The Alps is a small segment of a mountain range that stretches from the Atlas Mountains of North Africa to southern Europe and Asia beyond the Himalayas. Learn more about this interesting topic here!
the alps mountain range
The Alps are the largest mountain range in Europe, with several peaks over 4000 meters high in the central-western section (including Mont Blanc, 4807 m, the highest peak on the continent). They are of recent geological formation and are composed mainly of crystalline rocks, which are hard and resistant to erosion.
The chain of the Alps extends like an immense arc from the south of France to Slovenia, developing from west to east for about 1200 km in length.
South of the central and eastern Alps lie sedimentary formations called the Prealps. If you've ever wondered where the Alps are , they mark the border of Europe. There are also newer, but much lower, mountain ranges that extend across southern Italy, northern France, Switzerland, Germany, and Austria.
Features
The Alps present a wide variety of elevations and forms, ranging from the folded sediments that form the low pre-Alps that fringe the main range everywhere except northwestern Italy, to the crystalline massifs of the interior Alps that include the Belledonne and Mont Blanc in France, the Aare and the Gotthard in Switzerland and the Tauern in Austria.
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From the Mediterranean to Vienna, the Alps are divided into western, central, and eastern segments, each consisting of several distinct ranges.
The Western Alps: They are located north from the coast through southeastern France and northwestern Italy to Lake Geneva and the Rhône Valley in Switzerland.
Its forms include the low arid limestones of the Maritime Alps near the Mediterranean, the deep cleft of Verdon Canyon in France, the crystalline peaks of the Mercantour Massif, and the glacier-covered dome of Mont Blanc, which at 15.771 feet (4,807 meters) is the highest peak in the Alps.
The Central Alps: occupy an area from the Great St. Bernard Pass east of Mont Blanc on the Swiss-Italian border to the Splügen Pass region north of Lake Como.
Within this territory are such distinctive peaks as the Dufourspitze, Weisshorn, Matterhorn, and Finsteraarhorn, all 14,000 feet high. Also, the large glacial lakes: Como and Maggiore in the south, part of the Po drainage system; and Thun, Brienz and Lucerne (Vierwaldstättersee) in the north, fall within this zone.
The Eastern Alps: generally have a drainage pattern in the north and southeast. Within the Eastern Alps in Italy, Lake Garda flows into the Po, while the Adige, Piave, Tagliamento and Isonzo flow into the Gulf of Venice.
How were they formed?
The Alps, like all mountain ranges, are formed by the collision of the tectonic plates that make up the Earth's structure . In fact, the Earth's surface is made up of large plates—approximately fifteen of them—that rest on the deep mantle, which is hot, soft, and prone to deformation.
The plates are very rigid and move, their thickness is about 30 km, more under the continents, less under the oceans.
The plates move relative to each other because the underlying mantle (which is more than 3000 km thick) is animated by convection cells, types of "rollers" that rise and fall, like a saucepan on a fire, where we see the warm water from the bottom, lighter, rises and the cooler water from above goes down again.
In these movements, the plates that "float" in the mantle are dragged and move. If they separate, there is a rise of lava between them, these are chains of volcanoes (like what happens in the middle of the Atlantic, under the sea or on top of Iceland). Because the Eurasian plate (where we are) and the American plate are moving apart, at the rate of a few centimeters per year.
But when two plates get closer to each other, then the plates tend to overlap, to ride on top of each other, to form mountain ranges, by thickening plates that have folded where there is overlap. This is the case of the Alps, which are due to the collision of the Eurasian plate with the African plate.
Climate
The climate of the Alps is influenced by the proximity to the Mediterranean Sea, which mitigates its rigors in the winter season, causes an irregular distribution of rainfall and creates conditions of substantial aridity in summer, especially on the French side, and frequent summer storms. on the Italian side.
The hydrographic network insists on nine large basins, the rivers have a torrential regime, characterized by higher flows due to the thaw at the end of spring and the autumn rains. There are numerous lakes in both protected areas.
Economist
Agriculture is an important economic activity in the valleys and on the sunny sides of the lower slopes, small family farms are very common in alpine areas, the main crops are barley, oats and rye, as well as maize and wheat.
Farmers also raise cattle, goats and sheep, dairy farms produce milk and other products for a large part of the population, wine is grown in sunny parts of the southern Alps up to a sea level of 600 meters.
Most of the energy comes from hydroelectric plants that operate in the mountains or on rivers, these power plants produce enough energy to export the surplus to other European countries.
Vegetation and animals of the Alps
The extraordinary diversity of habitats of meadows, forests, watercourses and rocky slopes, are home to an overwhelming number of species of flora and fauna that make the Alps one of the most important regions for the preservation of biodiversity in Central Europe.
The High Alps are an excellent example of this biodiversity due to the geographical location where the region benefits from two types of climate : a continental climate and a Mediterranean climate. This, combined with the different range of altitudes and the varied geology of the area, results in a great diversity of fauna and flora.
Flora
Many types of plants grow in the various areas of the Alps, the valleys have rich green pastures with beech and oak trees growing in the lower regions, these trees are known as deciduous meaning they lose their leaves every year.
The higher areas are dominated by evergreen trees, mainly pines and firs, above the tree line, which is between 1700 and 2000 meters above sea level, you can find alpine meadows, mosses, shrubs and unique flowers such as the edelweiss. The highest parts of the Alps (regions above 2 meters) are covered with snow, ice, and barren rock.
In July the higher valleys are the place to find the most impressive wild orchids, later in July you might be lucky enough to see Martagon lilies.
Fauna
Animals that live in alpine regions must get used to living in places with higher mountains. The ibex is a stocky wild goat that lives above the tree line, alpine marmots are thick-bodied squirrels that hibernate in burrows, the chamois is a graceful animal that looks like an antelope.
The famous chamois descends to lower altitudes in the winter and can be seen on snowshoe tours in quieter areas where the animals are not disturbed by noise from ski lifts and winter sports enthusiasts.
climbing the alps
Few people attempted to conquer the Alps in the early centuries, many Alpine peaks were first climbed in the mid-1800s when mountaineering became a popular sport.
Today, professional guides use modern equipment to help people reach the highest peaks, each year, more than 2.000 climbers ascend to the top of the Matterhorn, which is considered one of the most difficult mountains to climb. In 1786, two Frenchmen became the first to reach the top of Mt. Blanc, the highest peak in Europe.
