Morphological mapping of mountains on a global scale: combining topographic representation with tectonic features

Current mountain mapping and cartographic designs sometimes fail to balance detailed topographic data with regional mountain features and do not establish a clear correlation between mountain morphology and tectonic processes. In this paper, a thematic map is designed to create impressions that reflect the overall characteristics of global mountains. This map represents the spatial distribution, morphological types, ranges and peaks of mountains worldwide. Its utility is enhanced by integrating clear mountain differentiation characterization and plate tectonic information. By overlaying tectonic boundaries and hotspots onto mountain representations, the internal genesis of mountains becomes intuitively visible. The map is compiled using a high-resolution (90 m) mountain characterization dataset, which depicts approximately 39,624,601 km2 of mountainous land, comprising 26.6% of the global land area.