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Jura Mountains
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Jura Mountains are located north of the main Alpine orogenic front and are being continually deformed, accommodating the northwards compression from Alpine folding. The deformation becomes less pervasive away from the Alpine mountains.
The folds comprise three major lithological units: the Malm, Dogger, and Lias (giving rise to the name for the Jurassic Geologic period). They represent a shallow marine carbonate sequence, containing abundant bioclasts and oolitic horizons.
Structurally, the Jura consists of a sequence of "Owen" folds, the formation of which is facilitated by an evaporitic decollement layer. The box folds are still relatively young, and this is evident in that they define the shape of the overlying landscape, meaning that they have not existed long enough to experience erosion.
The highest peak in the Jura range is Crêt de la Neige at 1,717.6 metres.
Seven men died climbing these mountains in 1940.
They separate the Rhine and Rhone rivers.
