Mountain range
A mountain range or hill range is a series of mountains or hills arranged in a line and connected by high ground. A mountain system or mountain belt is a group of mountain ranges with similarity in form, structure, and alignment that have arisen from the same cause, usually an orogeny.[1] Mountain ranges are formed by a variety of geological processes, but most of the significant ones on Earth are the result of plate tectonics.[2] Mountain ranges are also found on many planetary mass objects in the Solar System and are likely a feature of most terrestrial planets.
Mountain ranges are usually segmented by
Major ranges
Most geologically young mountain ranges on the Earth's land surface are associated with either the
The Alpide belt stretches 15,000 km across southern Eurasia, from Java in Maritime Southeast Asia to the Iberian Peninsula in Western Europe, including the ranges of the Himalayas, Karakoram, Hindu Kush, Alborz, Caucasus, and the Alps.[5] The Himalayas contain the highest mountains in the world, including Mount Everest, which is 8,848 metres (29,029 ft) high.[6]
Mountain ranges outside these two systems include the
Climate
The position of mountain ranges influences climate, such as rain or snow.
Erosion
Mountain ranges are constantly subjected to erosional forces which work to tear them down.[10] The basins adjacent to an eroding mountain range are then filled with sediments that are buried and turned into sedimentary rock. Erosion is at work while the mountains are being uplifted until the mountains are reduced to low hills and plains.
The early Cenozoic uplift of the Rocky Mountains of Colorado provides an example. As the uplift was occurring some 10,000 feet (3,000 m) of mostly Mesozoic sedimentary strata were removed by erosion over the core of the mountain range and spread as sand and clays across the Great Plains to the east.[11] This mass of rock was removed as the range was actively undergoing uplift. The removal of such a mass from the core of the range most likely caused further uplift as the region adjusted isostatically in response to the removed weight.
Rivers are traditionally believed to be the principal cause of mountain range erosion, by cutting into bedrock and transporting sediment. Computer simulation has shown that as mountain belts change from tectonically active to inactive, the rate of erosion drops because there are fewer abrasive particles in the water and fewer landslides.[12]
Extraterrestrial "Montes"
Mountains on other planets and
See also
- Cordillera
- Drainage divide
- List of mountain ranges
- Category:Lists of mountain ranges
- List of mountain types
- Lists of mountains
- Massif
- Mountain chain
- Mountain formation
- Ridge – an elongated mountain or hill, or chain of them
References
- ^ "Definition of mountain system". Mindat.org. Hudson Institute of Mineralogy. Retrieved 26 August 2017.
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- ^ Rosenberg, Matt (22 December 2018). "Ring of Fire". ThoughtCo.
- ^ Thorpe, Edgar (2012). The Pearson General Knowledge Manual. Pearson Education India. p. A-36.
- ISBN 9780814409206.
- ^ "Nepal and China agree on Mount Everest's height". BBC. 8 April 2010.
- ^ "The mid-ocean ridge is the longest mountain range on Earth". US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Service. 11 Jan 2013.
- ISSN 1573-5117.
- ^ "Orographic precipitation". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 23 January 2020.
- ISSN 2662-138X.
- ^ "A Guide to the Geology of Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado". USGS. Archived from the original on 2012-10-24.
- S2CID 4304803.
- S2CID 12655950.
- ^ Gipson, Lillian (24 July 2015). "New Horizons Discovers Flowing Ices on Pluto". NASA. Archived from the original on 17 March 2016. Retrieved 25 July 2015.
- S2CID 53311663.
- ISSN 0019-1035.
- ISSN 0148-0227.