mountains
Latest about mountains
Earth's crust may be building mountains by dripping into the mantle
By Stephanie Pappas published
An odd phenomenon called lithospheric dripping might occur wherever mountains form.
More people are surviving avalanches than decades ago — here's why
By Michael Schubert published
A study of avalanche survival data shows that survival rates have increased and rescues are faster, but time is still critical for buried victims.
Yarlung Tsangpo: The deepest canyon on land hides a tree taller than the Statue of Liberty
By Sascha Pare published
The Yarlung Tsangpo Grand Canyon is Earth's largest terrestrial canyon, stretching 314 miles long and almost 20,000 feet from top to bottom at its deepest point in the Tibet Autonomous Region.
Boiling rocks from Earth's crust tore an ocean into Mongolia 410 million years ago
By Stephanie Pappas published
An ocean that opened up in what is now Mongolia 410 million years ago was created by a hot upwelling of rock known as a mantle plume.
'Roots' of Colombian mountains 'dripped' into the mantle millions of years ago — but the peaks still stand tall
By Sascha Pare published
Earth's crust once formed a dense "root" supporting Colombia's northern Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta mountains, but new research suggests this prop sank into the mantle millions of years ago.
How do mountains form?
By Charles Q. Choi published
Mountains form in a variety of ways, some of which geologists are now just starting to understand.
A single massive tectonic collision? That's not how the Himalayas came to be, scientists say
By Sascha Pare published
The world's highest mountain system may have reached 60% of its current elevation before the Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates crashed into each other, giving the peaks an extra push.
Mt. Everest: Why Do People Keep Climbing It?
By Emily Sohn last updated
Despite tales of overcrowding, fighting and tragedy, hundreds of people continue to try to summit Everest every year. What's the appeal?
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