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Puy Mary
The Puy Mary is a summit in the mounts of Cantal in Massif Central in France. It is classified as a "Grand National Site" in France. Nearly 500,000 visitors come to this site every year. Geography and geology The mountain is an extinct volcano, about 6.5 million years old, which was formed by the accumulation of viscous lava (trachyte). It has been gradually eroded by glaciers during the Quaternary glaciation, which explains its pyramidal form. Seven glacial valleys radiate from the summit. It is accessible starting from the Pas de Peyrol, which at 1,589 m above sea level, is the highest pass of the Massif Central. Climate First mountain met by the oceanic disturbances coming from the Atlantic Ocean, the Puy Mary is among the wettest places in France. In winter, snow is abundant. Flora The subalpine stage of the Cantal mounts counts 550 plant species including 130 regarded as fragile (in these species, one counts 60 species which profit from a protection regional or nationa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Massif Central
The (; oc, Massís Central, ; literally ''"Central Massif"'') is a highland region in south-central France, consisting of mountains and plateaus. It covers about 15% of mainland France. Subject to volcanism that has subsided in the last 10,000 years, these central mountains are separated from the Alps by a deep north–south cleft created by the Rhône river and known in French as the ' (literally "Rhône furrow"). The region was a barrier to transport within France until the opening of the A75 motorway, which not only made north–south travel easier, but also opened access to the massif itself. Geography and geology The is an old massif, formed during the Variscan orogeny, consisting mostly of granitic and metamorphic rocks. It was powerfully raised and made to look geologically younger in the eastern section by the uplift of the Alps during the Paleogene period and in the southern section by the uplift of the Pyrenees. The massif thus presents a strongly asymmet ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cantal
Cantal (; oc, Cantal or ) is a Departments of France, department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Regions of France, region of France, with its Prefectures in France, prefecture in Aurillac. Its other principal towns are Saint-Flour, Cantal, Saint-Flour (the episcopal see) and Mauriac, Cantal, Mauriac; its residents are known as Cantalians (french: link=no, Cantaliens / Cantaliennes or '). Cantal borders the departments of Puy-de-Dôme, Haute-Loire, Aveyron, Lot (department), Lot, Lozère and Corrèze, in the Massif Central natural region. Along with neighbouring Lozère and Creuse, Cantal is among the most sparsely populated and geographically isolated departments of France and Aurillac is the departmental capital farthest removed from a major motorway. It had a population of 144,692 in 2019,Populations légal ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Departments Of France
In the administrative divisions of France, the department (french: département, ) is one of the three levels of government under the national level ("territorial collectivities"), between the administrative regions and the communes. Ninety-six departments are in metropolitan France, and five are overseas departments, which are also classified as overseas regions. Departments are further subdivided into 332 arrondissements, and these are divided into cantons. The last two levels of government have no autonomy; they are the basis of local organisation of police, fire departments and, sometimes, administration of elections. Each department is administered by an elected body called a departmental council ( ing. lur.. From 1800 to April 2015, these were called general councils ( ing. lur.. Each council has a president. Their main areas of responsibility include the management of a number of social and welfare allowances, of junior high school () buildings and technical staff, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its Metropolitan France, metropolitan area extends from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean and from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea; overseas territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the North Atlantic, the French West Indies, and many islands in Oceania and the Indian Ocean. Due to its several coastal territories, France has the largest exclusive economic zone in the world. France borders Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, Switzerland, Monaco, Italy, Andorra, and Spain in continental Europe, as well as the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Netherlands, Suriname, and Brazil in the Americas via its overseas territories in French Guiana and Saint Martin (island), ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mounts Of Cantal
The Mounts of Cantal (or Volcanoes of Cantal; french: Monts du Cantal ) are a mountainous massif in the mid-west of the Massif Central, France, made up of the remnants of the largest stratovolcano of Europe, which was formed from 13 million years ago and last erupted approximately 2 million years ago. However, the main part of the volcanic activity was concentrated between 8.5 and 7 million years ago. Thereafter, the original volcano was largely eroded, massive landslides occurred, and it was further eroded by glaciers and water. Geomorphology The stratovolcano of Cantal is the widest in Europe. It is roughly circular with a diameter between . Its highest point is the Plomb du Cantal (), located in the eastern part of the massif. Around 20 valleys have been formed in the range, radiating out from the centre and cutting the basaltic plateau into triangular pieces called '' planèzes''. These valleys were occupied by glaciers during the last ice age, which explains their U-shape. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Trachyte
Trachyte () is an extrusive igneous rock composed mostly of alkali feldspar. It is usually light-colored and aphanitic (fine-grained), with minor amounts of mafic minerals, and is formed by the rapid cooling of lava enriched with silica and alkali metals. It is the volcanic equivalent of syenite. Trachyte is common wherever alkali magma is erupted, including in late stages of ocean island volcanismMacDonald 1983, pp. 51-52 and in continental rift valleys, above mantle plumes,Philpotts and Ague 2009, pp. 390-394 and in areas of back-arc extension. Trachyte has also been found in Gale crater on Mars. Trachyte has been used as decorative building stone and was extensively used as dimension stone in the Roman Empire and the Republic of Venice. Chemical composition Trachyte has a silica content of 60 to 65% and an alkali oxide content of over 7%. This gives it less SiO2 than rhyolite and more (Na2O plus K2O) than dacite. These chemical differences are consistent with the positio ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Quaternary Glaciation
The Quaternary glaciation, also known as the Pleistocene glaciation, is an alternating series of glacial and interglacial periods during the Quaternary period that began 2.58 Ma (million years ago) and is ongoing. Although geologists describe this entire period up to the present as an "ice age", in popular culture this term usually refers to the most recent glacial period, or to the Pleistocene epoch in general. Since Earth still has polar ice sheets, geologists consider the Quaternary glaciation to be ongoing, though currently in an interglacial period. During the Quaternary glaciation, ice sheets appeared, expanding during glacial periods and contracting during interglacial periods. Since the end of the last glacial period, only the Antarctic and Greenland ice sheets have survived, with other sheets formed during glacial periods, such as the Laurentide Ice Sheet, having completely melted. The major effects of the Quaternary glaciation have been the continental erosion o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pas De Peyrol
Pas de Peyrol (el. 1,589 m) is a mountain pass located in Auvergne, France, and is the highest road pass in the Massif Central. The pass is on the slopes of Puy Mary (1,787 m) and is situated at the junction of three roads: * D17 to the south-west towards Aurillac, via the Col de Redondet (1,531 m), then down the valley of the River Jordanne. * D680 to the north-west towards Salers * D680 to the east, towards Dienne, down the valley of the River Santoire Tour de France The pass is regularly used on the Tour de France, most recently in the 2020 tour. The pass was first used in the 1959 Tour de France, on the 231 km stage 14 from Aurillac to Clermont Ferrand, with Louis Bergaud first across the summit. In the 2004 tour, the pass was used on stage 10 from Limoges to Saint-Flour, approaching from the Salers direction which includes a final three kilometres at an average of 12% and a maximum gradient of 15%, with Richard Virenque first over the summit. The same ascent was us ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Saxifraga Oppositifolia
''Saxifraga oppositifolia'', the purple saxifrage or purple mountain saxifrage, is a species of plant that is very common in the high Arctic and also some high mountainous areas further south, including northern Great Britain, Britain, the Alps and the Rocky Mountains. ''Saxifraga oppositifolia'' grows at a latitude of 83°40'N on Kaffeklubben Island, making it one of the northernmost plants in the world. Description ''Saxifraga oppositifolia'' is a low-growing, densely or loosely matted plant growing up to high, with somewhat woody branches of creeping or trailing habit close to the surface. The leaves are small, rounded, scale-like, opposite in four rows with ciliated margins. The flowers are solitary on short stalks, petals purple or lilac, much longer than the Calyx (botany), calyx lobes. It is one of the first spring flowers, continuing to flower during the whole summer in localities where the snow melts later. The flowers grow to about in diameter. Ecology Habitat ''S ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Saxifraga Androsacea
''Saxifraga'' is the largest genus in the family Saxifragaceae, containing about 465 species of holarctic perennial plants, known as saxifrages or rockfoils. The Latin word ''saxifraga'' means literally "stone-breaker", from Latin ' ("rock" or "stone") + ' ("to break"). It is usually thought to indicate a medicinal use for treatment of urinary calculi (known as kidney or bladder stones), rather than breaking rocks apart. Description Most saxifrages are small perennial, biennial (e.g. '' S. adscendens'') or annual (e.g. '' S. tridactylites'') herbaceous plants whose basal or cauline leaves grow close to the ground, often in a rosette. The leaves typically have a more or less incised margin; they may be succulent, needle-like and/or hairy, reducing evaporation. The inflorescence or single flower clusters rise above the main plant body on naked stalks. The small actinomorphic hermaphrodite flowers have five petals and sepals and are usually white, but red to yellow in some specie ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
