Portal:Mountains

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Introduction

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

Mount Everest, Earth's tallest mountain

A mountain is an elevated portion of the surface of a planet, 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 600 metres (2,000 ft) above the surrounding land. A few mountains are isolated summits, but most occur in mountain ranges.^{[page needed]}

Mountains are formed through tectonic forces, erosion, or volcanism,^{[page needed]} 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); some scientists consider it to be the tallest on earth. (Full article...)

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Selected mountain-related landform

A trim line marks the previous height of Tana Glacier in Alaska

A trim line, also written as trimline, is a clear line on the side of a valley formed by a glacier. The line marks the most recent highest extent of the glacier. The line may be visible due to changes in color to the rock or to changes in vegetation on either side of the line.

The term "trim line" is also used for similar looking phenomena caused by floods, volcanic activity, or tsunamis. (Full article...)

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Selected mountain range

The north end of the Rock and Pillar Range is visible in the distance in this picture taken from near Ranfurly

The Rock and Pillar Range (Māori: Patearoa), is a range of high hills is located in the Maniototo, an area of inland Otago, New Zealand. The range is surrounded on three sides by the Taieri River, which has its source in the Lammerlaw Range. The river flows out across the scroll plain at Paerau, along the north west flanks of the Rock and Pillar Range before almost doubling back on itself at Waipiata and flowing back along the eastern side past Hyde through the Strath-Taieri. The town of Middlemarch lies close to the Taieri River to the east of the range, and Patearoa lies to the northwest.

The Rock and Pillars are a horst range, caused by movement on two parallel faults uplifting the area in between. Thus, the range is characterised by a very flat top, with steep escarpments on either side. The Great Moss Swamp lies on the upper surface of the range. There is a often persistent and unusual cloud formation associated with the range. This strange cloud formation, is more or less stationary and is called the Taieri Pet by the local inhabitants. It is formed by high north-westerly winds being forced upward over the Rock & Pillar range. Big Hut, situated near the summit of the range, is available for public use. (Full article...)

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A cordillera is a chain or network of mountain ranges, such as those in the west coast of the Americas. The term is borrowed from Spanish, where the word comes from cordilla, a diminutive of cuerda ('rope').

The term is most commonly used in physical geography and is particularly applied to the various large mountain systems of the American Cordillera, such as the Andes of South America, and less frequently to other mountain ranges in the "ridge" that rims the Pacific Ocean. In Colombia and Venezuela, cordilleras are named according to their position: Cordillera Occidental, Central, and Oriental. Various local names are used for the cordilleras in Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Chile and Argentina. (Full article...)

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Selected climbing article

Rio Fitz Roy

In climbing, a Tyrolean traverse is a technique that enables climbers to cross a void between two fixed points, such as between a headland and a detached rock pillar (e.g. a sea stack), or between two points that enable the climbers to cross over an obstacle such as chasm or ravine, or over a fast moving river. Originally developed by Tyrolean mountaineers in the Dolomites in the late 19th to early 20th century, Tyrolean traverses are used in other areas including in caving and in mountain rescue situations.

With a traverse-rope fixed between two anchor points — ideally under some tension — the climber attaches to the rope using a short quickdraw (or equivalent alternative) that is attached to their harness. A backup attachment loop using carabiners and slings is also recommended. Any backpacks are separately clipped to the rope and also clipped to the climber, so they can be dragged across. The climber lies horizontal to the rope with their head facing the direction of travel and moves by pulling hand-over-hand on the rope. Devices such as ascenders can help pull along the rope, pulleys can help reduce friction, and progress capture devices (PCDs) can prevent slippage back along the rope. (Full article...)

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General images

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

Image 1Fixed lines and ladders are distinguishing characteristics of expedition style mountaineering (from Mountaineering)
Image 2Chimborazo, Ecuador, whose summit is the point farthest away from the Earth's center (from Mountain)
Image 3Apennine Mountains and Trebbia river, Italy (from Mountain)
Image 4Climbers ascending Mount Rainier looking at Little Tahoma Peak, United States (from Mountaineering)
Image 5Montes Apenninus on the Moon was formed by an impact event. (from Mountain range)
Image 6Everest 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 7Alpine landscape below Malyovitsa Peak, Rila Mountain, Bulgaria (from Montane ecosystem)
Image 8This 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 9The Ocean Ridge, the world's longest mountain range (chain) (from Mountain range)
Image 10Illustration of mountains that developed on a fold that has been thrust (from Mountain)
Image 11British 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 12Car of Horská služba (Czech Republic) (from Mountain rescue)
Image 13Edmund Hillary (left) and Tenzing Norgay after successfully completing the first ascent of Mount Everest, 29 May 1953
Image 14A subalpine lake in the Cascade Range, Washington, United States (from Montane ecosystem)
Image 15Cabane du Trient, a mountain hut in the Swiss Alps (from Mountaineering)
Image 16Iranian oak scrub in the Zagros Mountains (from Montane ecosystem)
Image 17Mountaineers climbing in South Tyrol, Italy (from Mountain)
Image 18Mountaineers proceed across snow fields on South Tyrol; other climbers are visible further up the slopes. (from Mountaineering)
Image 19Edelweiss, a plant associated with mountain sports (from Mountaineering)
Image 20Stretcher box in Cumbria, England, prepositioned equipment saves mountain rescue teams having to trudge up mountains with it. (from Mountain rescue)
Image 21The northern Urals at high latitude and elevation have an alpine climate and barren ground. (from Mountain)
Image 22Edward Whymper (1840–1911), painting by Lance Calkin (from Mountaineering)
Image 23Climber approaching the summit of Manaslu at 8,163 metres (from Mountaineering)
Image 24Winter campers bivouaced in the snow (from Mountaineering)
Image 25A stand of mountain birch at around 750 m in Trollheimen, typical of Scandinavian subalpine forests (from Montane ecosystem)
Image 26The Namcha Barwa Himal, east part of the Himalayas as seen from space by Apollo 9 (from Mountain range)
Image 27Philippines mountain (from Mountain)
Image 28Antique climbing tools (from Mountaineering)
Image 29The 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 30An alpine mire in the Swiss Alps (from Mountain)
Image 31Mountaineers, c. 1900 (from Mountaineering)
Image 32Choppering out the injured – with Mt. Forbes in the background (from Mountain rescue)
Image 33Waimea Canyon, Hawaii, is known for its montane vegetation. (from Montane ecosystem)
Image 34Alpine flora near Cascade Pass (from Montane ecosystem)
Image 35Pirin Mountain, Bulgaria, part of the fault-block Rila-Rhodope massif (from Mountain)
Image 36Distribution of mountains by location and elevation (from Mountain)
Image 37K2, the second-highest mountain in the world, is revered for its isolation, difficulty, and the profound sense of awe it inspires among climbers. Many alpinists describe ascents of peaks like K2 as deeply spiritual experiences, combining physical challenge with introspection and transcendence. (from Mountaineering)
Image 38Treeline elevation by latitude (from Montane ecosystem)
Image 39Temperate montane forest in Bavaria, Germany (from Montane ecosystem)
Image 40The city of La Paz reaches up to 4,000 metres (13,000 ft) in elevation. Mount Illimani dominates the city's skyline. (from Mountain)
Image 41Mont Blanc on the border between Aosta Valley, Italy, and Haute-Savoie, France, the highest point in the European Union (from Mountain)
Image 42Tropical montane forest at around 2,000 m in Malaysia (from Montane ecosystem)
Image 43The Dolomite Mountains, Italy, in summer. The climate of the Dolomites is characterized by short but warm and mild summers, while winters are long and very cold. (from Mountain)
Image 44Fuji volcano (from Mountain)

Selected skiing article

Ruby Keefe skiing moguls at Killington Ski Resort

Mogul skiing is a freestyle skiing competition consisting of one timed run of free skiing on a steep, heavily moguled course, stressing technical turns, aerial maneuvers and speed. Internationally, the sport is contested at the FIS Freestyle World Ski Championships, and at the Winter Olympic Games.

Moguls are a series of bumps on a piste formed when skiers push snow into mounds as they do sharp turns. This tends to happen naturally as skiers use the slope but they can also be constructed artificially. Once formed, a naturally occurring mogul tends to grow as skiers follow similar paths around it, further deepening the surrounding grooves known as troughs. Since skiing tends to be a series of linked turns, moguls form together to create a bump field. (Full article...)

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