Portal:Mountains

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Introduction

View of the south side of the Santa Catalina Mountains as seen from Tucson, Arizona.

A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually higher than a hill, typically rising at least 300 metres (980 ft) above the surrounding land. A few mountains are isolated summits, but most occur in mountain ranges.

Mountains are formed through tectonic forces, erosion, or volcanism, which act on time scales of up to tens of millions of years. Once mountain building ceases, mountains are slowly leveled through the action of weathering, through slumping and other forms of mass wasting, as well as through erosion by rivers and glaciers.

High elevations on mountains produce colder climates than at sea level at similar latitude. These colder climates strongly affect the ecosystems of mountains: different elevations have different plants and animals. Because of the less hospitable terrain and climate, mountains tend to be used less for agriculture and more for resource extraction, such as mining and logging, along with recreation, such as mountain climbing and skiing.

The highest mountain on Earth is Mount Everest in the Himalayas of Asia, whose summit is 8,850 m (29,035 ft) above mean sea level. The highest known mountain on any planet in the Solar System is Olympus Mons on Mars at 21,171 m (69,459 ft). (Full article...)

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A valley is an elongated low area often running between hills or mountains, which will typically contain a river or stream running from one end to the other. Most valleys are formed by erosion of the land surface by rivers or streams over a very long period. Some valleys are formed through erosion by glacial ice. These glaciers may remain present in valleys in high mountains or polar areas.

At lower latitudes and altitudes, these glacially formed valleys may have been created or enlarged during ice ages but now are ice-free and occupied by streams or rivers. In desert areas, valleys may be entirely dry or carry a watercourse only rarely. In areas of limestone bedrock, dry valleys may also result from drainage now taking place underground rather than at the surface. Rift valleys arise principally from earth movements, rather than erosion. Many different types of valleys are described by geographers, using terms that may be global in use or else applied only locally. (Full article...)

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The Bonnington Range is a subrange of the Selkirk Mountains of the Columbia Mountains in southeastern British Columbia, Canada, located between Salmo River and Columbia River south of Nelson. (Full article...)

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An aerial view of the Gros Piton and Petit Piton, in St. Lucia, 2006.

A volcanic plug, also called a volcanic neck or lava neck, is a volcanic object created when magma hardens within a vent on an active volcano. When present, a plug can cause an extreme build-up of high gas pressure if rising volatile-charged magma is trapped beneath it, and this can sometimes lead to an explosive eruption. In a plinian eruption the plug is destroyed and ash is ejected.

Glacial erosion can lead to exposure of the plug on one side, while a long slope of material remains on the opposite side. Such landforms are called crag and tail. If a plug is preserved, erosion may remove the surrounding rock while the erosion-resistant plug remains, producing a distinctive upstanding landform. (Full article...)

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Climber free climbing Sugar Cane Country (E4 6a, in the Hebrides) in traditional climbing style (i.e. with climbing protection equipment).

Free climbing is a form of rock climbing in which the climber can only use climbing equipment for climbing protection, but not as an aid to help in their progression in ascending the route. Free climbing, therefore, cannot use any of the tools that are used in aid climbing to help overcome the obstacles encountered while ascending a route. The development of free climbing was an important moment in the history of rock climbing, including the concept and definition of what determined a first free ascent (or FFA) of a route by a climber.

Free climbing can be performed in several formats depending on the type of climbing protection used, including traditional climbing (uses temporary removable protection), sport climbing (uses permanently fixed in-situ protection), and free solo climbing (uses no protection whatsoever). (Full article...)

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General images

The following are images from various mountain-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1Illustration of mountains that developed on a fold that has been thrust (from Mountain)
Image 2Pirin Mountain, Bulgaria, part of the fault-block Rila-Rhodope massif (from Mountain)
Image 3The northern Urals at high latitude and elevation have an alpine climate and barren ground. (from Mountain)
Image 4Temperate montane forest in Bavaria, Germany (from Montane ecosystems)
Image 5Iranian oak scrub in the Zagros Mountains (from Montane ecosystems)
Image 6Chimborazo, Ecuador, whose summit is the point farthest away from the Earth's center (from Mountain)
Image 7Car of Horská služba (Czech Republic) (from Mountain rescue)
Image 8The Catskills in Upstate New York represent an eroded plateau. (from Mountain)
Image 9A climber taking the final few steps to the 6,160 m (20,210 ft) summit of Imja Tse (Island Peak) in Nepal, 2004 (from Mountaineering)
Image 10Alpine flora near Cascade Pass (from Montane ecosystems)
Image 11This 1848 "Sketch showing the actual elevation of the Snow Line in different Latitudes" by Alexander Keith Johnston shows the snow lines of mountains in America, Europe and Asia (from Snow line)
Image 12Winter campers bivouaced in the snow (from Mountaineering)
Image 13The Andes, the longest mountain range on the surface of the Earth, have a dramatic impact on the climate of South America (from Mountain range)
Image 14Fixed lines and ladders are distinguishing characteristics of expedition style mountaineering (from Mountaineering)
Image 15Mountaineers proceed across snow fields on South Tyrol; other climbers are visible further up the slopes. (from Mountaineering)
Image 16Antique climbing tools (from Mountaineering)
Image 17A stand of mountain birch at around 750 m in Trollheimen, typical of Scandinavian subalpine forests (from Montane ecosystems)
Image 18British mountaineer William Cecil Slingsby became known as the father of Norwegian mountaineering and contributed greatly to its popularization with his classic book Norway, the Northern Playground (from Mountaineering)
Image 19Everest is highest from sea level (green), Mauna Kea is highest from its base (orange), Cayambe is farthest from Earth's axis (pink) and Chimborazo is farthest from Earth's centre (blue) (from Mountain)
Image 20Alpine landscape below Malyovitsa Peak, Rila Mountain, Bulgaria (from Montane ecosystems)
Image 21Fuji volcano (from Mountain)
Image 22An alpine mire in the Swiss Alps (from Mountain)
Image 23The Namcha Barwa Himal, east part of the Himalayas as seen from space by Apollo 9 (from Mountain range)
Image 24The city of La Paz reaches up to 4,000 metres (13,000 ft) in elevation. (from Mountain)
Image 25Mountaineers, c. 1900 (from Mountaineering)
Image 26Choppering out the injured – with Mt. Forbes in the background (from Mountain rescue)
Image 27Mountaineers climbing in South Tyrol (from Mountain)
Image 28A mountain rescue team in Iran moving a casualty. (from Mountain rescue)
Image 29Stretcher box in Cumbria, England, prepositioned equipment saves mountain rescue teams having to trudge up mountains with it. (from Mountain rescue)
Image 30Mountain climbers ascending Mount Rainier looking at Little Tahoma Peak (from Mountaineering)
Image 31A subalpine lake in the Cascade Range, Washington, United States (from Montane ecosystems)
Image 32Tropical montane forest at around 2,000 m in Malaysia (from Montane ecosystems)
Image 33Mount Everest, Earth's highest mountain (from Mountain)
Image 34Waimea Canyon, Hawaii, is known for its montane vegetation. (from Montane ecosystems)
Image 35Cabane du Trient, a mountain hut in the Swiss Alps (from Mountaineering)
Image 36Edward Whymper (1840–1911), painting by Lance Calkin (from Mountaineering)
Image 37The Ocean Ridge, the world's longest mountain range (chain) (from Mountain range)
Image 38Mountain rescue team members and other services attend to a casualty in Freiburg Germany. (from Mountain rescue)
Image 39Montes Apenninus on the Moon was formed by an impact event. (from Mountain range)
Image 40Edelweiss, a plant associated with mountain sports (from Mountaineering)

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Indoor skiing is done in a climate-controlled environment with artificially produced snow. This enables skiing and snowboarding to take place regardless of outdoor temperatures. Facilities for both alpine skiing and nordic skiing are available. (Full article...)

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