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South Rim October 20, 2008 |
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| The sediment strata that compose the canyon walls were generally deposited at about sea level. But forces within the Earth (continents collided, compressing them, folding them; gasses, heat, molten rock pressed upward, etc.) uplifted a section of the continental crust to today's 7000'- 8000' (2000 m - 2500 m). Because of the relative thickness of the crust in this area (up to 40 km), according to some geologists, the uplifted crust resisted folding or breaking, and the geological strata remain in their proper order, one above the other. This thick, durable bulge is the Colorado Plateau. |
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