Tower of Ra facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Tower of Ra |
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South aspect, from Hermits Rest on South Rim
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| Highest point | |
| Elevation | 6,129 ft (1,868 m) |
| Prominence | 709 ft (216 m) |
| Isolation | 0.97 mi (1.56 km) |
| Parent peak | Osiris Temple (6,613 ft) |
| Geography | |
 Tower of Ra
Location in Arizona
Tower of Ra
Location in the United States
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| Location | Grand Canyon National Park Coconino County, Arizona, US |
| Parent range | Kaibab Plateau Colorado Plateau |
| Topo map | USGS Shiva Temple |
| Type of rock | sandstone, siltstone, mudstone |
| Climbing | |
| First ascent | 1977 |
| Easiest route | class 5.1 climbing |
Tower of Ra is a 6,129-foot-elevation (1,868 meter) pillar located in the Grand Canyon, in Coconino County of Arizona, USA. Its summit is situated five miles north of Pima Point overlook on the canyon's South Rim, three miles southeast of Confucius Temple, and two miles northwest of Tower of Set, where it towers over 3,700 feet (1,130 meters) above the Colorado River. Tower of Ra was named in 1879 by Thomas Moran, for Ra, the Egyptian deity of the sun. This followed the naming convention of Clarence Dutton who began the tradition of naming geographical features in the Grand Canyon after mythological deities. This mountain's name was officially adopted in 1906 by the U.S. Board on Geographic Names. The first ascent was made in 1977 by Jim Haggart, Art Christiansen, and Barbara Zinn. According to the Köppen climate classification system, Tower of Ra has a Cold semi-arid climate.
Geology
The top of Tower of Ra is composed of the reddish Pennsylvanian-Permian Supai Group. Further down are strata of Mississippian Redwall Limestone, the Cambrian Tonto Group, and finally granite of the Paleoproterozoic Vishnu Basement Rocks at river level. Precipitation runoff from Tower of Ra drains south to the Colorado River via Crystal and Ninetyfour Mile Creeks.
