Quick Facts about Mountains and Beautiful Photos

Mountains make up about one-fifth of the world's landscape, and provide homes to at least one-tenth of the world's people.
Heights of mountains are generally given as heights above sea level.
The world's highest peak on land is Mount Everest in the Himalayas. It is 8,850.1728 m (29,036 ft) tall.
The world's highest mountain, from its base on the ocean floor, is Mauna Kea, on Hawaii. It is 10,203 m (33,474 ft) high but only 4,205 m (13,796 ft) is above sea level.
Ben Nevis is also the highest mountain in Great Britain.
The tallest known mountain in the solar system is Olympus Mons, located on Mars.
There are mountains under the surface of the sea!
Mountains occur more often in oceans than on land; some islands are the peaks of mountains coming out of the water.
About 80 per cent of our planet's fresh water originates in the mountains.
All mountain ecosystems have one major characteristic in common - rapid changes in altitude, climate, soil, and vegetation over very short distances.
Plants that may be found on mountains include conifers, oak, chestnut, maple, junipers, stonecrops, campions, mosses, ferns and climbers.
The highest 14 mountains in the world are all found in the Himalayas.
In some mountainous areas the rivers are permanently frozen. These are called glaciers.
The Alps are the most densely populated mountain area in the world.