Mount Rainier (/reɪˈnɪər/), known to Native Americans in the region as Tahoma, Tacoma, Tacobet, or təqʷubəʔ,[a][3][4] is a large volcano in the Cascade Range of the Pacific Northwest located in Mount Rainier National Park about 59 miles (95 km) south of Seattle.[5] Reaching to 14,411 ft (4,392 m),[6] it is the tallest mountain in the U.S. state of Washington and the Cascades.
Because it has a high risk of erupting in the future and is close to a high population, Mount Rainier is considered one of the most dangerous volcanoes in the world and is listed as a Decade Volcano by the International Association of Volcanology and Chemistry of the Earth's Interior.[7] It hosts a large amount of glacial ice which could produce massive lahars (volcanic mudflows) that threaten the entire Puyallup River valley. According to the United States Geological Survey, "about 80,000 people and their homes are at risk in Mount Rainier's lahar-hazard zones."[8]
Between 1950 and 2018, 439,460 people climbed Mount Rainier and 84 people are reported to have died in accidents on the volcano between 1947 and 2018.[9][10]
Name
Mount Rainier was known to the locally native Salish people as Talol, Tacoma, or Tahoma. There are several theories about where the native name comes from, including it possibly meaning 'mother of waters' to the Puyallup Tribe, 'snow-covered mountain', or 'larger than Mount Baker'.[11][3][12][13] Other names originally used include Tahoma, Tacobeh, and Pooskaus.[14]
The current name was given by George Vancouver who named it after his friend, Rear Admiral Peter Rainier.[15] The map from Lewis and Clark's expedition in 1804-1806 called it "Mt. Regniere" even though Rainier had been the official name of the mountain. Theodore Winthrop in a travel book published after he died called the mountain Tacoma and for many years the two names were commonly used to refer to the mountain. Mount Tacoma was the preferred name in the nearby city of Tacoma.[16][17]
In 1890, the United States Board on Geographic Names determined that the volcano would officially be known as Rainier.[18] In 1897, the Pacific Forest Reserve, which included Mount Rainier, was renamed the Mount Rainier Forest Reserve and the national park, that it sits in, also named Mount Rainier was created three years later. A movement to change the mountain's name to Tacoma continues to exist. Congress considered changing the mountain's name in 1924 and after Alaska's Denali was officially changed from Mount McKinley in 2015 the debate was renewed.[19][20][21]
Local area
Mount Rainier is the tallest mountain in Washington and the Cascade Range. It is located just east of Eatonville, to the southeast of Tacoma, and to the south of Seattle.[22] Rainier has a topographic prominence of 13,210 ft (4,030 m), which is greater than the prominence of the world's second-tallest mountain - K2.[23] On clear days it dominates the horizon from most of the Seattle-Tacoma area so that most locals simply call it "the Mountain".[24] On very clear days, it can be seen from as far away as Corvallis, Oregon and Victoria, British Columbia.[25]
Mount Rainier has 26 major glaciers.[26] In total, there are 36 sq mi (93 km2) of permanent snow and glacial ice on the mountain making it the most heavily glaciated peak in the lower 48 states.[27] At the top are two Volcanic craters, both more than 1,000 ft (300 m) in diameter. The east crater is larger and overlaps the western crater. Heat from the volcano keeps areas along the edge of the craters free of snow and ice and has created the world's largest glacier cave network inside the craters with almost 2 mi (3.2 km) of passages.[28][29] A small crater lake that is about 16 ft (4.9 m) deep lies in the ice caves in the west crater and is the highest elevation lake in North America.[30][31]
The Carbon, Puyallup, Mowich, Nisqually, and Cowlitz Rivers all begin on the slopes of Mount Rainier at the bottom of glaciers of that share their names with those of the rivers. The White River's water comes from three glaciers on the mountain. The White, Carbon, and Mowich all flow into the Puyallup River which ends at the Puget Sound in Tacoma. The Nisqually River empties into the Puget Sound near Lacey, Washington, and the Cowlitz flows to the Columbia River near Kelso, Washington.
Mount Rainier has a large summit area containing three peaks. The highest is called Columbia Crest followed by Point Success reaching 14,158 ft (4,315 m) and Liberty Cap which is 14,112 ft (4,301 m) above sea level and overlooks Liberty Ridge, the Sunset Amphitheater, and Wallis Wall.[32] High on the east side of Mount Rainier is a rocky summit called Little Tahoma Peak. It is 11,138 ft (3,395 m) above sea level and is a remnant from when Mount Rainier was much taller. Most climbers don't climb to both Columbia Crest and Little Tahoma Peak in the same trip, so it is usually considered by them to be a separate peak.[33][34]
↑Signani, PLS, Larry (2000-07-19). "The Height of Accuracy". Point of Beginning (Trade Magazine). BNP Media. Archived from the original on 2012-04-27. Retrieved 2008-10-17.
