Mountain ranges are a major elevation of relief. They, as a rule, have an elongated shape with a length of hundreds of kilometers. Each ridge has the highest point, the peak, expressed in the form of a sharp tooth - a mountain ridge. The shape and height are formed depending on the lithological composition and the development of the constituent rocks. Also, these aspects affect the length of this relief formation.
First, let's study the main parts of the mountain range and their features.
Mountain ridge definition
A mountain ridge is a sharp junction or intersection of slopes. Some of them have a particularly sharp shape called knives. The ridges differ in shape, stand out: sharp, serrated, sawtooth and rounded. The distance from the ground to the top of the ridge can reach from hundreds of meters to several kilometers. It is this zone that is the site of the formation of rockfalls, collapses of snow cornices and the beginning of avalanches.
What are passes?
Each ridge that makes up the mountain ranges has a certain part, where there is a relatively smooth lowering of the relief. It's called the pass. These places are the mostconvenient for making transitions. Passes are distinguished by origin: erosional, tectonic and glacial. The first ones arise in connection with the convergence of river channels, the second ones - due to the individual lowering of the mountain ridge, the third ones are formed by the destruction of kars, bowl-shaped depressions located at the top of the mountain slopes. The deepest and gentlest mountain passes are called "mountain pass". People build pedestrian and even motor roads in them.
Center line of the ridge
The center line of the ridge passes along the ridge, which cartographers depict on diagrams and maps. This line is mostly straight, with occasional slight curves.
But you can't call mountain ranges even, associating them with a straight line. Often they have branches from their main axis. These are lower, secondary ridges that gradually decrease as they approach the periphery. Such "branches" are called spurs.
Classification
Mountains are the most interesting terrain on the planet. The mountain range is not a separate unit, often they are in direct interaction with each other, thereby forming mountain ranges and mountain systems.
Mountain systems are a collection of mountain ranges, massifs, chains that form a single structure. All these components have a common origin and, as a rule, common morphological features. The systems are formed by one of the types of mountains - volcanic, blocky, folded, etc. Mountain knots and mountain ranges are often found inside them.
Mountain knots- places of junction or intersection of several mountain ranges, which are distinguished by complex orography and are a separate part. As a rule, they are difficult to pass and high.
A mountain range is a mountain range that has “stand up” in a column, forming a single and almost continuous line. They are separated by depressions of the common array and may consist of heterogeneous types of mountains.
The depressions between the ridges are called mountain valleys. They come in different forms - longitudinal, floodplain, V-shaped, several kilometers long. Valleys are formed under the influence of mechanical effects of glaciers and mountain rivers.
Summarize
The shape of the mountain range, its length, height - morphological features. They depend on when it began to form, on the history of development, the number of mechanical impacts on rocks and the rocks themselves, of which it consists. According to the time period, the formation process takes more than one hundred years.
After reading the above information about mountain ranges, each student will be able not only to define what it is, but also to tell in detail what they consist of, how they are formed and classified.
