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Introduction

Uluguru Mountains, in Tanzania

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 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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The north end of the Herangi Range viewed from Karioi; Taranaki Point in the near distance

Herangi Range is a range of hills south of Marokopa and north of Awakino, in the Waikato region of New Zealand, reaching to the Tasman Sea at Tapirimoko, Tirua, Taungaururoa, Te Mauku and Ngarupupu Points. Just to the south of Ngarupupu, the Waikawau River enters the sea. Other rivers draining the range are Mangaotaki River, Awakino River and Manganui River. Herangi is part of the Whareorino conservation area.

Herangi is in the Maniapoto rohe. Pā and other archaeological sites are found close together along the coast, but very few in the range itself. The Kiritehere valley was settled in the 1900s, but much of the rest of the range is in Whareorino Conservation Area, of particular importance for its native frogs. (Full article...)

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A cordillera is an extensive chain and/or network system 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

A Tyrolean traverse is a method of crossing through free space between two high points on a rope without a hanging cart or cart equivalent. This is used in a range of mountaineering activities: rock climbing, technical tree climbing, caving, water crossings and mountain rescue. A zip-line is in essence a Tyrolean traverse which is traveled down quickly with the assistance of gravity. Several sources claim that the name comes from the Tyrolean Alps, where climbers are said to have developed the system in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. (Full article...)

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Related portals

General images

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

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

Selected skiing article

Heli-skiing is off-trail, downhill skiing or snowboarding where the skier reaches the top of the mountain by helicopter, instead of a ski lift. (Full article...)

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