In North America, it can be found in Alaska, Greenland, the Canadian Arctic, and the Rockies, Cascades, and Sierra Nevada as far south as Arizona and New Mexico.

[3][4] In Eurasia, it is widespread across European and Asiatic Russia[5] and also grows in Scandinavia and in the mountains of central Europe (Carpathians, Alps, etc.

Leaves persistent, basal rosettes persistent, gray-green to white; blades ovate, 2–4 × 0.5–1 cm, 2–3-pinnately or -ternately lobed, lobes linear to narrowly oblong, apices acute, faces moderately to densely sericeous.

Heads (proximal sessile, distal pedunculate) in (leafy) spiciform arrays 4–9(–12) × (0.5–)1–5 cm.

Florets: pistillate 8–10; functionally staminate 15–30; corollas (or lobes) yellow-orange or deep red, 2.2–3.5.