The Nature Of Idaho: Idaho's Big Smile

This episode of The Nature of Idaho features hosts Dr. Leif Tapanila and Peter Pruett talking with hazards geologist Zach Lifton from the Idaho Geological Survey about why the Snake River Plain shows up as a giant “smile” across southern Idaho, explaining how the straight-line track of the Yellowstone hotspot created the volcanic, low-lying Eastern Snake River Plain, how faulting formed the sediment-filled Western Snake River Plain and ancient Lake Idaho, and how these geologic histories influence today’s soils, water resources, hazards, and growing communities along this crucial east–west corridor.