Portal:Mountains

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Introduction

Silvretta panorama from the Ochsenkopf

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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Miller's Cove in Tennessee is an example of a typical Appalachian cove, an enclosed valley in the mountains.

In the central and southern Appalachian Mountains of Eastern North America, a cove is a small valley between two ridge lines that is closed at one or both ends.

Among the places where the word "cove" appears in the name of an Appalachian valley are Morrison Cove in Pennsylvania; Lost Cove, North Carolina; Bumpass Cove, Tennessee; Doran Cove, Grassy Cove, Ladd Cove, in or adjacent to the Sequatchie Valley of Tennessee and Alabama; and numerous locations in the Great Smoky Mountains, including Cades Cove, Greenbrier Cove, Miller Cove, Tuckaleechee Cove, and Wears Cove. Burke's Garden in western Virginia is another example of a cove. (Full article...)

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The two highest summits of the Villgraten Mountains, the Weiße Spitze (2,962 m, left) and Rote Spitze (2,956 m, right) seen from the Oberseitsee to the northwest (2,576 m)

The Villgraten Mountains (German: Villgratner Berge) or Deferegg Alps (Deferegger Alpen), also called the Defreggen Mountains (Defreggengebirge, archaically also with "ff") are a subgroup of the Austrian Central Alps within the Eastern Alps of Europe. Together with the Ankogel Group, the Goldberg Group, the Glockner Group, the Schober Group, the Kreuzeck Group, the Granatspitze Group, the Venediger Group and the Rieserferner Group, the Villgraten Mountains are part of the major mountain range, the High Tauern. Their highest summit is the Weiße Spitze with a height of 2,962 m above sea level (AA). (Full article...)

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A cinder cone (or scoria cone) is a steep conical hill of loose pyroclastic fragments, such as volcanic clinkers, volcanic ash, or scoria that has been built around a volcanic vent. The pyroclastic fragments are formed by explosive eruptions or lava fountains from a single, typically cylindrical, vent. As the gas-charged lava is blown violently into the air, it breaks into small fragments that solidify and fall as either cinders, clinkers, or scoria around the vent to form a cone that often is symmetrical; with slopes between 30 and 40°; and a nearly circular ground plan. Most cinder cones have a bowl-shaped crater at the summit. (Full article...)

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A Grigri (styled as GriGri or GRIGRI) is an assisted braking belay device manufactured by Petzl designed to help secure rock-climbing, rappelling, and rope-acrobatic activities. Its main characteristic is a clutch that assists in braking under a shock load. The success of this device has led to grigri becoming a common name for devices of this type. In 2011 a new version, the Grigri 2, was released to replace the original 1991 model. Petzl released the Grigri+ in 2017, adding safety features to the original design, however this added weight and many climbers felt the new safety features were more of a hindrance than a help. 2019 saw the release of an updated version of the device, simply called the Grigri. It is named for the African amulet gris-gris, believed to protect the wearer from evil. (Full article...)

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General images

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

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

Selected skiing article

Ski poles, also referred to as poles (in North America), sticks (UK), or stocks (Australia), are used by skiers for balance and propulsion. Modern ski poles are most commonly made from aluminum and carbon fiber, though materials such as bamboo are still used. Poles are used in alpine skiing, freestyle skiing (with the exception of aerials), and cross-country skiing. Ski jumpers do not use poles. (Full article...)