<p>The Colorado Plateau somehow has avoided all the tectonic activity around it over hundreds of millions of years. Is it just luck, or is there something about that chunk of crust? I have toured the region, and the exposed rocks are mostly horizontal sedimentary strata. On the other hand, the plateau is bounded by mountainous regions, including the Basin and Range, the Uinta mountains, the Rockies, and the volcanic San Juans. Yes, the plateau has been uplifted, but somehow it <strong>appears</strong> to have done so as a unit and without mountains forming. The relief is due to erosion. Now, I am curious about geology, but I am by no means a geologist, so I may be misusing the terms, but I hope you can understand my question.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-01-20T05:45:05.733Z
Could you provide some contexts on "somehow avoided tectonic activity"? What made you ask the question?
Padmanabha
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-01-21T01:26:25.057Z
considering the plate has been uplifted thousands of feet, and experience more earthquakes than any other place not on a plate boundary, I would hardly call it stable.
John
<geology><plate-tectonics>
Why is the Colorado Plateau so stable?
John McCarthy
# Why is the Colorado Plateau so stable?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2022-01-20)

The Colorado Plateau somehow has avoided all the tectonic activity around it over hundreds of millions of years. Is it just luck, or is there something about that chunk of crust? I have toured the region, and the exposed rocks are mostly horizontal sedimentary strata. On the other hand, the plateau is bounded by mountainous regions, including the Basin and Range, the Uinta mountains, the Rockies, and the volcanic San Juans. Yes, the plateau has been uplifted, but somehow it **appears** to have done so as a unit and without mountains forming. The relief is due to erosion. Now, I am curious about geology, but I am by no means a geologist, so I may be misusing the terms, but I hope you can understand my question.

**Tags:** geology, plate-tectonics

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: Could you provide some contexts on "somehow avoided tectonic activity"? What made you ask the question?  
> **username_2**: considering the plate has been uplifted thousands of feet, and experience more earthquakes than any other place not on a plate boundary, I would hardly call it stable.  

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## 0 answers

