The most beautiful mountain tops on which come to look at thousands of tourists, seem unique. Formed one thousand years ago, they change the shape to this day.
Mountains differ not only the height, a variety of a landscape, the size, but also origin. Distinguish three main types of mountains: clumpy, folded and dome-shaped mountains.
As clumpy mountains are formed
Earth crust does not stand still, and is in the constant movement. At emergence in it of cracks or breaks of tectonic plates, the huge mass of breed begins to move not in longitudinal, and in the vertical direction. A part of breed can fail at the same time, and other part adjoining a break, to rise. Ridge Titon can be an example of formation of clumpy mountains. This ridge is located in the State of Wyoming. From East side of the ridge the steep breeds which rose at a break of earth crust are visible. On the other side of Ridge Titon the valley which fell down is located.
As folded mountains are formed
Parallel earth movement leads to emergence of folded mountains. It is the best of all to consider emergence of folded mountains on the example of the well-known Alps. The Alps resulted from collision of an earth's plate of the continent Africa and an earth's plate of the continent Eurasia. For several million years these plates adjoined with each other to huge pressure. Therefore edges of earth's plates were rumpled, forming huge folds which became covered by breaks over time. Were so formed one of the most majestic mountain chains of the world.
As dome-shaped mountains are formed
In earth crust there is a heated magma. Magma, breaking under huge pressure up, raises rocks which lie above. Thereby the bend of earth crust of a dome-shaped form turns out. Eventually the wind erosion bares magmatic breed. The Drakensberg Mountains which are in the Republic of South Africa can be an example of dome-shaped mountains. More than one thousand meters high, in it the removed magmatic breed is well looked through.