Warford Ranch volcano: introduction to remote sensing, field-work, and basaltic volcanism

Warford Ranch is a small "drive-in" shield volcano covering an area about 2.6 by 1.8 km, which is part of the Sentinel-Arlington Volcanic Field. The basaltic shield is west of Phoenix accessible from Interstate Highway 8 and is superposed on silicic lavas, granodiorites, and alluvial deposits. Dated at 3.19 my, the shield volcano is sufficiently young to preserve original morphology, but also shows the effects of weathering, development of desert varnish, and the formation of caliche. Imaged in both color near-IR and in TIMS data, these various units afford the opportunity to conduct simple remote sensing mapping, which can then be field-tested. In addition to lava flows comprising the shield, pyroclastic deposits and dikes are also present. The compact size enables the entire volcano to be field-examined in one day. With short introductory discussion, participants of nearly any background can be introduced to the fundamentals of remote sensing, igneous rocks, field methods, and evaluation of the volcanic history of a small volcano.