A mountain is a large landform that stretches above the surrounding land in a limited area usually in the form of a peak. A mountain is generally steeper than a hill. Mountains are formed through tectonic forces or volcanism. These forces can locally raise the surface of the earth by over 10,000 feet (3,000 m). Mountains erode slowly through the action of rivers, weather conditions, and glaciers. A few mountains are isolated summits, but most occur in huge mountain ranges.
The highest mountain on Earth is Mount Everest in the Himalayas of Asia, whose summit is 8,848 m (29,029 ft) above mean sea level. The highest known mountain in the Solar System is Olympus Mons on the planet Mars at 21,171 m (69,459 ft).
Read more about Mountain: Definition, Characteristics, Types, Geology
Famous quotes containing the word mountain:
“Fogs and clouds which conceal the overshadowing mountains lend the breadth of the plains to mountain vales. Even the small-featured country acquires some grandeur in stormy weather when clouds are seen drifting between the beholder and the neighboring hills.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“He was a fool—a brilliant man and I loved his beard, and there was the mountain ax in his brain, and all the blood poured out, and he could not see the Mexican sun. Your people raised the ax, and the last blood of revolutionary mankind, his poor blood, ran into the carpet.”
—Norman Mailer (b. 1923)
“I’ve been up the mountain and I had a choice. Should I come down? So I came down. God said, “Okay, you’ve been up on the mountain, now you go down. You’re on your own, free. Check in later, but now you’re on your own.””
—Bob Dylan [Robert Allen Zimmerman] (b. 1941)