Portal:Mountains

Portal

Project

Discussion

Introduction

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

Mount Ararat, as seen from Khor Virap, Armenia

A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. A mountain differs from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is larger than a hill, typically rising at least 300 metres (1000 feet) 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...)

Show new selections below (purge)

Selected mountain-related landform

The snow-free debris hills around the lagoon are lateral and terminal moraines of a valley glacier in Nepal.

A moraine is any accumulation of unconsolidated debris (regolith and rock), sometimes referred to as glacial till, that occurs in both currently and formerly glaciated regions, and that has been previously carried along by a glacier or ice sheet. It may consist of partly rounded particles ranging in size from boulders (in which case it is often referred to as boulder clay) down to gravel and sand, in a groundmass of finely-divided clayey material sometimes called glacial flour. Lateral moraines are those formed at the side of the ice flow, and terminal moraines were formed at the foot, marking the maximum advance of the glacier. Other types of moraine include ground moraines (till-covered areas forming sheets on flat or irregular topography) and medial moraines (moraines formed where two glaciers meet). (Full article...)

Selected mountain range

The Selkirk Mountains are a mountain range spanning the northern portion of the Idaho Panhandle, eastern Washington, and southeastern British Columbia which are part of a larger grouping of mountains, the Columbia Mountains. They begin at Mica Peak near Spokane and extend approximately 320 km north (200 miles) from the border to Kinbasket Lake, at the now-inundated location of the onetime fur company post Boat Encampment. The range is bounded on its west, northeast and at its northern extremity by the Columbia River, or the reservoir lakes now filling most of that river's course. From the Columbia's confluence with the Beaver River, they are bounded on their east by the Purcell Trench, which contains the Beaver River, Duncan River, Duncan Lake, Kootenay Lake and the Kootenay River. The Selkirks are distinct from, and geologically older than, the Rocky Mountains. The neighboring Monashee and Purcell Mountains, and sometimes including the Cariboo Mountains to the northwest, are also part of the larger grouping of mountains known as the Columbia Mountains. A scenic highway loop, the International Selkirk Loop, encircles the southern portions of the mountain range.

The Selkirks were named after Thomas Douglas, 5th Earl of Selkirk. (Full article...)

Selected mountain type

Traprock (or basalt) mountains, ridges, (or just traps) are elevated landscape features made of trap rock, most often basalt. Basalt, due to its high quantity of iron, is a characteristically dark-colored rock that weathers to shades of red and purplish-red when exposed to the air. Basalt is the substance of many elevated topographic features worldwide (hills, mountains, ridges, rock formations, etc.). Landscape features composed of basalt may include:

Elevated sections of prehistoric ocean floor that have been raised above sea level via plate tectonics
Prehistoric terrestrial lava floods that have become upended and/or exposed via faulting and erosion
Various surface volcanic landforms both recent and ancient. (Full article...)

Selected climbing article

The Himalayan Mountaineering Institute (HMI Darjeeling) was established in Darjeeling, India on 4 November 1954 to encourage mountaineering as an organized sport in India. The first ascent of Mount Everest in 1953 by Tenzing Norgay and Edmund Hillary sparked a keen interest in establishing mountaineering as a well-respected endeavour for people in the region. With the impetus provided by the first prime minister of India, Jawaharlal Nehru, HMI was established in Darjeeling. Narendra Dhar Jayal, the pioneer of Indian Mountaineering, was the founding principal of the institute. Tenzing Norgay was the first director of field training for HMI. The buildings for the Institute were designed by the architect Joseph Allen Stein, then teaching at the Bengal Engineering College near Calcutta. It was the first building in a career in India that lasted half a century.

HMI regularly conducts Adventure, Basic and Advanced Mountaineering courses. These are very comprehensive courses. They are also highly subsidised to encourage mountaineering as a sport. (Full article...)

Selected images

Image 1The Catskills in Upstate New York represent an eroded plateau. (from Mountain)
Image 2Iranian oak scrub in the Zagros Mountains (from Montane ecosystems)
Image 3Mount Everest, the highest peak on Earth (from Mountain)
Image 4A combination of high latitude and high altitude makes the northern Urals in picture to have climatic conditions that make the ground barren. (from Mountain)
Image 5Temperate montane forest in Bavaria, Germany (from Montane ecosystems)
Image 6Montes Apenninus on the Moon was formed by an impact event. (from Mountain range)
Image 7Weisshorn (4,506 m), Alps: 3,000 m (from Snow line)
Image 8Mountain rescue team members and other services attend to a casualty in Freiburg Germany. (from Mountain rescue)
Image 9Mountain climbers ascending Mount Rainier looking at Little Tahoma Peak (from Mountaineering)
Image 10The Himalayas, the highest mountain range on Earth, seen from space (from Mountain range)
Image 11The city of La Paz reaches up to 4,000 metres (13,000 ft) in elevation. (from Mountain)
Image 12A climber taking the final few steps onto the 6,160 m (20,210 ft) summit of Imja Tse (Island Peak) in Nepal, 2004 (from Mountaineering)
Image 13The Andes, the world's longest mountain range on the surface of the Earth, have a dramatic impact on the climate of South America (from Mountain range)
Image 14Mountaineers, circa 1900 (from Mountaineering)
Image 15A subalpine lake in the Cascade Range, Washington, United States (from Montane ecosystems)
Image 16Geological cross-section of Fuji volcano (from Mountain)
Image 17A view of the French Alps in Haute-Savoie with La Tournette in the background (from Mountain)
Image 18Fixed lines and ladders are distinguishing characteristics of expedition style mountaineering (from Mountaineering)
Image 19Waimea Canyon, Hawaii is known for its montane vegetation. (from Montane ecosystems)
Image 20Mount Ararat, as seen from Khor Virap, Armenia (from Mountain)
Image 21Stretcher box in Cumbria, England, prepositioned equipment saves mountain rescue teams having to trudge up mountains with it. (from Mountain rescue)
Image 22Tropical montane forest at around 2,000 m in Malaysia (from Montane ecosystems)
Image 23This 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 24Alpine flora near Cascade Pass (from Montane ecosystems)
Image 25Illustration of mountains that developed on a fold that has been thrusted (from Mountain)
Image 26Car of Horská služba (Czech Republic) (from Mountain rescue)
Image 27Mountaineers proceed across snow fields on South Tyrol; other climbers are visible further up the slopes. (from Mountaineering)
Image 28Edward Whymper (1840–1911), painting by Lance Calkin (from Mountaineering)
Image 29The Ocean Ridge, the world's longest mountain range (chain) (from Mountain range)
Image 30Granite Park Chalet in Glacier National Park, US (from Mountaineering)
Image 31Cho Oyu (8,201 m), Himalayas: 6,000 m (from Snow line)
Image 32A mountain rescue team in Iran moving a casualty. (from Mountain rescue)
Image 33An alpine mire in the Swiss Alps (from Mountain)
Image 34Edelweiss, a plant associated with mountain sports (from Mountaineering)
Image 35The Zugspitze, Germany's highest mountain, seen from the Eibsee (from Mountain)
Image 36Pirin Mountain, Bulgaria, part of the fault-block Rila-Rhodope massif (from Mountain)
Image 37Choppering out the injured – with Mt. Forbes in the background (from Mountain rescue)
Image 38Antique climbing tools (from Mountaineering)
Image 39Mount Elbrus, the highest mountain in Russia and Europe (from Mountain)
Image 40Climbers ascending Mount Rainier (from Mountain)
Image 41A stand of mountain birch at around 750 m in Trollheimen, typical of Scandinavian subalpine forests (from Montane ecosystems)
Image 42Chimborazo, Ecuador. The point on Earth's surface farthest from its centre. (from Mountain)
Image 43Cotopaxi (5,897 m), Andes: 5,000 m (from Snow line)
Image 44Alpine landscape below Malyovitsa Peak, Rila Mountain, Bulgaria (from Montane ecosystems)
Image 45Peaks of Mount Kenya (from Mountain)
Image 46Mount Wilhelm in Papua New Guinea (from Mountain)

Selected skiing article

Running in water

Exercise is any bodily activity that enhances or maintains physical fitness and overall health and wellness.

It is performed for various reasons: to aid growth and improve strength, prevent aging, develop muscles and the cardiovascular system, hone athletic skills, weight loss or maintenance, improve health, or simply for enjoyment. Many individuals choose to exercise outdoors where they can congregate in groups, socialize, and improve well-being as well as mental health. (Full article...)