Mountains

Elevated landforms that shape worlds.

A mountain is an elevated portion of the surface of a planet, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although there are no universally accepted definitions, a mountain is usually considered higher than a hill. By definition, mountains are often thought of as being a landform which is higher than 2,000 feet (610 m).

Quick Facts

Type

Stage; Level

First appears

Katamari Damacy (2004)

Developer

Bally (Bally Japan)

Publisher

Namco

Setting

Stylized mountainous terrain

Signature objects

Rocks
boulders
trees
mountain peak

Lore & Background

Mountains are formed through tectonic forces, erosion, or volcanism, which act on time scales of up to tens of millions of years. Once mountain building ceases, mountains are slowly leveled through the action of weathering, slumping, mass wasting, and erosion by rivers and glaciers. High elevations on mountains produce colder climates than at sea level at similar latitude, strongly affecting ecosystems.

Reader's Guide

The highest mountain on Earth is Mount Everest in the Himalayas of Asia, whose summit is 8,850 m (29,035 ft) above mean sea level. The highest known mountain on any planet in the Solar System is Olympus Mons on Mars at 21,171 m (69,459 ft). The highest mountain on Earth from base to peak is Mauna Kea in Hawaii, which rises 9,330 m (30,610 ft) from its base at the bottom of the ocean.