Mount Elbrus

The Caucasus’ tallest mountain, Elbrus, is 5,642 meters (18,510 feet) high, higher than Western Europe’s Mt. Blanc in the Alps, the European contender if the Caucaucas are instead considered within Asia. Elbrus has two summits, the east summit being the lower of the two at 5,621 meters, both of which are dominant volcanic domes.

The Caucasus Mountains are the result of a tectonic plate collision between the Arabian plate moving northward with respect to the Eurasian plate. They form a continuation of the Himalayas, which are being pressed upwards by a similar collison zone with the Eurasian and Indian plates. The entire region is regularly subjected to strong earthquakes from this activity, especially as the fault structure is complex with the Anatolia/Turkey and Iranian Blocks flowing sidewise, which prevents subduction of the advancing plate edge and hence the lack of volcanoes

Atlas Mountains

The Atlas Mountains ‎ is a mountain range transversely a northern stretch of Africa extending concerning 2,400 km (1,500 miles) all the way through Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia. The uppermost climax is Jbel Toubkal, with a distance from the ground of 4,167 metres (13,671 ft) in southwestern Morocco. The second highest mountain is the M'Goun of 4,071 metres (13,356 ft). The Atlas ranges divide the Mediterranean and Atlantic coastlines from the Sahara Desert. The inhabitants of the Atlas Mountains are mostly Berber tribes in Morocco and kabyles in Algeria. The vocabulary for ‘mountain’ in several Berber languages is adrar and adras, believed to be similar with the toponym.

The mountains are alienated into extra and separate ranges, as well as the Middle Atlas, High Atlas, and Anti-Atlas. The lower Tell Atlas organization close to the coast and the larger Saharan Atlas running more south terminate in the Aurès Mountains situated in Algeria and Tunisia. The Atlas Mountains compose one of the discrete physiographic provinces of the larger African Alpine System division.

Cotopaxi

Cotopaxi (0.7S 78.4W) is a stratovolcano with a summit altitude of 19,388 feet (5,911 m). It has erupted 50 times since 1738. The 1877 epidemic melted snow and ice on the summit, which produced mudflows that traveled 60 miles (100 km) from the volcano. The most topical eruption of Cotopaxi ended in 1904. Reports of an explosion in 1942 have not been confirmed. The most recent commotion was an increase in steam emissions, melting snow, and small earthquakes from 1975-1976.

Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver at Cotopaxi Volcano, Ecuador. GPS uses data transmitted by orbiting satellites to situate points on the ground. The USGS has made baseline GPS measurements at numerous volcanoes in the United States and in Latin America. In the event of an arousing of one of these volcanoes, GPS receivers would be set up at these points again to resolve whether or not computable buckle had occurred and to monitor for precursory buckle that might herald an eruption.

Mt. Whtiney

Mt. Whitney is the most frequently climbed peak in the Sierra Nevada, if not in the US. Because of this, the National Park Service and the US Forest Service, who manage the Whitney Portal Trailhead, have implemented a permit system to minimize the impact of day-hikers on the Mt. Whitney backcountry. All hikers entering the Mt. Whitney zone, including day-hikers, are required to obtain a permit—either your park wilderness permit if you are entering the zone from the west or an Inyo National Forest Whitney Zone permit if you are entering from the east.

Mt. Whitney can be most directly reached by a 10.7 mile (17.1 km) trail from Whitney Portal, 13 miles (21 km) west of the town of Lone Pine on the east side of the Sierra. Ice axes and crampons are needed in spring and early summer, but technical climbing equipment is not usually necessary between mid-July and early October. The elevation at the trailhead is 8360' (2550 meters). The elevation at the summit is 14,491' (4417 meters).

Mount Abu

The town of Mount Abu, the only hill station in Rajasthan, is located at an elevation of 1220 meters. It has been a popular retreat from the heat of Rajasthan and neighboring Gujarat for centuries. The Mount Abu Wildlife Sanctuary was established in 1960 and covers 290 km² of the mountain.

Mount Abu is home to a number of Jain temples. The Dilwara Temples are a complex of temples, carved of white marble, that were built between the 11th and 13th centuries AD. The oldest of these is the Vimal Vasahi temple, built in 1031 AD by Vimal Shah and dedicated to the first of the Jain Tirthankaras. The Lun Vasahi Temple was built in 1231 AD by the brothers Vastupal and Tejpal, who belonged to the Porwal Jain community. They were ministers of Raja Vir Dhawal, a local ruler of Gujarat.

Chinese Calender

Australia follows the Gregorian calendar. Although the People's Republic of China follows the Gregorian calendar for its day-to-day business, the dates of the Chinese New Year and other important festivals are determined by the Chinese calendar which is thought to have been invented by Emperor Huangdi, nearly 3000 years BC.

The Chinese tradition follows a different calendar to the calendar followed in Australia. The Chinese lunar year is divided into 12 months of 29 or 30 days. The calendar is adjusted to the length of the solar year by the addition of extra months at regular intervals. The years are arranged in major cycles of 60 years.

Each successive year is named after one of 12 animals, and these 12-year cycles are continuously repeated. The Chinese New Year is celebrated at the second new moon after the winter solstice and falls between 21 January and 19 February on the Gregorian calendar. The year 2008 translates to the Chinese year 4705-4706.

Mount Hood

Mount Hood from Portland, Oregon. When Mount Hood next erupts, Portland could be affected by light ashfalls similar to those it experienced during the 1980 eruptions of Mount St. Helens. The city will not be directly affected by lava flows, pyroclastic flows, or lahars, but regional transportation and water supplies could be disrupted. (Photo by David Wieprecht, USGS).

Mount Hood is more than 500,000 years old. The volcano has grown in fits and starts, with decades to centuries of frequent eruptions separated by quiet periods lasting from centuries to more than 10,000 years. In the recent past, Mount Hood has had two significant eruptive periods, one about 1,500 years ago and the other about 200 years ago.