Nature
The Strand Fiord Formation is a Late Cretaceous volcanic formation on northwestern and west-central Axel Heiberg Island in Nunavut, in Canada’s High Arctic. It is best known for extensive flood basalts on the island’s western side, including the prominent exposure at Dragon Cliff, where basalt rises about 300 meters. The formation also shows dramatic columnar jointing, with columns about 1 to 3 meters across, formed as large lava flows cooled and contracted. Geologists interpret it as the cratonward extension of the Alpha Ridge and as part of the High Arctic Large Igneous Province, connecting it to a wider episode of Arctic volcanism during the Late Cretaceous.
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Nunavut · Canada