Tell me about the Alps.

The Alps are the highest, largest and most majestic mountains in Europe. It starts from Nice in the southeast of France in the west, passes through Switzerland, southern Germany and northern Italy, and reaches the Vienna Basin in the east, stretching for 1 1,200 km. The width is 120-200 km, and the widest point can reach 300 km. The mountain is steep, with an average elevation of about 3000 meters. The main peak Mont Blanc is located between France and Italy, with an altitude of 4,865,438 meters. It is named after the perennial snow on the summit and is the highest peak in Europe. Many peaks are rocky with sharp tinder, and there are many deep glacial valley and moraine lakes in the mountainous areas. Up to now, there are more than 1 1,000 modern glaciers in the Alps, with a total area of 3,600 square kilometers, which is larger than Luxembourg, a European country. The Alps are a part of the ancient Mediterranean, and the tall folded mountains were also formed in Himalayan orogeny. Velvet, glacier canyon, etc. are the remains of glaciers. After the formation of the tall Alps, Europe experienced several major ice ages in the past 2 million years, and the Alps were covered with ice as thick as 2000 meters. Glaciers erode rocks and cut the ground, forming many steep cliffs, sharp tinder and glacier valleys, making this mountain look particularly steep.

The Alps is a huge watershed. Many great rivers in Europe, such as the Rhine and Danube, originate here and are rich in water resources. Railway tunnels have been built in brenner, Simplon, Saint Gotha and other mountain passes in central and southern Europe. The total length of the Mont Blanc Highway Tunnel jointly built by France and Italy is 1 1.600 meters, which shortens the distance between Paris and Rome by 220 kilometers.

The plants in the Alps are distributed in strips. From the foot of the mountain, you can see the broad-leaved forest in warm and humid zone, the coniferous forest in cold temperate zone and the alpine grassland in turn. In summer, the climate here is cool, which is a good place to escape the heat. In winter, it has become an ideal place for skiing and watching the snow scene.

The Alps are arguably the most beautiful scenery in Switzerland. Aige Peak, Mingxi Peak, Jungfrau Peak and three famous mountains all stand in the Alps. It is located in the southeast of Switzerland, and the Alps account for 69% of the total area of Switzerland. The special geographical environment has created its unique landscape: alpine plants and edelweiss, swift waterfalls, stalactites in caves, unique animals and plants, etc. St Moritz Alpine Ski Resort is a world-famous ski resort, located in the center of the Alps, and has successfully hosted two Winter Olympics. There is a mountain slide at an altitude of more than 3000 meters, and you can become a snow eagle soaring in the white world. In winter, the Alps are covered with snow, with thousands of miles of glaciers and steep silver slopes. This is the best place for skiing and a popular place for winter sports competitions. In addition to the Winter Olympic Games in 1928 and 1948, the World Ski Championships in 1934, 1948, 1974 and 2003 were all held here, and the Olympic and Chrysler sled races were also designated as competition venues.

Alps are the result of collision between Eurasian plate, African plate and American plate. The Alps span Europe and Africa, and there are five major mountains: Alps (located in Switzerland and Austria), Pyrenees (located at the junction of Spain, France and Andorra), Apennines (located in Italian Peninsula), Carpathians (located in Balkans) and Atlas Mountains (located in northern Tunisia and Algeria). Among these five mountain ranges, the Mont Blanc Sea, the main peak of the Alps (in Switzerland), is 48 10 meters high, which is the highest peak in Switzerland and Europe and is known as the "roof of Europe".

The Alps is a tourist attraction in Europe, which brings huge profits to the Swiss and Austrian governments every year.

Historical overview:

In addition to the main mountain system, there are four branches of the Alps that extend to all parts of central and southern Europe: one extends westward to the Iberian Peninsula, called the Pyrenees; To the south is the Apennine Mountains, which constitute the main ridge of Apennine Peninsula. The mountain range in the southeast is called Dinara Mountain, which runs through the west side of Balkan Peninsula, extends to the Mediterranean Sea, and reaches Asia Minor Peninsula via Crete and Cyprus. There is a mountain called Carpathian Mountain in the northeast, which turns two big bends in the southern plain of Eastern Europe, and then extends from Bulgaria to the coast of the Black Sea.

About10.5 billion years ago, the present Alps were still part of the ancient Mediterranean, and then the land gradually rose, forming a tall Alps. The crust of the whole mountain area is still unstable and earthquakes are frequent. In the past million years, Europe experienced several major ice ages, and the Alps formed a typical glacial terrain. Many peaks are rocky and have sharp tinder. There are many deep glacial valley and moraine lakes in the mountains. Up to now, there are more than 1 1,000 modern glaciers in the Alps, with a total area of 3,600 square kilometers, which is larger than Luxembourg, a European country.

Vegetation:

The plants in the Alps are distributed in strips. The south slope of the mountain, below 800 meters above sea level, belongs to subtropical evergreen broad-leaved forest belt; 800 ~ 1800 meters is a temperate forest belt, the lower part is a mixed forest belt dominated by beech and fir, and the upper part is a coniferous forest composed of spruce, fir and cedar. 1800 ~ 2300m is the upper limit of forest; Above is alpine meadow; Then there are exposed rocks and peaks covered with snow all year round. In summer, the climate here is cool, which is a good place to escape the heat. In winter, it has become an ideal place for skiing and watching the snow scene.

Climate:

In the Alps, because there are high mountains around, the deeper and drier the valley, the higher the mountain peak and the more rainfall. The snowfall also varies from region to region. At an altitude of 700 meters, the days with snow last for about 3 months every year; In the area of 1800 meters, the number of days with snow can reach half a year; In the area of 2500 meters, the number of days with snow can reach 10 month, and in the area above 2800 meters, it snows all year round. In winter, the Alps are often sunny, while the central part is cloudy. Therefore, winter is the best season for alpine tourism.