Word of the Day
ARETE (uh-RAYT)
A sharp, narrow ridge of rock.
Common clues: Mountain ridge; Sharp ridge; Rugged ridge; Glacial product; Sharp mountain spur
Crossword puzzle frequency: 2 times a year
News: Heaven for hillwalkers
Video: Rochefort Arete
The
Garden Wall, an arête in Glacier National Park (U.S.).
An arête is a thin, almost knife-like, ridge of rock. Arêtes are typically formed when two glaciers erode parallel U-shaped valleys. An arete is the thin ridge of rock that is left separating the two valleys. Arêtes can also form when two glacial cirques erode towards one another, although frequently this results in a saddle-shaped pass, called a col. The word arête is actually French for fishbone; similar features in the Alps are described with the German equivalent term Grat.
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Arete".
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