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Introduction

Appalachian Mountains

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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An esker, eskar, eschar, or os, sometimes called an asar, osar, or serpent kame, is a long, winding ridge of stratified sand and gravel, examples of which occur in glaciated and formerly glaciated regions of Europe and North America. Eskers are frequently several kilometres long and, because of their uniform shape, look like railway embankments. (Full article...)

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Selected mountain range

Alluitz, typical limestone mountain of the Basque range.

The Basque Mountains (Spanish: Montes vascos; French : Montagnes basques ; Basque: Euskal Herriko arkua, "Basque arc") are a mountain range situated in the northern Iberian Peninsula. Geographically the range is considered as the eastern section of the larger Cantabrian Range. The range runs through the Basque Autonomous Community and western Navarre. (Full article...)

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A mud volcano or mud dome is a landform created by the eruption of mud or slurries, water and gases. Several geological processes may cause the formation of mud volcanoes. Mud volcanoes are not true igneous volcanoes as they do not produce lava and are not necessarily driven by magmatic activity. Mud volcanoes may range in size from merely 1 or 2 meters high and 1 or 2 meters wide, to 700 meters high and 10 kilometers wide. Smaller mud exudations are sometimes referred to as mud-pots.

The mud produced by mud volcanoes is mostly formed as hot water, which has been heated deep below the Earth's surface, begins to mix and blend with subterranean mineral deposits, thus creating the mud slurry exudate. This material is then forced upwards through a geological fault or fissure due to local subterranean pressure imbalances. Mud volcanoes are associated with subduction zones and about 1100 have been identified on or near land. The temperature of any given active mud volcano generally remains fairly steady and is much lower than the typical temperatures found in igneous volcanoes. Mud volcano temperatures can range from near 100 °C (212 °F) to occasionally 2 °C (36 °F), some being used as popular "mud baths". (Full article...)

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Selected climbing article

A campus board (or pan Güllich) is a training tool that has been widely adopted by sport climbers to improve their plyometric performance and led to a dramatic improvements in climbing technique in all rock climbing disciplines. The campus board was invented in 1988 by German climber Wolfgang Güllich to help him climb the world's hardest route at the time, Action Directe, and has since become a standard training tool for climbers. (Full article...)

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General images

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

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

Selected skiing article

Side view of building shows its ski jump shape

The U.S. Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame and Museum is located in Ishpeming, Michigan, the birthplace of organized skiing in the United States. Located in the state's Upper Peninsula, the building includes the hall of fame and museum, as well as a theater, library, gift shop, offices, and ample storage space for archive material and collections. The current building opened in 1992. (Full article...)

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