The Alps were raised some 15 million years ago as Africa, drifting northwards, collided with the southern edge of Europe. These spires are the eroded remains of an ancient seabed that once stretched between the two continents. But these are just the Alpine foothills. The range at its centre rises to three miles high and is crowned with permanent snows. The Matterhorn, its summit too steep to hold a snow field. Mont Blanc - the highest peak in Western Europe. The distinctive jagged shapes of the Alps were carved by those great mountain sculptors - the glaciers. Immense rivers of moving ice, laden with rock, grind their way down the mountains, gouging out deep valleys. They're the most powerful erosive force on our planet.


阿尔卑斯山形成于1500万年前，它是由向北漂移的非洲板块与欧洲板块的南部边缘相互碰撞形成的。这些历经侵蚀的山峰就是位于两个大陆之间的古老海底的遗迹。但这只是阿尔卑斯山的山麓，它的主要山脉高达4000多米，终年冰雪覆盖。它的最高峰马特峰太陡峭，所以无法形成雪原。勃朗峰是西欧的最高峰。阿尔卑斯山参差错落的山形是伟大的山体雕刻师冰川的杰作。流动的巨大的冰河挟带着岩石向山下流去，碾磨出一条条深深的山谷。冰川是地球上最大的侵蚀力量。