arêtes
Sharp glacial ridges
Arêtes are sharp, narrow ridges of rock formed when glaciers erode a mountain from opposite sides.
The French word means "fishbone" or "edge," which captures the knife-like quality of these formations: The climbers traversed the exposed arête between the two peaks.
In mountaineering, ascending an arête offers dramatic exposure on both sides.
Narrow raised strip
- knife-edgeCritically narrow margin
- scrambleMix into disorder
- exposureState of being unprotected
- traverseMove across an area
summit · col · saddle · corniche · precipice · climbing · alpine · crampon
Glacier-carved mountain basin
- hornPointed animal headgear
- MatterhornFamous Swiss-Italian mountain
- erosionGradual wearing away
- glacierSlow-moving ice mass
freeze-thaw · headwall · pyramidal · weathering · névé · moraine · carved · sculpted
ridge
Narrow raised strip
- knife-edgeCritically narrow margin
- scrambleMix into disorder
- exposureState of being unprotected
traverse · summit · col · saddle · corniche · precipice · climbing · alpine · crampon · belay
cirque
Glacier-carved mountain basin
- hornPointed animal headgear
- MatterhornFamous Swiss-Italian mountain
- erosionGradual wearing away
glacier · freeze-thaw · headwall · pyramidal · weathering · névé · moraine · carved · sculpted · tarn
bone
Hard skeletal tissue
spine · pinbone · herring · trout · sole · tweezers · cuisine · French · cooking · cartilage
arêtesdomes
Vaulted rounded ceilings
rolling hills · plateaus · mesas · tablelands · buttes