Editing Painted Desert (Arizona)

{{Short description|Desert in Arizona}}
{{Other uses|Painted Desert (disambiguation){{!}}Painted Desert}}
{{Infobox valley
| name               = Painted Desert
| native_name        = {{native name|es|El Desierto Pintado}}
| photo              = Painteddesert1.JPG
| photo_caption      =
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| map                =
| map_image          = Arizona Relief NED.jpg
| map_caption        = Relief map showing arc-shaped desert north and northeast of [[Mogollon Plateau]] and Mogollon Rim.
<!--  Location  -->
| location           =
| country            = [[United States]]
| region             =
| state              = [[Arizona]]
| district           =
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| relief             =
| label              =
| label_position     =
| coordinates        = {{coord|35|30|N|110|05|W|display=inline,title}}
| coordinates_ref    = <ref name="gnis">{{cite web |work=Geographic Names Information System |publisher=[[United States Geological Survey|USGS]] |date=February 8, 1980 |url={{Gnis3|9115}} |title=Painted Desert |access-date=May 5, 2013}}</ref>
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| elevation          =
| elevation_m        =
| elevation_ft       =
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| length             = 160 miles
| length_mi          =
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| width              =
| width_mi           =
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| area               = 93500 acres
| area_mi2           = 7500
| area_km2           =
| depth              =
| depth_ft           =
| depth_m            =
| type               =
| age                =
| border             = [[Little Colorado River|Little Colorado]] and [[Puerco River|Puerco]] rivers
| topo               =
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The '''Painted Desert''' is a United States desert of [[badlands]] in the [[Four Corners]] area,<ref name=Jaeger>{{cite book |last=Jaeger |first=Edmund C. |author-link=Edmund Jaeger|title=The North American Deserts|url=https://archive.org/details/northamericandes00jaeg |url-access=registration }} (cited by {{cite book |author=Trimble |title=The Sagebrush Ocean |page=10}})</ref> running from near the east end of [[Grand Canyon National Park]] and southeast into [[Petrified Forest National Park]]. It is most easily accessed from the north portion of Petrified Forest National Park. The Painted Desert is known for its brilliant and varied colors: these include the more common red rock, but also shades of lavender.

== History ==

The Painted Desert was named by a Spanish expedition under [[Francisco Vázquez de Coronado]] during his 1540 quest to find the [[Seven Cities of Cibola]]. He located these some {{Convert|40|mi|km|-1|abbr=out}} east of [[Petrified Forest National Park]]. Finding the cities were not made of gold, Coronado sent an expedition to find the [[Colorado River]] to gain supplies. Passing through the wonderland of colors, they named the area ''El Desierto Pintado'' ("The Painted Desert").<ref name="Granger1960">{{cite book |first=Byrd H. |last=Granger |title=Arizona Place Names |url=https://archive.org/details/arizonaplacename00barn |url-access=registration |year=1960 |publisher=[[University of Arizona Press]] |page=[https://archive.org/details/arizonaplacename00barn/page/18 18] |access-date=6 December 2011}}</ref>

Much of the Painted Desert within Petrified Forest National Park is protected as [[Petrified Forest National Wilderness Area]], where motorized travel is limited.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nps.gov/pefo/parknews/upload/PEFO%20newspaper%202009%20pg%207.pdf |title=Wilderness camping |work=[[Petrified Forest National Park]] |publisher=[[National Park Service|NPS]]}}</ref> The park offers both easy and longer hikes into the colored hills. The Painted Desert continues north into the [[Navajo Nation]], where off-road travel is allowed only by permit.

==Geology==
The desert is composed of stratified layers of [[siltstone]], [[mudstone]], and [[shale]] of the [[Triassic]] [[Chinle Formation]], which erode easily. These fine-grained rock layers contain abundant iron and manganese compounds, which provide the pigments for the various colors of the region. Thin, resistant [[Lake|lacustrine]] [[limestone]] layers and [[volcanic]] flows cap the [[mesa]]s. Numerous layers of [[Silica|silicic]] [[volcanic ash]] occur in the Chinle and provide the silica for the [[Petrified wood|petrified logs]] of the area. The erosion of these layers has resulted in the formation of the [[badlands]] topography of the region.<ref>Chronic, Halka, ''Pages of Stone: Geology of Grand Canyon & Plateau Country National Parks & Monuments,'' Mountaineers Books; 2nd ed., 2004, pp. 131–34 {{ISBN|978-0-89886-680-3}}</ref><ref>Baars, Donald L., ''Navajo Country,'' University of New Mexico Press, 1995 pp. 47–53 {{ISBN|0-8263-1587-9}}</ref><ref>Baars, Donald L., ''The Colorado Plateau: a Geologic History,'' University of New Mexico Press, 1983, pp. 163–68 {{ISBN|0-8263-0599-7}}</ref>

In the southern portions of the desert, the remains of a Triassic period [[coniferous]] forest have [[fossilized]] over millions of years. Wind, water and soil [[erosion]] continue to change the face of the landscape by shifting [[sediment]] and exposing layers of the Chinle Formation. An assortment of fossilized [[prehistoric]] plants and animals are found in the region, as well as ancient [[dinosaur]] tracks and evidence of early human habitation.

==Area and climate==
The Painted Desert extends roughly from [[Cameron, Arizona|Cameron]]–[[Tuba City, Arizona|Tuba City]] southeast to past [[Holbrook, Arizona|Holbrook]] and the [[Petrified Forest National Park]]. The desert is about {{convert|120|mi|km|-1}} long by about {{convert|60|mi|km|-1}} wide, making it roughly {{convert|7500|mi2|km2|-1}} in area.<ref>"Grand Canyon and Other Spectacular Sights in Arizona", on-the-matrix.com, {{cite web |url=http://www.on-the-matrix.com/north_america/GrandCanyon.asp |title=North America on the Matrix: Grand Canyon, Painted Desert, Petrified Forest, Monument Valley |access-date=2012-05-05 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130220143003/http://www.on-the-matrix.com/north_america/GrandCanyon.asp |archive-date=2013-02-20 }}</ref> Bordering southwest and south is the [[Mogollon Plateau]], and on the plateau's south border the [[Mogollon Rim]], the north border of the [[Arizona transition zone]].

Owing to the strong rain shadow of the Mogollon Rim, the Painted Desert has a cold [[desert climate]] ([[Köppen climate classification|Köppen]] ''BWk''), with hot, dry summers and chilly (though virtually snow-free) winters. The annual precipitation is the lowest in northern Arizona and in many places is lower even than [[Phoenix, Arizona|Phoenix]].<ref>[http://www.wrcc.dri.edu/pcpn/prism/az.jpg Arizona Annual Precipitation Map]</ref>

{{Weather box
|location = Petrified Forest National Park, Arizona, 1991–2020 normals, extremes 1973–present
|single line = Yes

|Jan record high F = 67
|Feb record high F = 73
|Mar record high F = 84
|Apr record high F = 89
|May record high F = 101
|Jun record high F = 103
|Jul record high F = 104
|Aug record high F = 101
|Sep record high F = 100
|Oct record high F = 90
|Nov record high F = 79
|Dec record high F = 69

|Jan avg record high F = 60.1
|Feb avg record high F = 67.8
|Mar avg record high F = 75.2
|Apr avg record high F = 82.1
|May avg record high F = 89.7
|Jun avg record high F = 98.9
|Jul avg record high F = 99.0
|Aug avg record high F = 96.1
|Sep avg record high F = 91.4
|Oct avg record high F = 82.6
|Nov avg record high F = 72.4
|Dec avg record high F = 62.7
|year avg record high F = 100.1

|Jan high F = 47.6
|Feb high F = 52.5
|Mar high F = 60.7
|Apr high F = 68.4
|May high F = 77.6
|Jun high F = 88.6
|Jul high F = 91.5
|Aug high F = 88.4
|Sep high F = 82.0
|Oct high F = 70.5
|Nov high F = 58.2
|Dec high F = 46.5
|year high F = 

|Jan mean F = 35.0
|Feb mean F = 38.9
|Mar mean F = 45.4
|Apr mean F = 51.7
|May mean F = 60.6
|Jun mean F = 70.8
|Jul mean F = 75.5
|Aug mean F = 73.3
|Sep mean F = 66.6
|Oct mean F = 55.2
|Nov mean F = 43.1
|Dec mean F = 34.0
|year mean F = 

|Jan low F = 22.3
|Feb low F = 25.3
|Mar low F = 30.1
|Apr low F = 35.0
|May low F = 43.6
|Jun low F = 52.9
|Jul low F = 59.6
|Aug low F = 58.3
|Sep low F = 51.3
|Oct low F = 39.9
|Nov low F = 28.1
|Dec low F = 21.5
|year low F = 

|Jan avg record low F = 5.1
|Feb avg record low F = 9.9
|Mar avg record low F = 17.4
|Apr avg record low F = 24.2
|May avg record low F = 31.2
|Jun avg record low F = 43.9
|Jul avg record low F = 53.3
|Aug avg record low F = 52.4
|Sep avg record low F = 40.5
|Oct avg record low F = 26.1
|Nov avg record low F = 14.9
|Dec avg record low F = 8.2
|year avg record low F = 4.1

|Jan record low F = -7
|Feb record low F = -5
|Mar record low F = 8
|Apr record low F = 16
|May record low F = 24
|Jun record low F = 31
|Jul record low F = 38
|Aug record low F = 46
|Sep record low F = 30
|Oct record low F = 11
|Nov record low F = -3
|Dec record low F = 2

|precipitation colour = green
|Jan precipitation inch = 0.93
|Feb precipitation inch = 0.65
|Mar precipitation inch = 0.70
|Apr precipitation inch = 0.39
|May precipitation inch = 0.46
|Jun precipitation inch = 0.26
|Jul precipitation inch = 1.36
|Aug precipitation inch = 1.74
|Sep precipitation inch = 1.12
|Oct precipitation inch = 0.96
|Nov precipitation inch = 0.62
|Dec precipitation inch = 0.76
|year precipitation inch = 

|unit precipitation days = 0.01 in
|Jan precipitation days = 4.3
|Feb precipitation days = 4.3
|Mar precipitation days = 4.3
|Apr precipitation days = 3.1
|May precipitation days = 3.3
|Jun precipitation days = 2.1
|Jul precipitation days = 8.0
|Aug precipitation days = 8.6
|Sep precipitation days = 5.6
|Oct precipitation days = 4.8
|Nov precipitation days = 4.2
|Dec precipitation days = 5.0

|Jan snow inch = 0.7
|Feb snow inch = 0.1
|Mar snow inch = 0.2
|Apr snow inch = 0.2
|May snow inch = 0.0
|Jun snow inch = 0.0
|Jul snow inch = 0.0
|Aug snow inch = 0.0
|Sep snow inch = 0.0
|Oct snow inch = 0.0
|Nov snow inch = 0.3
|Dec snow inch = 0.1
|year snow inch = 

|unit snow days = 0.1 in
|Jan snow days = 0.4
|Feb snow days = 0.2
|Mar snow days = 0.1
|Apr snow days = 0.1
|May snow days = 0.0
|Jun snow days = 0.0
|Jul snow days = 0.0
|Aug snow days = 0.0
|Sep snow days = 0.0
|Oct snow days = 0.0
|Nov snow days = 0.3
|Dec snow days = 0.5

|source 1 = NOAA<ref name = NOAA>
{{cite web
|url = https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/services/data/v1?dataset=normals-monthly-1991-2020&stations=USC00026190&format=pdf&dataTypes=MLY-TMAX-NORMAL,MLY-TMIN-NORMAL,MLY-TAVG-NORMAL,MLY-PRCP-NORMAL,MLY-SNOW-NORMAL
|publisher = National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
|title = U.S. Climate Normals Quick Access – Station: Painted Desert NP, AZ
|access-date = March 25, 2023
}}
</ref>
|source 2 = National Weather Service (mean maxima/minima 2006&ndash;2020)<ref name = NOWData>
{{cite web
|url = https://www.weather.gov/wrh/climate?wfo=fgz
|publisher = National Weather Service
|title = NOAA Online Weather Data – NWS Flagstaff
|access-date = March 25, 2023
}}
</ref>
}}

==Accessibility==
Much of the region is accessible only by foot or unpaved road though major highways and paved roads cut across the area. The towns of [[Cameron, Arizona|Cameron]] and [[Tuba City, Arizona|Tuba City]], both on the Navajo Nation, are two major settlements. A permit is required for all backroad travel on the Navajo Nation.<ref>{{cite web|title=Travel Navajo Nation|url=http://navajonationparks.org/permits.htm|publisher=Navajo Nation Parks & Recreation|access-date=May 5, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140728145300/http://navajonationparks.org/permits.htm|archive-date=July 28, 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref>

==Gallery==

<gallery widths="190px" heights="160px">
Image:The Painted Desert.JPG|The Painted Desert, [[Petrified Forest National Park]]
Image:Painted Desert 2 700px.jpg|The gray and red colored bands across the landform are typical of most geologic features in the Painted Desert.
Image:Blue Mesa Painted Desert.jpg|Painted Desert with logs of petrified wood, Petrified Forest National Park
Painted Desert.webm|360° panorama at Tiponi Point
</gallery>

{{wide image|PaintedDesertPano.jpg|1200px|A panoramic view of the Little Painted Desert County Park as seen from [[Arizona Route 87]]}}

==See also==
* [[Painted Hills, Oregon]]
* [[Painted Desert (South Australia)]]

==References==
{{Reflist|2}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Painted Desert (Arizona)}}
* [http://www.lapahie.com/Navajo_Map_Lg.cfm Regional map for Navajo Lands]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20070202143407/http://www.hopi.nsn.us/visitors.asp Regional Map and Visitor Information for Hopi Lands]
* [http://www.nps.gov/pefo/ National Park Services Website – Petrified Forest National Park]
* [http://www.nps.gov/archive/pefo/In_Depth/Geology.htm Geology of the region]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20130220143003/http://www.on-the-matrix.com/north_america/GrandCanyon.asp Grand Canyon and Other Spectacular Sights in Arizona, on-the-matrix.com, (area of Painted Desert, 7500 sq mi]
* [http://www.fs.fed.us/land/pubs/ecoregions/ch36.html#313D Ecological Subregions of the United States – US Forest Service]
* [http://www.wilderness.net/index.cfm?fuse=NWPS&sec=wildView&wname=Petrified%20Forest%20National Petrified Forest Wilderness Area] at Wilderness.net

{{Deserts}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Deserts of Arizona]]
[[Category:Petrified Forest National Park]]
[[Category:Geography of Apache County, Arizona]]
[[Category:Geography of Coconino County, Arizona]]
[[Category:Geography of Navajo County, Arizona]]
[[Category:Geography of the Navajo Nation]]
[[Category:Landmarks in Arizona]]
[[Category:Natural history of Coconino County, Arizona]]
[[Category:Regions of Arizona]]
[[Category:Tourist attractions along U.S. Route 66]]
[[Category:Tourist attractions in Apache County, Arizona]]
[[Category:Tourist attractions in Coconino County, Arizona]]
[[Category:Tourist attractions in Navajo County, Arizona]]