Basalt (OKTb;0)

State	Oklahoma
Name	Basalt
Geologic age	Pliocene
Lithologic constituents	Major Igneous > Volcanic > Mafic-volcanic > Basalt (Flow)
Comments	Raton Basalt: Is oldest (of three) basaltic to latiandesitic effusive rock unit mapped in western part of Raton-Clayton volcanic field, Colfax Co, NM in Las Vegas-Raton basin. Caps highest and longest mesas in area. Includes many sheets of lava; vents are generally no longer marked by cinder cones. Analyzed specimens are olivine basalts, alkali basalts, a few trachy-basalts, and latibasalts. Rocks are medium to dark gray or black, very hard, and in part vesicular; some have silvery sheen on fresh break, aptly owing to fine diktytaxitic texture; are visibly porphyritic (typically olivine is the only phenocryst), but some flows have phenocrysts or xeno-crysts of other minerals; altered olivine phenocrysts appear as red or brown specks. Petrography and petrochemistry described. K-Ar ages range from 3.5 to 4.0 m.y. Age is Pliocene. (Scott, 1991).
References	Heran, W.D., Green, G. and Stoeser, D.B., 2003, A Digital Geologic Map Database of Oklahoma: USGS Open File Report 03-247, scale 1:250,000. https://pubs.er.usgs.gov/publication/ofr03247 Sapik, D.B. and Goemaat, R.L., 1973, Reconnaissance of the ground-water resources of Cimarron County, Oklahoma: U.S Geological Survey Hydrologic Investigations Atlas HA-373, scale 1:125,000, 3 sheets. (Geology on sheet 1 compiled by S.L. Schoff, 1943.) https://pubs.er.usgs.gov/publication/ha373 Cederstrand, J.R., 1996c, Digital geologic map of Cimarron County, Oklahoma: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 96-372, (1 diskette), URL address is: http://ok.water.usgs.gov/gis/geology https://pubs.er.usgs.gov/publication/ofr96372 Scott, G., Wilcox, R.E., and Mehnert, H.H., 1991, Geology of volcanic and subvolcanic rocks of the Raton-Springer area, Colfax and Union Counties, New Mexico: U.S.Geological Survey Professional Paper 1507.
NGMDB product	NGMDB product page for 55294
Counties	Cimarron

State

Oklahoma

Name

Basalt

Geologic age

Pliocene

Lithologic constituents

Major

Igneous > Volcanic > Mafic-volcanic > Basalt (Flow)

Comments

Raton Basalt: Is oldest (of three) basaltic to latiandesitic effusive rock unit mapped in western part of Raton-Clayton volcanic field, Colfax Co, NM in Las Vegas-Raton basin. Caps highest and longest mesas in area. Includes many sheets of lava; vents are generally no longer marked by cinder cones. Analyzed specimens are olivine basalts, alkali basalts, a few trachy-basalts, and latibasalts. Rocks are medium to dark gray or black, very hard, and in part vesicular; some have silvery sheen on fresh break, aptly owing to fine diktytaxitic texture; are visibly porphyritic (typically olivine is the only phenocryst), but some flows have phenocrysts or xeno-crysts of other minerals; altered olivine phenocrysts appear as red or brown specks. Petrography and petrochemistry described. K-Ar ages range from 3.5 to 4.0 m.y. Age is Pliocene. (Scott, 1991).

References

Heran, W.D., Green, G. and Stoeser, D.B., 2003, A Digital Geologic Map Database of Oklahoma: USGS Open File Report 03-247, scale 1:250,000.

https://pubs.er.usgs.gov/publication/ofr03247

Sapik, D.B. and Goemaat, R.L., 1973, Reconnaissance of the ground-water resources of Cimarron County, Oklahoma: U.S Geological Survey Hydrologic Investigations Atlas HA-373, scale 1:125,000, 3 sheets. (Geology on sheet 1 compiled by S.L. Schoff, 1943.)

https://pubs.er.usgs.gov/publication/ha373

Cederstrand, J.R., 1996c, Digital geologic map of Cimarron County, Oklahoma: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 96-372, (1 diskette), URL address is: http://ok.water.usgs.gov/gis/geology

https://pubs.er.usgs.gov/publication/ofr96372

Scott, G., Wilcox, R.E., and Mehnert, H.H., 1991, Geology of volcanic and subvolcanic rocks of the Raton-Springer area, Colfax and Union Counties, New Mexico: U.S.Geological Survey Professional Paper 1507.

NGMDB product

NGMDB product page for 55294

Counties

Cimarron