User:Mehmet Karatay/Mount Kenya summary test
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Mount Kenya is the highest mountain in Kenya and the second highest in Africa, after Kilimanjaro.[1] The highest peaks of the mountain are Batian (5,199 metres (17,057 ft)), Nelion (5,188 metres (17,021 ft)) and Point Lenana (4,985 metres (16,355 ft)). Mount Kenya is located in central Kenya, just south of the equator, around (150 kilometres (93 mi)) north-northeast of the capital Nairobi.[1]
Mount Kenya | |
---|---|
Highest point | |
Elevation | 5,199 metres (17,058 ft) |
Prominence | 3,825 m (12,546 ft) Ranked 32nd |
Listing | Seven Second Summits |
Coordinates | 0°9′S 37°18′E |
Geography | |
Location | Kenya |
Topo map | private, Mt Kenya by Wielochowski and Savage |
Geology | |
Mountain type | Stratovolcano (extinct) |
Last eruption | 2.6-3.1 Ma |
Climbing | |
First ascent | 1899 by Halford Mackinder |
Easiest route | rock climb |
Mount Kenya is a Stratovolcano created appxomiately 3 million years after the opening of the East African rift.[2] It was covered by an ice cap for thousands you years. This has resulted in very eroded slopes[3] and numerous valleys radiating from the centre.[4] There are currently 11 small glaciers. The mountain is an important source of water for much of Kenya.[5]
The volcano was discoved by Europeans in 1849 by Johann Ludwig Krapf,[6] but the scientific community remained skeptical about his reports of snow and ice so close to the equator.[7] The existence of Mount Kenya was confirmed in 1883 and it was first explored in 1887.[8] The summit was finally climbed by a team led by Halford John Mackinder in 1899.[9] Today there are many walking routes, climbs and huts on the mountain.[10]
There are eight distinct vegetation bands from the base to the summit.[11] The lower slopes are covered by different types of forest. Many species are endemic or highly characterestic of Mount Kenya such as the lobelias, the senecios and the rock hyrax.[12] Because of this, an area of 715 km² (276 mi²) around the centre of the mountain is designated a National Park[13] and listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.[14] The park receives over 15,000 visitors per year.[5]