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). The tallest mountain including submarine terrain is Mauna Kea in Hawaii from its underwater base at 9,330 m (30,610 ft) and some scientists consider it to be the tallest on earth. (Full article...)

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An outwash fan is a fan-shaped body of sediments deposited by braided streams from a melting glacier. Sediment locked within the ice of the glacier gets transported by the streams of meltwater, and deposits on the outwash plain, at the terminus of the glacier. The outwash, the sediment transported and deposited by the meltwater and that makes up the fan, is usually poorly sorted due to the short distance traveled before being deposited. (Full article...)

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Map depicting the territorial extent of Queen Maud Land

The Sverdrup Mountains (Norwegian: Sverdrupfjella) are a group of mountains about 80 km (50 mi) long, standing just west of the Gjelsvik Mountains in Queen Maud Land, East Antarctica. With its summit at 2,855 metres (9,367 ft), Hamartind Peak forms the highest point in the Sverdrup Mountains. (Full article...)

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A mountain range or hill range is a series of mountains or hills arranged in a line and connected by high ground. A mountain system or mountain belt is a group of mountain ranges with similarity in form, structure, and alignment that have arisen from the same cause, usually an orogeny. Mountain ranges are formed by a variety of geological processes, but most of the significant ones on Earth are the result of plate tectonics. Mountain ranges are also found on many planetary mass objects in the Solar System and are likely a feature of most terrestrial planets.

Mountain ranges are usually segmented by highlands or mountain passes and valleys. Individual mountains within the same mountain range do not necessarily have the same geologic structure or petrology. They may be a mix of different orogenic expressions and terranes, for example thrust sheets, uplifted blocks, fold mountains, and volcanic landforms resulting in a variety of rock types. (Full article...)

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Selected climbing article

Mountaineering, mountain climbing, or alpinism is a set of outdoor activities that involves ascending mountains. Mountaineering-related activities include traditional outdoor climbing, skiing, and traversing via ferratas that have become sports in their own right. Indoor climbing, sport climbing, and bouldering are also considered variants of mountaineering by some, but are part of a wide group of mountain sports.

Unlike most sports, mountaineering lacks widely applied formal rules, regulations, and governance; mountaineers adhere to a large variety of techniques and philosophies (including grading and guidebooks) when climbing mountains. Numerous local alpine clubs support mountaineers by hosting resources and social activities. A federation of alpine clubs, the International Climbing and Mountaineering Federation (UIAA), is the International Olympic Committee-recognized world organization for mountaineering and climbing. The consequences of mountaineering on the natural environment can be seen in terms of individual components of the environment (land relief, soil, vegetation, fauna, and landscape) and the location/zone of mountaineering activity (hiking, trekking, or climbing zone). Mountaineering impacts communities on economic, political, social and cultural levels, often leading to changes in people's worldviews influenced by globalization, specifically foreign cultures and lifestyles. (Full article...)

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General images

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

Image 1The Ocean Ridge, the world's longest mountain range (chain) (from Mountain range)
Image 2The city of La Paz reaches up to 4,000 metres (13,000 ft) in elevation. (from Mountain)
Image 3This 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 4Illustration of mountains that developed on a fold that has been thrust (from Mountain)
Image 5Fuji volcano (from Mountain)
Image 6Chimborazo, Ecuador, whose summit is the point farthest away from the Earth's center (from Mountain)
Image 7The Catskills in Upstate New York represent an eroded plateau. (from Mountain)
Image 8An alpine mire in the Swiss Alps (from Mountain)
Image 9Waimea Canyon, Hawaii, is known for its montane vegetation. (from Montane ecosystems)
Image 10Tropical montane forest at around 2,000 m in Malaysia (from Montane ecosystems)
Image 11Iranian oak scrub in the Zagros Mountains (from Montane ecosystems)
Image 12A subalpine lake in the Cascade Range, Washington, United States (from Montane ecosystems)
Image 13Winter campers bivouaced in the snow (from Mountaineering)
Image 14Mont Blanc in Aosta Valley, the highest point in the European Union (from Mountain)
Image 15Antique climbing tools (from Mountaineering)
Image 16Climber approaching the summit of Manaslu at 8,163 metres (from Mountaineering)
Image 17Mountaineers, c. 1900 (from Mountaineering)
Image 18Pirin Mountain, Bulgaria, part of the fault-block Rila-Rhodope massif (from Mountain)
Image 19Temperate montane forest in Bavaria, Germany (from Montane ecosystems)
Image 20The Namcha Barwa Himal, east part of the Himalayas as seen from space by Apollo 9 (from Mountain range)
Image 21British 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 22Climbers ascending Mount Rainier looking at Little Tahoma Peak (from Mountaineering)
Image 23A mountain rescue team in Iran moving a casualty. (from Mountain rescue)
Image 24Mountaineers proceed across snow fields on South Tyrol; other climbers are visible further up the slopes. (from Mountaineering)
Image 25Everest 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 26Montes Apenninus on the Moon was formed by an impact event. (from Mountain range)
Image 27Edward Whymper (1840–1911), painting by Lance Calkin (from Mountaineering)
Image 28A stand of mountain birch at around 750 m in Trollheimen, typical of Scandinavian subalpine forests (from Montane ecosystems)
Image 29Mountaineers climbing in South Tyrol (from Mountain)
Image 30Cabane du Trient, a mountain hut in the Swiss Alps (from Mountaineering)
Image 31The 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 32Mount Everest, Earth's highest mountain (from Mountain)
Image 33Car of Horská služba (Czech Republic) (from Mountain rescue)
Image 34Stretcher box in Cumbria, England, prepositioned equipment saves mountain rescue teams having to trudge up mountains with it. (from Mountain rescue)
Image 35The northern Urals at high latitude and elevation have an alpine climate and barren ground. (from Mountain)
Image 36Mountain rescue team members and other services attend to a casualty in Freiburg Germany. (from Mountain rescue)
Image 37Choppering out the injured – with Mt. Forbes in the background (from Mountain rescue)
Image 38Alpine landscape below Malyovitsa Peak, Rila Mountain, Bulgaria (from Montane ecosystems)
Image 39Fixed lines and ladders are distinguishing characteristics of expedition style mountaineering (from Mountaineering)
Image 40Alpine flora near Cascade Pass (from Montane ecosystems)
Image 41Edelweiss, a plant associated with mountain sports (from Mountaineering)

Selected skiing article

Free moving heels during the ascent are a defining characteristic of ski touring. After reaching the mountain top or other destination, the heel portions of the special touring bindings are fixated such that the skis behave like normal alpine skis on the typically long ride downhill.

Ski touring is skiing in the backcountry on unmarked or unpatrolled areas. Touring is typically done off-piste and outside of ski resorts, and may extend over a period of more than one day. It is similar to backcountry skiing but excludes the use of a ski lift or transport.

Ski touring combines elements of Nordic and alpine skiing and embraces such sub-disciplines as Telemark and randonnée. A defining characteristic is that the skier's heels are "free" – i.e. not bound to the skis – in order to allow a natural gliding motion while traversing and ascending terrain which may range from perfectly flat to extremely steep. (Full article...)

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