Editing Mountain range (section)

==Erosion==
Mountain ranges are constantly subjected to [[erosion]]al forces which work to tear them down.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Hilton |first=Robert G. |last2=West |first2=A. Joshua |date=June 2020 |title=Mountains, erosion and the carbon cycle |url=https://www.nature.com/articles/s43017-020-0058-6 |journal=Nature Reviews Earth & Environment |language=en |volume=1 |issue=6 |pages=284–299 |doi=10.1038/s43017-020-0058-6 |issn=2662-138X}}</ref> The [[Sedimentary basin|basins]] adjacent to an eroding mountain range are then filled with sediments that are buried and turned into [[sedimentary rock]]. Erosion is at work while the mountains are being uplifted until the mountains are reduced to low hills and plains.

The early [[Cenozoic]] uplift of the [[Rocky Mountains]] of Colorado provides an example. As the uplift was occurring some {{convert|10000|ft|m}} of mostly [[Mesozoic]] sedimentary [[stratum|strata]] were removed by erosion over the core of the mountain range and spread as sand and clays across the [[Great Plains]] to the east.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cr.nps.gov/history/online_books/romo5/wegemann/sec6.htm|publisher=USGS|title=A Guide to the Geology of Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121024065844/http://www.cr.nps.gov/history/online_books/romo5/wegemann/sec6.htm |archive-date=2012-10-24 }}</ref> This mass of rock was removed as the range was actively undergoing uplift. The removal of such a mass from the core of the range most likely caused further uplift as the region adjusted [[isostasy|isostatically]] in response to the removed weight.

Rivers are traditionally believed to be the principal cause of mountain range erosion, by cutting into bedrock and transporting sediment. Computer simulation has shown that as mountain belts change from tectonically active to inactive, the rate of erosion drops because there are fewer abrasive particles in the water and fewer landslides.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Egholm|first1=David L.|last2=Knudsen|first2=Mads F.|last3=Sandiford|first3=Mike|title=Lifespan of mountain ranges scaled by feedbacks between landslide and erosion by rivers|journal=Nature|volume=498|issue=7455|pages=475–478|doi=10.1038/nature12218|pmid=23803847|year=2013|bibcode=2013Natur.498..475E|s2cid=4304803}}</ref>