Arete
From Fiswiki
Arete a steep-sided, sharp-edged bedrock ridge formed by two glaciers eroding away on opposite sides of the ridge.
The arête is a thin ridge of rock that is left separating the two valleys. Arêtes can also form when two glacial cirques erode headwards towards one another, although frequently this results in a saddle-shaped pass, called a col.
The edge is then sharpened by freeze-thaw weathering. The word "arête" is actually French for fishbone; similar features in the Alps are described with the German equivalent term Grat or Kamm (comb).
Where three or more cirques meet, a pyramidal peak is created.
[edit] Also see
- Physical Features of Mountains
- Defining Mountain Regions
- Snow and Weather Glossary
- Mountains and Mountain Forests Global Statistical Summary
- Frozen Ground
- Cryosphere
- What Affects Frozen Ground
- What is the Cryosphere
- Snow
- Clouds
- Evaporation
- Freezing Point / Freeze
- Butte
- Sublimation
- Water
- Snow line
- Tree line
- Frost line
- Landform
- Valley
[edit] Reference
- Wikipedia Arete [1]
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