Ararat, Mount

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Mount Ararat
Satellite picture of Mount Ararat
Mount Ararat Location of Mount Ararat in Turkey
Elevation	5,165 metres (16,946 ft),[1][2] see section
Location	Iğdır Province,[3] Turkey
Prominence	3,611 m (11,847 ft) ranked 48th
Coordinates	39°43′00″N 44°16′00″E / 39.716667°N 44.266667°E / 39.716667; 44.266667Coordinates: 39°43′00″N 44°16′00″E / 39.716667°N 44.266667°E / 39.716667; 44.266667
Type	Stratovolcano
Last eruption	1840[4]
First ascent	1829 Khachatur Abovian Dr. Friedrich Parrot[5]
Listing	Country high point Ultra

View of Ararat from Iğdır, Turkey.

Mount Ararat (Turkish: Ağrı Dağı) is the tallest peak in Turkey with an elevation of 5,165 m (16,946 ft).^[6][7] This snow-capped, dormant volcanic cone is located in the Iğdır Province,^[3] the easternmost tip of Turkey, 16 km (10 mi) west of the Iranian and 32 km (20 mi) south of the Armenian border. The Ararat plain runs along its northwest to western side.

Names and etymology

In alphabetical order of the languages:

• Armenian: Մասիս or Արարատ, Masis or Ararat^[8]
• Azerbaijani: Ağrı Dagı (Mountain of Pain)^{[citation needed]}
• Kurdish: Çîyaye Agirî (Fiery Mountain)^[9]
• Persian: آرارات, Ararat^{[citation needed]}
• Turkish: Ağrı Dağı^[10][11] (Mountain of Pain)^[12][13]

Location

Mount Ararat is divided between two Turkish provinces: Around 65% of the mountain is located in the Iğdır Province, while the remaining 35% is located in the Ağrı Province of Turkey.^[3]

Geology

Ararat is a stratovolcano, formed of lava flows and pyroclastic ejecta, with no volcanic crater. Above the height of 4,200 m (13,780 ft), the mountain mostly consists of igneous rocks covered by an ice cap.^{[citation needed]}

A smaller 3,896 m (12,782 ft) cone, Little Ararat, rises from the same base, southeast of the main peak. The lava plateau stretches out between the two pinnacles. The bases of these two mountains is approximately 1,000 km² (386 sq mi).^{[citation needed]}

The formation of Ararat is hard to retrieve geologically, but the type of vulcanism and the position of the volcano raise the idea that subduction relation vulcanism occurred when the Tethys Ocean closed during the Neogene, as recently occurred along the borders of the Eurasian, African and Arabian plates from Cabo de Gata to the Caucasus.^{[citation needed]}

Elevation

An elevation of 5,165 m (16,946 ft) for Mount Ararat is given by a number of authorities including NASA^[14] and Encyclopædia Britannica.^[15] However, a number of other sources, such as public domain and verifiable SRTM data^[16] and a 2007 GPS measurement^[17] show that the alternatively widespread figure of 5,137 m (16,854 ft) is probably more accurate, and that the true elevation may be even lower due to the thick layer of snow-covered ice cap which permanently remains on the top of the mountain. 5,137 m is also supported by numerous topographic maps.^[18]

Activity

It is not known when the last eruption of Ararat occurred; there are no historic or recent observations of large-scale activity recorded. The last eruption will have occurred somewhere in the last 10000 years. It seems that Ararat was active in the 3rd millennium BC; under the pyroclastic flows, artifacts from the early Bronze Age and remains of human bodies have been found.^[4]

However, it is known that Ararat was shaken by a large earthquake in July 1840, the effects of which were largest in the neighborhood of the Ahora Gorge (a northeast trending chasm that drops 1,825 metres (5,988 ft) from the top of the mountain). An unstable part of the northern slope collapsed and a chapel, a monastery, and a village were covered by rubble. According to some sources, Ararat erupted then as well, albeit under the ground water level.^{[citation needed]}

Ararat anomaly

The Ararat anomaly is an object appearing on photographs of the snowfields near the summit of Mount Ararat and is advanced by some believers in Biblical literalism as the remains of Noah's Ark.

Climbing Mount Ararat

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Wikisource has original text related to this article:

an early account of an ascent of Mount Ararat.

Dr. Friedrich Parrot, with the help of Khachatur Abovian, was the first explorer in modern times to reach the summit of Mount Ararat, subsequent to the onset of Russian rule in 1829.^[19] Abovian and Parrot crossed the Arax River and headed to the Armenian village of Agori situated on the northern slope of Ararat 4,000 feet above sea level. Following the advice of Harutiun Alamdarian of Tbilisi, they set up a base camp at the Monastery of Saint Jacob some 2,400 feet higher, at an elevation of 6,375 feet.^[20] Abovian was one of the last travelers to visit Agori and the monastery before a disastrous earthquake completely buried both in May 1840.^[20] Their first attempt to climb the mountain, using the northeastern slope, failed as a result of lack of warm clothing.

Six days later, on the advice of Stepan Khojiants, the village chief of Agori, the ascent was attempted from the northwestern side. After reaching an elevation of 16,028 feet they turned back because they did not reach the summit before sundown. They reached the summit on their third attempt at 3:15 p.m. on October 9, 1829.^[20] Abovian dug a hole in the ice and erected a wooden cross facing north.^[21] Abovian also picked up a chunk of ice from the summit and carried it down with him in a bottle, considering the water holy.^[20] On November 8, Parrot and Abovian climbed up Lesser Ararat.^[20] Years later, in 1845, the German mineralogist Otto Wilhelm Hermann von Abich climbed Ararat with Abovian. Abovian's third and last ascent to Ararat was with the Englishman Henry Danby Seymour in 1846.^[20] Impressed with Abovian's thirst for knowledge, Parrot arranged for a Russian state scholarship for Abovian to study at the University of Dorpat in 1830.^[22]

He was followed in 1856 by a group of five explorers led by Major Robert Stuart.^{[citation needed]}

The climb is long, but there is a fairly easy route from the south in late summer for climbers who are familiar with the use of axe and crampons. Snow covers the last 400 m (¼ mile) year-round.^{[citation needed]} There are two possible campsites on the mountain, and the glacier begins around 4,800 m (15,750 ft).^{[citation needed]} The Turkish government requires a climbing permit and use of a certified Turkish guide. Arrangements can take two months to complete.^{[citation needed]}.

A three dimensional model that shows both peaks.

Symbolism for Armenians

Mt. Ararat view from Yerevan.

Ararat dominates the skyline of Armenia's capital, Yerevan.^[23] Since ancient times, Ararat has been revered by the Armenians as their spiritual home and as the home of the gods of the Armenian pantheon.^[24] This is because the Armenian people originate from the lands around Mount Ararat. Today, it is the national symbol of Armenia, being featured in the center of the Coat of Arms of Armenia.^[25] In 1937, a coat of arms was adopted. This coat prominently featured Mount Ararat along with the Soviet hammer and sickle and red star behind it.^[26] After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, a slightly modified version of the Democratic Republic of Armenia's coat of arms was adopted and has remained in place ever since.^[27][28] The 2002 film Ararat by Armenian filmmaker Atom Egoyan features Mt. Ararat prominently in its symbolism.

See also

• Mountains of Ararat
• 96205 Ararat is an asteroid named in the mountain's honor
• Volcanic Seven Summits
• Searches for Noah's Ark
  • Ararat anomaly
  • Durupinar

Notes

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Mount Ararat

• Karakhanian et al. Historical volcanoes of Armenia and adjacent areas: What is revisited?
• Armenian History; Mount Ararat
• Mount Ararat live webcam
• NASA Earth Observatory page
• Space shuttle image and basic details.
• Maps of Mt Ararat
• Detailed 2007 trip report
• Photos of the Mount Ararat