Twin Buttes (California)

Twin Buttes
Twin Buttes cinder cones
Highest point
Elevation5,351 ft (1,631 m)[1]
Coordinates40°46′50″N 121°35′33″W / 40.7804364°N 121.5924841°W / 40.7804364; -121.5924841[2]
Geography
Map
LocationShasta County, California, U.S.
Parent rangeCascade Range
Topo mapUSGS Burney Mountain East
Geology
Rock ageLate Pleistocene
Mountain typeCinder cone
Volcanic arcCascade Volcanic Arc

The Twin Buttes are two volcanic cinder cones located in the Cascade Mountain Range in Shasta County, California. They are part of the Bidwell Spring chain and lie within a region that was active in the Quaternary. Formed during the Pleistocene between 25,000 and 15,000 years ago, the volcanoes erupted lava flows that coursed toward the Burney Mountain lava dome. These lava flows cover an area of 3.9 square miles (10.1 km2) and are made of basalt and dacite. The volcanoes also erupted cinder and volcanic ash that reached eastward.

As of 2012, the Twin Buttes were still monitored by the United States Geological Survey for deformation, an indicator of pre-eruptive activity. However, they are considered to have "low to very low" threat potential for future eruptive activity.

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference gvp was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ "Twin Buttes". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. December 31, 1981. Retrieved March 20, 2023.