What different types of Mountains are there?
There are five basic kinds of mountains: • Fold Mountains (Folded Mountains) • Fault-block Mountains (Block Mountains) • Dome Mountains • Volcanic Mountains • Plateau Mountains These different types of mountain names not only distinguish the physical characteristics of the mountains, but also how they were formed. Fold Mountains Fold mountains are the most common type of mountain. The world’s largest mountain ranges are fold mountains. These ranges were formed over millions of years. Fold mountains are formed when two plates collide head on, and their edges crumbled, much the same way as a piece of paper folds when pushed together. The upward folds are known as anticlines, and the downward folds are synclines. Examples of fold mountains include: • Himalayan Mountains in Asia • the Alps in Europe • the Andes in South America • the Rockies in North America • the Urals in Russia The Himalayan Mountains were formed when India crashed into Asia and pushed up the tallest mountain range on th
