What Are Mountains

Mountains are large landforms that rise high above the surrounding land. A landform is a natural feature on Earth's surface. Mountains are important because they affect weather, create rivers, and influence where people can live and travel.

Every mountain has three main parts. The peak is the highest point at the top of the mountain. The slopes are the sides of the mountain that go up and down. The base is the bottom part where the mountain meets the flatter land around it. Think of a mountain like a triangle—the point at the top is the peak, the slanted sides are the slopes, and the flat bottom edge is the base.

Mountains come in different shapes and sizes. Some mountains are tall and rocky with snow on their peaks. These mountains often have steep slopes and sharp peaks. Other mountains are shorter and rounded with trees covering their slopes. The type of mountain depends on how it formed and how old it is.

Mountains affect the land around them in important ways. When warm, moist air hits a mountain, it rises and cools, causing rain or snow on one side. This is why one side of a mountain is often wetter than the other side. Mountains also create rivers because melting snow and rain flow down the slopes. The tallest mountain on Earth is Mount Everest, which stands 29,032 feet tall.

Interesting Fact: Mount Everest grows about 4 millimeters taller every year because the plates that form Earth's crust are still pushing together!