia; the USGS has major offices near Lakewood, Colorado, at the Denver Federal Center, Menlo Park, California. The current motto of the USGS, in use since August 1997, is "science for a changing world." The agency's previous slogan, adopted on the occasion of its hundredth anniversary, was "Earth Science in the Public Service." Since 2012, the USGS science focus is directed at six topical "Mission Areas", namely Climate and Land Use Change, Core Science Systems, Ecosystems and Minerals and Environmental Health, Natural Hazards, Water.
In December 2012, the USGS split the Energy and Minerals and Environmental Health Mission Area resulting in seven topical Mission Areas, with the two new areas being: Energy and Minerals and Environmental Health. Administratively, it is divided into six Regional Units. Other specific programs include: Earthquake Hazards Program monitors earthquake activity worldwide; the National Earthquake Information Center in Golden, Colorado on the campus of the Colorado School of Mines detects the location and magnitude of global earthquakes. The USGS runs or supports several regional monitoring networks in the United States under the umbrella of the Advanced National Seismic System; the USGS informs authorities, emergency responders, the media, the public, both domestic and worldwide, about significant earthquakes. It maintains long-term archives of earthquake data for scientific and engineering research, it conducts and supports research on long-term seismic hazards. USGS has released the UCERF California earthquake forecast.
As of 2005, the agency is working to create a National Volcano Early Warning System by improving the instrumentation monitoring the 169 volcanoes in U. S. territory and by establishing methods for measuring the relative threats posed at each site. The USGS National Geomagnetism Program monitors the magnetic field at magnetic observatories and distributes magnetometer data in real time; the USGS collaborates with Canadian and Mexican government scientists, along with the Commission for Environmental Cooperation, to produce the North American Environmental Atlas, used to depict and track environmental issues for a continental perspective. The USGS operates the streamgaging network for the United States, with over 7400 streamgages. Real-time streamflow data are available online. National Climate Change and Wildlife Science Center implements partner-driven science to improve understanding of past and present land use change, develops relevant climate and land use forecasts, identifies lands and communities that are most vulnerable to adverse impacts of change from the local to global scale.
Since 1962, the Astrogeology Research Program has been involved in global and planetary exploration and mapping. In collaboration with Stanford University, the USGS operates the USGS-Stanford Ion Microprobe Laboratory, a world-class analytical facility for U--Pb geochronology and trace element analyses of minerals and other earth materials. USGS operates a number of water related programs, notably the National Streamflow Information Program and National Water-Quality Assessment Program. USGS Water data is publicly available from their National Water Information System database; the USGS operates the National Wildlife Health Center, whose mission is "to serve the nation and its natural resources by providing sound science and technical support, to disseminate information to promote science-based decisions affecting wildlife and ecosystem health. The NWHC provides information, technical assistance, research and leadership on national and international wildlife health issues." It is the agency responsible for surveillance of H5N1 avian influenza outbreaks in the United States.
The USGS runs 17 biological research centers in the United States, including the Patuxent Wildlife Research Center. The USGS is investigating collaboration with the social networking site Twitter to allow for more rapid construction of ShakeMaps; the USGS produces several national series of topographic maps which vary in scale and extent, with some wide gaps in coverage, notably the complete absence of 1:50,000 scale topographic maps or their equivalent. The largest and best-known topographic series is the 7.5-minute, 1:24,000 scale, quadrangle, a non-metric scale unique to the United States. Each of these maps covers an area bounded by two lines of latitude and two lines of longitude spaced 7.5 minutes apart. Nearly 57,000 individual maps in this series cover the 48 contiguous states, Hawaii, U. S. territories, areas of Alaska near Anchorage and Prudhoe Bay. The area covered by each map varies with the latitude of its represented location due to convergence of the meridians. At lower latitudes, near 30° north, a 7.5-minute quadrangle contains an area of about 64 square miles.
At 49° north latitude, 49 square miles are contained within a quadrangle of that size. As a unique non-metric map scale, the 1:24,000 scale requires a separate and specialized romer scale for pl
