Siberian Traps,infrared satellite image. North is at top. Vegetation is pink and green,depending on its water content,water is black,and clouds are white. This large expanse of mountains and river valleys and wetlands is the Siberian Traps,in central Siberia,Russia. The basalt rock in this landscape was formed by a massive outflowing of lava around 250 million years ago,covering 200,volcanic events in the Earth's history,and may have been one of the causes of the Permian-Triassic extinction event. The area is rich in minerals and metal ores,especially those of nickel,copper and palladium. Image data from a NASA Landsat satellite |