Portal:Mountains

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Introduction

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

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). The tallest mountain including submarine terrain is Mauna Kea in Hawaii from its underwater base at 9,330 m (30,610 ft) and some scientists consider it to be the tallest on earth. (Full article...)

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Selected mountain-related landform

The region between the current leading edge of the glacier and the moraines of latest maximum is called glacier foreland or glacier forefield. In the Alps this maximum was in 1850 and since then the region has become ice free due to deglaciation. Because of this relative recent development of vegetation and morphodynamic the glacier foreland differs considerably from the surrounding landscape. (Full article...)

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Selected mountain range

The Adam Range is a mountain range on Île Vanier, Nunavut, Canada. It is one of the many mountain ranges in the Canadian Arctic that make up the Arctic Cordillera mountain system. (Full article...)

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The north face of Mount Garibaldi rises above The Table and Garibaldi Lake in the Garibaldi Lake volcanic field

A volcanic field or crater row is an area of Earth's crust that is prone to localized volcanic activity. The type and number of volcanoes required to be called a "field" is not well-defined. Volcanic fields usually consist of clusters of up to 100 volcanoes such as cinder cones. Lava flows may also occur. They may occur as a monogenetic volcanic field or a polygenetic volcanic field. (Full article...)

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Selected climbing article

Action Directe was a major milestone in free climbing grades when Wolfgang Güllich freed it in 1991 at 9a (French), 5.14d (American YDS), XI (UIAA).

Many climbing routes have a grade that reflects the technical difficulty—and in some cases the risks and commitment level—of the route. The first ascensionist can suggest a grade, but it will be amended to reflect the consensus view of subsequent ascents. While many countries with a strong tradition of climbing developed grading systems, a small number of grading systems have become internationally dominant for each type of climbing, which has contributed to the standardization of grades worldwide. Over the years, grades have consistently risen in all forms of climbing, helped by improvements in climbing technique and equipment.

In free climbing (i.e. climbing rock routes with no aid), the most widely used grading systems are the French numerical or sport system (e.g. f7c+), the American YDS system (e.g. 5.13a), and latterly the UIAA scale (e.g. IX+). These systems are focused on technical difficulty, which is the main focus of the lower-risk activity of sport climbing. The American system adds an R/X suffix to traditional climbing routes to reflect the additional risks of climbing protection. Notable traditional climbing systems include the British E-grade system (e.g. E4 6a). (Full article...)

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General images

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

Image 1A stand of mountain birch at around 750 m in Trollheimen, typical of Scandinavian subalpine forests (from Montane ecosystems)
Image 2Temperate montane forest in Bavaria, Germany (from Montane ecosystems)
Image 3Winter campers bivouaced in the snow (from Mountaineering)
Image 4The city of La Paz reaches up to 4,000 metres (13,000 ft) in elevation. (from Mountain)
Image 5Mount Everest, Earth's highest mountain (from Mountain)
Image 6Pirin Mountain, Bulgaria, part of the fault-block Rila-Rhodope massif (from Mountain)
Image 7Everest 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 8Iranian oak scrub in the Zagros Mountains (from Montane ecosystems)
Image 9The northern Urals at high latitude and elevation have an alpine climate and barren ground. (from Mountain)
Image 10Mountaineers proceed across snow fields on South Tyrol; other climbers are visible further up the slopes. (from Mountaineering)
Image 11Chimborazo, Ecuador, whose summit is the point farthest away from the Earth's center (from Mountain)
Image 12A subalpine lake in the Cascade Range, Washington, United States (from Montane ecosystems)
Image 13Mont Blanc in Aosta Valley, Italy, the highest point in the European Union (from Mountain)
Image 14Edward Whymper (1840–1911), painting by Lance Calkin (from Mountaineering)
Image 15Alpine flora near Cascade Pass (from Montane ecosystems)
Image 16The Namcha Barwa Himal, east part of the Himalayas as seen from space by Apollo 9 (from Mountain range)
Image 17Mountaineers, c. 1900 (from Mountaineering)
Image 18A mountain rescue team in Iran moving a casualty. (from Mountain rescue)
Image 19The Catskills in Upstate New York represent an eroded plateau. (from Mountain)
Image 20Mountain rescue team members and other services attend to a casualty in Freiburg Germany. (from Mountain rescue)
Image 21Alpine landscape below Malyovitsa Peak, Rila Mountain, Bulgaria (from Montane ecosystems)
Image 22Fixed lines and ladders are distinguishing characteristics of expedition style mountaineering (from Mountaineering)
Image 23Climber approaching the summit of Manaslu at 8,163 metres (from Mountaineering)
Image 24Choppering out the injured – with Mt. Forbes in the background (from Mountain rescue)
Image 25Climbers ascending Mount Rainier looking at Little Tahoma Peak (from Mountaineering)
Image 26Antique climbing tools (from Mountaineering)
Image 27Cabane du Trient, a mountain hut in the Swiss Alps (from Mountaineering)
Image 28The Ocean Ridge, the world's longest mountain range (chain) (from Mountain range)
Image 29Edelweiss, a plant associated with mountain sports (from Mountaineering)
Image 30British 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 31The 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 32Car of Horská služba (Czech Republic) (from Mountain rescue)
Image 33Mountaineers climbing in South Tyrol (from Mountain)
Image 34Waimea Canyon, Hawaii, is known for its montane vegetation. (from Montane ecosystems)
Image 35This 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 36Montes Apenninus on the Moon was formed by an impact event. (from Mountain range)
Image 37Fuji volcano (from Mountain)
Image 38Illustration of mountains that developed on a fold that has been thrust (from Mountain)
Image 39Stretcher box in Cumbria, England, prepositioned equipment saves mountain rescue teams having to trudge up mountains with it. (from Mountain rescue)
Image 40An alpine mire in the Swiss Alps (from Mountain)
Image 41Tropical montane forest at around 2,000 m in Malaysia (from Montane ecosystems)

Selected skiing article

Half-pipe skiing at the World Skiing Invitational

Half-pipe skiing is the sport of riding snow skis on a half-pipe. Competitors perform a series of tricks while going down the pipe. The current world record for highest jump in a half-pipe is held by Joffrey Pollet-Villard, with 26 feet 3 inches (8.00 metres). The sport is considered to be dangerous compared to other sports, and helmets are required to be worn during competitions. Half-pipe skiing has been part of the Winter X Games since 2002, and made its Olympic debut at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia. David Wise of the United States of America became the first Olympic champion in this discipline with a total of 92.00 points. (Full article...)

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