Cerro Centinela, Mexico
(c) 2007 Andrew Alden, licensed to About.com (fair use policy)
Cerro Centinela or Mount Signal is widely visible across the Imperial Valley, the great trough in southernmost California and northern Mexico. Actually a tectonic spreading center, the valley is filled with sediment laid down from the surrounding mountains and the Colorado River entering midway down its eastern side. The river's enormous alluvial fan has walled off the Sea of Cortez, leaving this side of the valley well below sea level. The southern end of the San Andreas fault is near here.
Cerro Centinela is a noted landmark that appears on the official seal of Imperial County, even though it sits over the Mexican border in Baja California Norte province.
