Ask Series | What are Mountains?

Mountains are big, tall landforms that look like giant hills made of rocks and earth.

Imagine you're playing with a big pile of blocks, the bigger the pile, the taller it is. Mountains are kind of like that, but way, way bigger! They can be as high as buildings or even higher than clouds.

Mountains grow when parts of the Earth move and push against each other, just like when you squeeze playdough and make it taller. This pushing is called plate tectonics, and it’s how the Earth reshapes itself over a very long time, like hundreds or even thousands of years.

Most mountains are made of rock, hard, solid stuff that you can sometimes find in your backyard or on a walk. Some rocks are smooth, some are rough, and they all help make the mountain look the way it does.

Sometimes there are trees, snow, or even rivers on top of mountains, but deep down, it’s just rock and earth, like a giant block tower that never stops growing!