Questions tagged [mountains]

Questions regarding large land masses that reach high above the surrounding terrain, usually forming a peak.

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What is 0 degree isotherm and how to calculate it?

I want to look at different areas of alpine glaciers and understand the position of 0 degree isotherm to do a comparative climate analysis. Given the mean annual air temperature and altitude, how do i ...
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6 votes
2 answers
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What are these geological horizontal lines formed on this mountain called and why they are formed?

This images are of Mt. Kailash, Himalaya. Front face of Mount: Back face of Mount:
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2 votes
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What is this mountainous relief feature?

I was going through an old Indian survey map, when I saw this unfamiliar relief feature. It looked like a cross between a hachure and saddle. Could someone help identify it?
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2 answers
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If the Sea level rises, will the mountains lose their height?

I read that the altitude of mountains is measured from the sea level. So, if the sea level rises significantly due to global warming, will the mountains and hills lose some of their altitudes and ...
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3 votes
1 answer
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When we're talking about the tree line, does it include mountain pines?

In the mountains, the tree line marks the elevation above which there are no more trees growing. Do those little mountain pines such as the ones in this image (it failed to upload for some reason) ...
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Are there any (land) hills/mountains with *peaks* below sea level?

Related to Are there any (land) hills/mountains with bases below sea level?, are there any peaks or cliff below mean sea level which looks out onto even lower land? According to https://elevation....
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2 votes
2 answers
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Does Everest have a topographic isolation?

Here are three definitions of "topographic isolation". Wikipedia The topographic isolation of a summit is the minimum distance to a point of equal elevation, representing a radius of ...
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10 votes
9 answers
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Are there any (land) hills/mountains with bases below sea level?

There are areas of land that are in fact, below sea level. Are there any hills or mountains that have bases that start in these below-sea-level areas of land?
1 vote
1 answer
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Guessing region of the world from coastline / border shape: geographic insights for Worldle game

The game Worldle (https://worldle.teuteuf.fr/) is related to the recent craze in online once-a-day puzzles like Wordle. You are shown the outline of a country and get six guesses. For each wrong guess,...
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1 vote
1 answer
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Geology of the San Gabriel mountains in the Angeles national forest - rock types

I'm not a geologist, I am a hiker. And after many hikes in California's Sierra Nevada and Utah's red country I figured it would be great to learn some geology and I'm just posting this question to see ...
3 votes
0 answers
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Why are the Himalayan rivers highly tortuous in the mountain reaches?

"In the Himalayan reaches, the course of these rivers is highly tortuous, but over the Plains they display a strong meandering tendency and shift their courses frequently." This is what I ...
2 votes
1 answer
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Does the collision of India influence the geology and geography of some of the other mountains of Asia, or just the Himalayas and Tibet?

This here is a nice and lovely map of Asia. Note that the teardrop-shaped Tibetan Plateau dominates the map, and we have India to thank. For the last 50 million years, it has been pushing upwards, ...
4 votes
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Do warm-season Foehn winds occur in the Pacific Northwest?

Over the last 30 years, Foehn winds have led to wildfires affecting densely populated areas of the California coast. They're called Diablo winds in the north, and Santa Ana winds in the south. ...
1 vote
0 answers
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Igneous and Sedimentary Rocks' Susceptibility to landslide

Which is more susceptible to landslide based on lithology compared to one another? Granite, Conglomerate, Sandstone, Mudstone I've been tasked to create a hazard map and was given a Geologic Map, ...
4 votes
1 answer
127 views

Is there really less diurnal temperature variation in the mountains than at sea level?

I live in the Los Angeles area, at sea level. Nearby we have tall mountains where I like to go hiking. I've noticed something strange about the NOAA forecasts, which is that the forecasts in the ...
-2 votes
1 answer
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Why doesn't one build pressurized camps at Mount Everest? [closed]

Why aren't permanently pressurized camps being built at Everest and any 23,000'+ mountain, and perhaps a pressurized enclosed platform at the very summit, to no longer have to bother about altitude ...
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1 vote
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What is the area of prominient peaks

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matterhorn#/media/File:On_the_summit.jpg shows a climber on top of Matterhorn.It really looks like the area is quite small maybe 2 m^2. What is the typical area of ...
3 votes
2 answers
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When did the proto-Himalayas become non-volcanic?

In the normal course of events, when continents move toward each other, at least one coast will be associated with a subduction zone and corresponding volcanic activity. When the Indian subcontinent ...
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3 votes
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Water flows under the headwater and soil liquefaction has formed

A retaining wall 40 cm thick with variable height (thin-walled corner) is being built in the mountainous area. At the time of the geotechnical survey and design, there was no reservoir next to the ...
7 votes
1 answer
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How can we know the past height of mountains?

In Feynman Lectures on Physics Volume I, Feynman talks about the relation between Physics and Geology. He says “Mountains are no lower today, on the average, than they were in the past”. Through what ...
5 votes
0 answers
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How do the Andes get so high?

I'm interested in the limiting factors on the height of mountains. There is a very good explanation at https://www.quora.com/How-tall-can-a-mountain-become-on-Earth-Neil-deGrasse-Tyson-says-Mount-...
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Where can I find a list of mountain chains on the Earth?

I want to make an app for smartphones that lists the mountain chains of the world. Where can I find a list of all mountain chains that are presently outspread on the Earth?
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4 votes
1 answer
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What will happen to the Indian plate after it slides under the Eurasian Plate?

What will happen if the Indian Plate is done sliding under the Eurasian plate? I hypothesied some possible answers. Tell me the answer and if my hypothesis is not correct. Most likely to least. It ...
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4 votes
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Why the difference between Italian coastlines and mountain ranges?

Italy’s relatively straight, parallel coastlines in the main part of the “boot” seem surprising given how the Apennines snake through it, from one side to the other and back. Don’t coastlines usually ...
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1 vote
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Is there a physical limit to the heights of mountains? [duplicate]

I am reading a fantasy novel where there is a mountain range where the average mountain height is 10 miles, so some higher some lower, but all extremely high. This got me wondering if such a mountain ...
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3 votes
1 answer
317 views

How to properly distinguish a transversal valley from a longitudinal valley?

I'm confused about how to distinguish the two. Prior to making this question. I've read the wikipedia entry on the subject but it mentions that for example a transverse valley makes 90 degrees with ...
1 vote
1 answer
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Terracing in Mahad

my first time here! I was going down the rabbit hole after watching a video on YouTube that made me want to read about it on Wikipedia. It led me to this Picture: (View from Varandha Pass near Mahad ...
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0 votes
2 answers
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Are marine fossils in the mountain happens due to lower sea levels?

https://9gag.com/gag/aBme0M2 This one says it is I am not sure whether to ask this in geology or biology. How does marine fossils show up in mountains?
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1 vote
1 answer
126 views

How did Mount Evans become a mountain?

Multiple websites state that the mountain, which is in Colorado, was formed by an intrusion of magma about 1.4 billion years ago, forming a batholith. On the other hand, the rocky mountains are said ...
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26 votes
3 answers
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Why is Olympus Mons the largest volcano in the whole solar system?

Why is it that the volcanoes found in the Tharsis Montes region near the Martian equator, (one of which is Olympus Mons) so much larger than those found on Earth. In comparison, Hawaii's Mauna Loa, ...
5 votes
2 answers
2k views

How do mountain springs get their water?

I am curious how do mountain springs get their water. The water flowing from them eventually forms rivers. Is it only from rain and snow? Or does water also come from underground-below the mountain (...
5 votes
1 answer
284 views

Could the speed in which the plate is moving affect how quickly mountains rise?

In an episode of History Channel's How the Earth Was Made, there was a remark when India left the rest of Gondwana 80 million years ago only to collide with mainland Asia 50.5 million years ago. The ...
3 votes
1 answer
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How Old Are the Verkhoyansk Mountains in Northeastern Russia?

The multi-brown "hand" at the middle of this image is the Verkhoyansk Mountain Range in northeastern Russia. The best information I got regarding its age is simply "Cretaceous". ...
0 votes
1 answer
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Why are there no mountains higher than ~10 km? [duplicate]

Mars have several mountains above 10 km, with the highest being around 22 km (full list for Solar System here). Same for Io, Jupiter's moon. In contrast, the Earth has no mountain higher than 10.2 km (...
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1 answer
119 views

Cloud Formations Near Capetown

Why do clouds form a 'tablecloth' which exactly fits the top of Table Mountain near Capetown, South Africa? Something about the table top tailors the clouds to fit it exactly. The thickness is smooth ...
2 votes
3 answers
246 views

Temperate Rainforests

I have heard that the Appalachian Mountains is qualified as a temperate rainforest. What qualifies a temperate rainforest and what makes the Appalachian Mountains a temperate rainforest?
5 votes
2 answers
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Does erosion make mountains become higher?

Recently at the American Museum of Natural History in New York, I saw a display set that claimed erosion makes mountains rise higher, counterintuitively. The explanation was that the material removed ...
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6 votes
3 answers
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What is the impact of divergent tectonic plates on old mountain ranges?

I found this question, which is similar to what I'm wondering, but my question is slightly different: What happens if a new divergent boundary forms in a way that bisects a mountain range, especially ...
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2 votes
2 answers
76 views

How do fold mountains form?

I know mountains form due to the collision of tectonic plates. But how does such a slow collision have such great impact as to create huge mountains. Is there any intuitive explanation for this?
1 vote
1 answer
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Precipitation and Elevation

Does precipitation increase or decrease as elevation increases? Because I heard that in the mountains they get more precipitation due to the orographic effect and how the mountains drain the moisture ...
1 vote
1 answer
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Thunderstorms in Mountains

When you’re in the mountains for example like in the Appalachian Mountains, is thunder heard more easily from further away in the mountains rather than if you aren’t in the mountains?
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Height of Everest from base to top

It's relatively well known that Everest is the highest mountain above sea level, and that Mauna Kea in Hawaii is the tallest mountain from base to top. But how tall is Everest from base to top? Or to ...
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5 votes
4 answers
679 views

Are the cores of every mountain range igneous?

Every volcano is a mountain, but not every mountain is a volcano. Still, it strikes me that--at least for the mountain ranges I can think of in this moment--they all seem to have igneous cores. Is ...
4 votes
1 answer
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Are the Olympic Mountains (in Washington state) geologically unique?

So it is my understanding the Washington's Olympic Mountains are basaltic mountains. The reason is that they formed from the upthrust of Ocean crust rather than continental crust as the Farallon plate ...
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1 vote
1 answer
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What is the History of the Brooks Range?

This here is a map of the Brooks Range in northern Alaska: As you can see, it is an inland range shaped in a downward curve. Why is that? What is the history of the uplift of the Brooks Range? How ...
6 votes
1 answer
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Does subduction of continental crust happen at continental-continental convergent boundaries?

What exactly happens at a continental-continental (cc) convergent boundary? I read myself through the web for the last few days and what I came up with is that such a boundary will start as an oceanic-...
5 votes
0 answers
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How high could snow form on a mountain?

I was reminded recently of a moment in the Eragon books where the main characters see a "tall" mountain range, and then after a minute realize that the white sky stretching up above them is just ...
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6 votes
1 answer
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Which mountains (or hills) are visible from both Boston and Rhode Island?

In the description of the Norse exploration of America, there are two places mentioned, "Hop" and "Straumfjord", with some relationship to the same mountains. E.g. The finding of Wineland the Good, p....
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1 vote
1 answer
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How to figure the MODIS snow cover against different elevation zones?

I am working on MOD10C2 (8days snow cover), when I clip the MODIS snow cover against different zones of elevation the results was against general trend .i.e. the higher elevation was showing lower ...
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5 votes
4 answers
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Why are the mountains predominately grey or dark brown?

Observing many photos of mountains one can assume that most of the mountains are grey or brown. See also the mountain article at Wikipedia. There are however several ways a mountain can form, which ...
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