Mount Elgon straddles the border between Kenya and Uganda, reaching an elevation of about 4,321 meters at its highest point, Wagagai Peak. It is an extinct shield volcano, among the oldest volcanic landforms in East Africa at roughly 24 million years old, and by surface area it is the largest volcanic mass in the region, its long, gentle slopes reflecting a volcanic history far older than the sharper stratovolcanoes of the nearby Rift Valley. Erosion has carved a large caldera into its summit, and its lower slopes are cut by caves, some of which contain mineral salt deposits historically excavated by local elephant populations that dig into the rock to reach them. This entity documents Mount Elgon specifically as a geological formation, an ancient, eroded extinct shield volcano straddling the Kenya-Uganda border.
Facts
Classification
Protected StatusNational Park or Reserve 1 Connections
Caused By
Wikidata P31 formation-type mapped to formative process Orogeny via reviewed judgment map (earth atlas); source citation is this entity's own cited Wikidata item.
Source Wikidata: Mount Elgon
In Discipline
Wikidata P31 formation-type mapped to discipline Geomorphology via reviewed judgment map (earth atlas); source citation is this entity's own cited Wikidata item.
Source Wikidata: Mount Elgon
In the Other Atlases
Found In
Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.
Source Wikidata: Mount Elgon
Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.
Source Wikidata: Mount Elgon
Sources
1. Mount Elgon (Wikipedia)
LeadQuote, Lead
The area around the mountain is protected by two Mount Elgon National Parks, one on each side of the international border.
Wikidata: Mount Elgon
Wikidata Q732838, class allow-list match (w-wdresolver-0926)View the Source Reader Challenges (0)
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