Carpathian Mountains, a geologically young European mountain chain forming the eastward

continuation of the Alps. From the Danube Gap, near Bratislava, Slovakia, they swing in a wide
crescent-shaped arc some 900 miles (1,450 kilometres) long to near Orova, Romania, at the
portion of the Danube River valley called the Iron Gate. These are the conventional boundaries
of these arcuate ranges, although, in fact, certain structural units of the Carpathians extend
southward across the Danube at both sites mentioned. The true geologic limits of the
Carpathians are, in the west, the Vienna Basin and the structural hollow of the Leitha Gate in
Austria and, to the south, the structural depression of the Timok River in Serbia and in
Montenegro. To the northwest, north, northeast, and south the geologic structures of the
Carpathians are surrounded by the sub-Carpathian structural depression separating the range
from other basic geologic elements of Europe, such as the old Bohemian Massif and the Russian,
or East European, Platform. Within the arc formed by the Carpathians are found the depressed
Pannonian Basin, composed of the Little and the Great Alfolds of Hungary, and also the relatively
lower mountain-and-hill zone of Transdanubia, which separates these two plains. Thus defined,
the Carpathians cover some 80,000 square miles (200,000 square kilometres).

Regional division of the Carpathian Mountains (top) and a geologic cross section of the Western
Carpathians (bottom). The location of the cross section is shown by the line NS on the map.

Regional division of the Carpathian Mountains (top) and a geologic cross section of the Western

Encyclopdia Britannica, Inc.

Although a counterpart of the Alps, the Carpathians differ considerably from them. Their
structure is less compact, and they are split up into a number of mountain blocks separated by
basins. The highest peaks, Gerlachovsk tt (Gerlach) in the Carpathians (8,711 feet [2,655
metres]) and Mont Blanc in the Alps (15,771 feet), differ greatly in altitude, and in average
elevation the Carpathian mountain chains are also very much lower than those of the Alps.
Structural elements also differ. The sandstoneshale band known as flysch, which flanks the
northern margin of the Alps in a narrow strip, widens considerably in the Carpathians, forming
the main component of their outer zone, whereas the limestone rocks that form a wide band in
the Alps are of secondary importance in the Carpathians. On the other hand, crystalline and
metamorphic (heat-altered) rocks, which represent powerfully developed chains in the central
part of the Alps, appear in the Carpathians as isolated blocks of smaller size surrounded by
depressed areas. In addition to these features, the Carpathians contain a rugged chain of
volcanic rocks.

SIMILAR TOPICS
Ural Mountains

Apennine Range

Tatra Mountains

Sierra Nevada

Alps

Jura Mountains

Pyrenees

Dolomites

Dinaric Alps

Harz

Similar differences can be observed in the relief of these two mountain systems, notably in the
way that the processes of erosion have occurred. The relief forms of the Alps today result for the
most part from the glaciations of the last Ice Age. These affected practically all mountain valleys
and gave them their specific relief character. In the Carpathians, glaciation affected only the
highest peaks, and the relief forms of today have been shaped by the action of running water.

Physical Features

Geology

The Carpathians extend in a geologic system of parallel structural ranges. The Outer Carpathians
whose rocks are composed of flyschrun from near Vienna, through Moravia, along the
Polish-Czech-Slovak frontier, and through western Ukraine into Romania, ending in an abrupt
bend of the Carpathian arc north of Bucharest. In this segment of the mountains, a number of
large structural units of nappe character (vast masses of rock thrust and folded over each other)
may be distinguished. In the eastern part of the Outer Carpathians this fringe is formed by the
Skole Nappe, and in the western part it is formed by the Silesian Nappe, both of which are split
by the longitudinal central Carpathian depression. Overthrust on the Silesian Nappe is the
Magura Nappe, the counterparts of which in the east are the Chernogora (Chornohora) and the
Tarcu nappes.

TEST YOUR KNOWLEDGE

MRI Image Of Head Showing Brain The Human Brain

The Inner Carpathians consist of a number of separate blocks. In the west lies the Central
Slovakian Block; in the southeast lie the East Carpathian Block and the South Carpathian Block,
including the Banat and the East Serbian Block. The isolated Bihor Massif, in the Apuseni
Mountains of Romania, occupies the centre of the Carpathian arc. Among the formations
building these blocks are ancient crystalline and metamorphic cores onto which younger
sedimentary rocksfor the most part limestones and dolomites of the Mesozoic Era (about 250
to 65 million years ago)have been overthrust.

BRITANNICA STORIES

DEMYSTIFIED / TECHNOLOGY

How Does Wi-Fi Work?

Binary Computer Code, Binary Code, Internet, Technology, Password, Data

SPOTLIGHT / LITERATURE & LANGUAGE

World Poetry Day

A poet in Heian period clothing writing poetry during a festival at Jnan-g shrine in Kyto,
Japan.

SPOTLIGHT / SOCIETY

Happy Halloween

A scary old jack-o-lantern on black. Halloween pumpkin, trick or treat. Halloween holiday

DEMYSTIFIED / SOCIETY

Why Do We Carve Pumpkins at Halloween?

halloween, jack o lantern, pumpkin, gord

The third and innermost range is built of volcanic rocks formed less than 50 million years,
differing in extent in the western and eastern sections of the Carpathians. In the former they
extend in the shape of an arc enclosing, to the south and east, the Central Slovakian Block; in the
latter they run in a practically straight line from northwest to southeast, following the line of a
tectonic dislocation, or zone of shattering in the Earths crust, parallel with this part of the
mountains. Between this volcanic range and the South Carpathian Block, the Transylvanian
Plateau spreads out, filled with loose rock formations of the Cenozoic Era (i.e., the past 65
million years.
The Central Slovakian Block is dismembered by a number of minor basins into separate
mountain groups built of older rocks, whereas the basins have been filled with Cenozoic rocks.

In Romania, orogenic, or mountain-building, movements took place along the outer flank of the
Carpathians until less than 10 million years ago, producing foldings and upheaval of the
sedimentary rocks of the sub-Carpathian depression; the result was the formation of a relatively
lower range called the sub-Carpathians adjoining the true Carpathians.

The relief forms of the Carpathians have, in the main, developed during the Cenozoic Era. In the
Inner Carpathians, where the folding movements ended in the Late Cretaceous Epoch (about
100 to 65 million years ago), local traces of older Cenozoic landforms have survived. Later
orogenic movements repeatedly heaved up this folded mountain chain, leaving a legacy of
fragmentary flat-topped relief forms situated at different altitudes and deeply incised gap
valleys, which often dissect the mountain ranges. In this way, for example, the gap sections of
the Danube and of some of its tributariesthe Vh, the Hernd, and the Oltdeveloped.

BRITANNICA LISTS & QUIZZES

High detailed Australia physical map with labeling.

SOCIETY QUIZ

Australian Government and Political System

Beautiful adult three colored calico longhair cat

ANIMALS LIST

Longhair Cat Breeds

Double exposure of science laboratory test tubes with bokeh and chemical reaction

SCIENCE QUIZ

Types of Chemical Reactions

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart wrote some of the most famous pieces of classical music.

HISTORY LIST

7 Famous Child Prodigies

The last Ice Age affected only the highest parts of the Carpathians, and glaciers were never more
than about 10 miles long, even in the Tatras, where the line of permanent snow ran at 5,500 feet
above sea level.

Physiography

Generally speaking, the Carpathians have been divided into the Western and the Eastern
Carpathians, the latter also calledprobably more accuratelythe Southeastern Carpathians.
There are marked differences between these parts. The Western Carpathians show a clearly
marked zoning in geologic structure and relief forms, and the highest elevations occur in the
central part of this province, in the Tatras and the Lower Tatras ranges. The geologic structure of
the inner part of the Western Carpathians is marked by a break running from the east and the
south along a line of dislocation in the Earths crust. Along this line, masses of volcanic rocks
have been piled up surrounding the Central Western Carpathian Block in a wide arc, with its
convex side turned eastward. The boundary between the Western and the Southeastern
Carpathians occurs at the narrowest part of the mountain range, marked by the valley of the San
River to the north and the upkw Pass (2,100 feet) and the Laborec Valley to the south. There
the Carpathians are only some 7580 miles wide, while in the west they are 170 miles and in the
east as much as 220250 miles across.

The Southeastern Carpathians are formed by a triangular block of mountains surrounding a

basin. The three mountain formations concerned differ in origin and structure. The Eastern
Carpathians, running in a northwestsoutheast direction, include the flysch band, which
represents the continuation of the Outer Western Carpathians, and also an inner band of
crystalline and volcanic rocks. In contrast, the Southern Carpathians, running east-northeast to
west-southwest, consist, in the main, of metamorphic rocks. The Bihor Massif is also of
metamorphic rock but is covered with younger sediments.

The Outer Western Carpathians are generally of low altitude; the highest elevation is Mount
Babia (5,659 feet) in the Beskid Range, straddling the borders of Poland, the Czech Republic, and
Slovakia. On the Polish side, a national park has been established. A considerable part of the
Outer Western Carpathians lacks a truly mountainous landscape and rather resembles a hilly
plateau elevated to 1,3001,600 feet above sea level.

CONNECT WITH BRITANNICA

The Central Western Carpathians consist of a series of isolated mountain ranges separated by
structural depressions. Highest among them are the Tatras (Gerlachovsk tt, 8,711 feet),
exhibiting a typical high-mountain glacial relief with ice-scoured (cirque) lakes and waterfalls.
This highest Carpathian massif is built of crystalline (granite) and metamorphic rocks, but the
northern part contains, upthrust from the south, several series of limestone rocks with
associated karst, or water-incised, relief forms. On both the Polish and Slovakian sides, national
parks have been established. South of the Tatras, separated by the Liptov and Spi basins, run
the parallel Lower Tatras, similar in geologic structure but lower (umbier Peak, 6,703 feet) and
with a less conspicuous glacial relief. Along the boundary line between the Outer and the Central
Western Carpathians extends a narrow strip of klippen (limestone) rocks, which, north of the
Tatras, has developed into the small but picturesque Pieniny mountain group. A narrow and
sharply winding gap valley has been incised there by the Dunajec River, a tributary of the Vistula.

The Inner Western Carpathians are lower and more broken. The principal mountain groups are
the Slovak Ore Mountains (Slovensk Rudohorie), with Stolica (4,846 feet) as the highest peak;
they are built of metamorphic rocks and of sedimentaries of the Paleozoic Era (more than 250
million years old). Also found there are tableland areas of Mesozoic limestones, about 150
million years old, containing such large caves as the Domica-Aggtelek Cave on the Slovak-
Hungarian boundary, which is 13 miles long. Mountain groups of volcanic origin are important in
this part of the Carpathians; the largest among them is Polana (4,784 feet).

Compared with the Outer Western Carpathians, the Outer Eastern Carpathians, which are their
continuation, are higher and show a more compact banded structure. The highest mountain
group is the Chernogora on the Ukrainian side, with Goverla (Hoverla; 6,762 feet) as the highest
peak. The Inner Eastern Carpathians attain their highest altitude in the Rodna (Rodnei) Massif in
Romania; they are built of crystalline rocks and reach a peak in Pietrosu (7,556 feet). To the
south, extinct volcanoes in the Climani and Harghita ranges have, to some extent, kept their
original conical shape; the highest peaks of these ranges are 6,890 feet and 5,906 feet,
respectively. Fringing the true Eastern Carpathians runs a narrow zone called the sub-
Carpathians, which is made up of folded Cenozoic rocks superimposed on the sub-Carpathian
structural depression.

TRENDING TOPICS

Dred Scott decision

Aristotle

American civil rights movement

Romanticism
French Revolution

Sir Isaac Newton

communism

Golgi apparatus

Mona Lisa

photosynthesis

The Southern Carpathians culminate in the Fgra Mountains (highest point Moldoveanu, 8,346
feet), which show Alpine-type relief forms. The western part of the Southern Carpathiansthat
is, the Banat Mountains and the mountains of eastern Serbia (which, at the Iron Gate, are split
apart by the gap valley of the Danube)do not exceed an altitude of 5,000 feet.

The Bihor Massif, which occupies an isolated position inside the Carpathian arc, features
widespread flat summit plains bordered by narrow, deep-cut valleys. The highest peak is
Curcubta (6,067 feet).

Finally, mention should be made of the Transylvanian Plateau. This is made up of poorly resistant
Cenozoic rocks and characterized by a forestless hilly landscape with elevations of 1,500 to 2,300
feet above sea level; the valleys are cut to depths of 325 and 650 feet.

www.britannica.com