Mountain
A
mountain is a
landform that extends above the surrounding
terrain in a limited area. A mountain is generally higher and steeper than a
hill, but there is considerable overlap, and usage often depends on local custom. Some authorities define a mountain as a peak with a
topographic prominence over a defined value: for example, the
Encyclopædia Britannica requires a prominence of 610
m (2,000
ft).
Mountains cover 52% of Asia, 36% of North America, 25% of Europe, 22% of South America, 17% of Australia, and 3% of Africa. As a whole, 24% of the Earth's land mass is mountainous. Also, 1 in 10 people live in mountainous regions. All the world's major rivers are fed from mountain sources, and more than half of humanity depends on mountains for water. [
1]
The adjective
montane is used to describe mountainous areas and the things associated with them.
Heights of mountains are generally given as heights above mean
sea level. The
Himalayas average 5 km above sea level, whilst the
Andes average 4
km. Most other mountain ranges average 2-2.5 km. The highest mountain on Earth is
Everest, 8,848
m, set in the world's most significant mountain range, the
Himalaya.
Other definitions of height are possible. The peak that is farthest from the centre of the
Earth is
Chimborazo in
Ecuador. At 6,272 m above sea level it is not even the tallest peak in the
Andes, but because the Earth bulges at the equator and Chimborazo is very close to the equator, it is 2,150 m further away from the Earth's centre than Everest. The peak that rises farthest from its base is
Mauna Kea on
Hawaii, whose peak is over 9,000 m above its base on the floor of the
Pacific Ocean.
At 26
km (Fraknoi et al., 2004), the tallest known mountain in the
solar system is
Olympus Mons, located on
Mars.
The altitude of mountains means that the tops exist in higher cold layers of the atmosphere. They are consequently often subject to
glaciation and
erosion through frost action. This produces the classic mountain
peak shape. Some mountains have
glacial lakes, created by melting glaciers; for example, there are an estimated 3,000 in
Bhutan.
Sufficiently tall mountains have very different climatic conditions at the top than at the base, and will thus have different
life zones at different altitudes on their slopes. The plants and animals of a zone are somewhat isolated when the zones above and below are inhospitable, and many unique species occur on mountainsides as a result. Extreme cases are known as
sky islands.
Cloud forests are forests on mountain sides which attract moisture from the air, creating a unique
ecosystem.
Mountains are not generally favored for
human habitation; the weather is harsher, less food is available, and there is little level ground suitable for
farming. At very high altitudes, there is less
oxygen in the air, and less protection against solar radiation (UV).
Acute mountain sickness (caused by
hypoxia - a lack of oxygen in the blood) affects over half of lowlanders who spend more than a few hours above 3,500 metres. Despite some biological adaptation by peoples who have lived on mountains for hundreds or thousands of years, babies' average
birthweight is reduced by 100 grams for every 1,000-metre gain in altitude.
Most mountains of the world have been left in their natural state, and are today primarily used for
recreation. Some mountains are very difficult to climb, and offer spectacular views. Some people therefore enjoy the sport of
mountaineering. Mountains are also the site for the sport of
downhill skiing. People engaging in these activities often stay at
mountain resorts built for the purpose.
A mountain is usually produced by the movement of
lithospheric plates, either
orogenic movement or
epeirogenic movement. The compressional forces, isostatic uplift and intrusion of
igneous matter forces surface rock upwards, creating a landform higher than the surrounding features. The height of the feature makes it either a hill or, if higher and steeper, a mountain. The absolute heights of features termed mountains and hills vary greatly according to an area's
topography. The major mountains tend to occur in long linear arcs, indicating tectonic plate boundaries and activity. Mountain creation tends to occur in discrete periods, each referred to as an
orogeny. The orogeny may last millions of years, and the uplifted region is being eroded away, producing valley-and-peak topography, even while the uplift is taking place. Two types of mountain are formed depending on how the rock reacts to the tectonic forces – block mountains or fold mountains.
The compressional forces in continental collisions may cause the compressed region to thicken, so the upper surface is forced upwards. In order to balance the weight, much of the compressed rock is forced
downwards, producing deep "mountain roots". Mountains therefore form downwards as well as upwards (see
isostasy). However, in some continental collisions part of one continent may simply
override part of the other, crumpling in the process.
Some isolated mountains were produced by
volcanoes, including many apparently small
islands that reach a great height above the
ocean floor.
Block mountains are created when large areas are widely broken up by faults creating large vertical displacements. The uplifted blocks are block mountains or
horsts. The intervening dropped blocks are termed
graben: these can be small or form extensive rift valley systems. This form of
landscape can be seen in
East Africa, the
Vosges, the
Basin and Range province of Western
North America and the
Rhine valley.
Where rock does not fault it folds, either symmetrically or asymmetrically. The upfolds are
anticlines and the downfolds are
synclines; in asymmetric folding there may also be recumbent and overturned folds. The Jura mountains are an example of folding. Over time, erosion can bring about an inversion of relief: the soft upthrust rock is worn away so the anticlines are actually lower than the tougher, more compressed rock of the synclines.
United States
In the United States, a mountain is 1,000 feet (304.4 metres) or more in height from bottom to summit. A hill is 500 (152.4 metres) to 999 (304 metres) feet. A discernible hill that is less than 500 feet high is a knoll. A series of knolls constitutes a rolling plain. A plain is generally considered flat if it has no significant prominences (e.g., "hills" less than 20 feet high, though the range of height varies for a plain to be considered flat).
United Kingdom
In
England and Wales the
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs has defined "mountain" (as a
mass noun) as all land over 600 metres, for the purposes of
right to roam legislation. This is a close metric equivalent of 2,000 feet (609.6 m). [
2] The
Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003 does not appear to draw this distinction, and in
Scotland the term "mountain" is more subjective, often being used for hills exceeding 3,000 feet (914.4 m) listed as
Munros, as well as many lower hills which are distinctive or mountainous. In the United Kingdom the term "hill" is commonly used for all hills and mountains, regardless of height.
*
Gallery of mountains*
List of mountains*
List of highest mountains*
Latin names of mountains*
Mountain range and
list of mountain ranges*
List of mountains on Venus*
List of mountains on the Moon*
List of mountains on Mars*
Pyramidal peak*
Rural*
Mountaineering*
Pics from the Tatra Mountains - Poland*
Mount Everest - Nepal*
Canadian Mountain Encyclopedia - an exhaustive index of North American peaks, including thousands of unnamed ones. Includes the United States and Mexico as well as Canada.
*Fraknoi, A., Morrison, D., & Wolff, S. (2004). Voyages to the Planets. 3rd Ed. Belmont: Thomson Books/Cole.
