Editing Alabama Hills (section)

== Geology ==
Two main types of rock are exposed at the Alabama Hills, an orange, drab weathered [[metamorphic rock|metamorphosed]] [[volcano|volcanic]] rock that is 150{{ndash}}200 million years old, and an 85-million-year-old [[biotite]] [[monzogranite]] which weathers to large roundish boulders, many of which stand on end due to [[spheroidal weathering]] acting on many nearly vertical joints in the rock.<ref name=AES/>
[[File:01-2007-AlabamaHills-02.jpg|thumb|left|Typical rocks in Alabama Hills]]

The rounded contours of the Alabama Hills contrast with the sharp ridges of the Sierra Nevada to the west. Though this might suggest that they formed from a different rock, the Sierra Nevada peaks that loom above the hills are also formed from [[monzogranite]]. The difference in shape and color can be accounted for by a difference in [[weathering]].<ref name=AES>{{cite web|title=Alabama Hills: A California Geological Treasure|date=15 January 2020|url=https://aessoil.com/alabama-hills-a-california-geological-treasure/|publisher=Applied Earth Sciences}}</ref>

[[Mount Whitney]], the tallest mountain in the contiguous [[United States]], towers nine thousand feet above this low range, which itself is {{convert|1500|ft|m|abbr=off|sp=us}} above the floor of [[Owens Valley]]. Gravity surveys indicate that the Owens Valley is filled with about {{convert|10000|ft|m}} of sediment and that the hills are the tip of a very steep escarpment. This feature was created by the same fault system as the [[1872 Lone Pine earthquake]] which, in a single event, caused a vertical displacement of {{convert|6|to|8|ft}}.<ref>{{cite book|title=Geology Underfoot in Death Valley and Owens Valley|pages=200-204|first1=Robert|last1=Sharp|first2=Allen F|last2=Glazner|year=1997|publisher=Mountain Press|location=Missoula, Montana|isbn=9780878423620|oclc=1153638266}}</ref>
[[File:A345, Mobius Arch, Alabama Hills, California, USA, 2011.JPG|thumb|right|[[Mobius Arch]]]]

Dozens of [[natural arch]]es are among the main attractions at the Alabama Hills. They can be accessed by short hikes from the Whitney Portal Road, the Movie Flat Road and the Horseshoe Meadows Road. Among the notable features of the area are: [[Mobius Arch]], Lathe Arch, the Eye of Alabama and Whitney Portal Arch.