This page lists 75 geological features that start with M, from “Mauna Loa” to “Marble”. The list covers towering volcanoes, famous mountain peaks, deep ocean trenches, caves, craters, rivers bends, rocks, and hidden structures inside the Earth. Whether you are studying for a class, planning a trip, or just curious about the planet, these entries give you a quick way to explore.
Geological features are the natural landforms, rocks, and structures that make up the surface and interior of the Earth. Some, like “Mount Vesuvius”, changed history when it buried the Roman towns of Pompeii and Herculaneum in 79 AD.
Below you’ll find the table with the feature, region, characteristics, and description for each entry.
Feature: The name of the landform, rock, or structure, so you can quickly spot the one you want to look up or learn about.
Region: The country, state, or part of the world where you can find the feature, which helps you place it on a map.
Characteristics: A short label for the feature’s type and main traits, such as “stratovolcano” or “limestone cave system”, so you can compare entries at a glance.
Description: A brief explanation of what the feature is, how it formed, and why it matters, giving you the key facts in plain language.
Geological features
| Feature | Region | Characteristics |
|---|---|---|
| Mauna Loa | Hawaii, USA | Shield volcano, active |
| Mauna Kea | Hawaii, USA | Dormant shield volcano |
| Mount Everest | Nepal and China | Fold mountain, highest peak |
| Mount Fuji | Japan | Stratovolcano, symmetrical cone |
| Mount Vesuvius | Italy | Stratovolcano, active |
| Mount St. Helens | Washington, USA | Stratovolcano, active |
| Mount Kilimanjaro | Tanzania | Stratovolcano, dormant |
| Mount Rainier | Washington, USA | Stratovolcano, glaciated |
| Mount Etna | Sicily, Italy | Stratovolcano, very active |
| Mount Pinatubo | Philippines | Stratovolcano, active |
| Mount Tambora | Indonesia | Stratovolcano, active |
| Mount Erebus | Antarctica | Stratovolcano, active |
| Mount Elbrus | Russia | Stratovolcano, dormant |
| Mount Olympus | Greece | Fault-block mountain |
| Mont Blanc | France and Italy | Fold mountain, glaciated |
| Matterhorn | Switzerland and Italy | Pyramid peak, glacial horn |
| Mount McKinley (Denali) | Alaska, USA | Fold mountain, highest in North America |
| Mount Kenya | Kenya | Extinct stratovolcano, glaciated |
| Mount Cook (Aoraki) | New Zealand | Alpine peak, glaciated |
| Mount Whitney | California, USA | Granite peak, fault-block |
| Mount Logan | Yukon, Canada | Massive fold mountain |
| Mount Mazama | Oregon, USA | Collapsed volcano, caldera |
| Mount Merapi | Java, Indonesia | Stratovolcano, very active |
| Mount Mayon | Philippines | Stratovolcano, symmetrical cone |
| Mount Meager | British Columbia, Canada | Volcanic massif, active |
| Mount Nyiragongo | DR Congo | Stratovolcano, lava lake |
| Mount Katmai | Alaska, USA | Stratovolcano, caldera |
| Mid-Atlantic Ridge | Atlantic Ocean | Underwater mountain range, divergent boundary |
| Mid-ocean ridge | Global oceans | Underwater mountain chain, spreading center |
| Mariana Trench | Western Pacific Ocean | Deepest ocean trench |
| Mammoth Cave | Kentucky, USA | Limestone cave system |
| Meteor Crater | Arizona, USA | Impact crater |
| Monument Valley | Arizona and Utah, USA | Sandstone buttes, desert |
| Mesa | Southwestern USA | Flat-topped landform, erosional |
| Moraine | Glaciated regions worldwide | Glacial deposit, ridge of debris |
| Meander | River floodplains worldwide | River bend, fluvial |
| Moulin | Glaciers and ice sheets | Vertical shaft in ice |
| Mud volcano | Azerbaijan, Indonesia, Trinidad | Mud and gas vent |
| Mudflat | Coastal areas worldwide | Tidal sediment flat |
| Mountain range | Global | Chain of mountains |
| Massif | Global | Large mountain mass |
| Magma chamber | Beneath volcanoes | Underground reservoir of molten rock |
| Mantle plume | Hotspots like Hawaii and Iceland | Upwelling of hot rock |
| Maar | Germany, Iceland, USA | Volcanic crater, explosion |
| Mesosiderite | Antarctica and others | Meteorite type |
| Mohorovicic Discontinuity | Global | Boundary between crust and mantle |
| Mid-Continent Rift | Central North America | Failed rift valley |
| Moine Thrust | Scotland | Major fault, thrust belt |
| Mono Lake tufa towers | California, USA | Limestone spires, lake formations |
| Meteora | Greece | Sandstone pillars |
| Moeraki Boulders | New Zealand | Spherical concretions |
| Mount Baker | Washington, USA | Stratovolcano, glaciated |
| Mount Shasta | California, USA | Stratovolcano, dormant |
| Mount Hood | Oregon, USA | Stratovolcano, glaciated |
| Mount Lassen | California, USA | Lava dome volcano |
| Mount Redoubt | Alaska, USA | Stratovolcano, active |
| Mount Pelee | Martinique | Stratovolcano, active |
| Mount Unzen | Japan | Lava dome complex, active |
| Mount Asama | Japan | Stratovolcano, active |
| Mount Ararat | Turkey | Stratovolcano, dormant |
| Mount Sinai | Egypt | Granite mountain |
| Mount Kosciuszko | New South Wales, Australia | Rounded mountain, glaciated in past |
| Mount Roraima | Venezuela, Guyana, Brazil | Tepui, flat-topped sandstone mountain |
| Mount Ruapehu | New Zealand | Stratovolcano, active |
| Mount Rushmore | South Dakota, USA | Granite mountain, carved |
| Mount Tamalpais | California, USA | Ridge, coastal mountain |
| Mackenzie Mountains | Northwest Territories, Canada | Mountain range, remote |
| Mourne Mountains | Northern Ireland | Granite mountain range |
| Mohave Desert | California, Nevada, Arizona, USA | Desert, basin and range |
| Mojave Crater Field | Mojave Desert | Volcanic cinder cones |
| Mesabi Range | Minnesota, USA | Iron ore ridge |
| Mackinac Breccia | Michigan, USA | Rock formation, collapse breccia |
| Mid-Atlantic Ridge Iceland rift | Iceland | Exposed rift valley |
| Mylonite | Fault zones worldwide | Metamorphic rock, shear zone |
| Marble | Italy, Greece, Vermont | Metamorphic rock |
Descriptions
Mauna Loa
The largest active volcano on Earth by volume. It rises gently from the Pacific seafloor and erupts fluid lava that builds broad, sloping flanks.
Mauna Kea
Measured from the ocean floor, it is the tallest mountain on Earth at over 33,000 feet. Its summit is home to major astronomical observatories.
Mount Everest
The highest mountain above sea level at 29,032 feet. It formed as the Indian plate collided with Asia and still rises slightly each year.
Mount Fuji
Japan’s tallest peak and an active but quiet volcano. Its near-perfect cone shape makes it one of the most recognized mountains in the world.
Mount Vesuvius
The volcano that buried Pompeii and Herculaneum in 79 AD. It sits above Naples and is considered one of the most dangerous volcanoes in the world.
Mount St. Helens
Famous for its catastrophic 1980 eruption, which blew away the north side of the mountain. It is the deadliest and most economically destructive volcanic event in US history.
Mount Kilimanjaro
Africa’s highest peak at 19,341 feet. This freestanding volcanic mountain has three cones, and its glaciers have shrunk sharply in recent decades.
Mount Rainier
An active volcano with the largest glacier system in the contiguous United States. It is considered a major hazard because of possible volcanic mudflows.
Mount Etna
Europe’s tallest active volcano, erupting frequently for thousands of years. Its lava flows and ash regularly affect nearby towns and airports.
Mount Pinatubo
Its 1991 eruption was one of the largest of the 20th century. The ash and gas it threw into the atmosphere cooled global temperatures for about two years.
Mount Tambora
Its 1815 eruption was the most powerful in recorded history. It caused the 1816 “Year Without a Summer” across the Northern Hemisphere.
Mount Erebus
The southernmost active volcano on Earth. It has a long-lived lava lake in its summit crater.
Mount Elbrus
The highest peak in Europe at 18,510 feet. It is a twin-coned volcano in the Caucasus Mountains.
Mount Olympus
The highest mountain in Greece and, in myth, the home of the gods. Its jagged peaks rise steeply close to the Aegean coast.
Mont Blanc
The highest peak in the Alps at about 15,777 feet. It is topped by thick ice and cut by long glaciers and deep valleys.
Matterhorn
A steep, four-sided pyramid of rock carved by glaciers. It is one of the most recognizable peaks in the Alps.
Mount McKinley (Denali)
North America’s tallest peak at 20,310 feet. It rises from low surroundings, giving it one of the largest base-to-peak heights on land.
Mount Kenya
An eroded volcanic peak just south of the equator that still holds small glaciers. It is the second highest mountain in Africa.
Mount Cook (Aoraki)
The highest mountain in New Zealand, found in the Southern Alps. It is surrounded by large glaciers and steep rock faces.
Mount Whitney
The highest peak in the contiguous United States at 14,505 feet. It forms part of the eastern edge of the Sierra Nevada.
Mount Logan
The highest mountain in Canada and one of the largest by base circumference on Earth. Its broad massif is heavily glaciated.
Mount Mazama
A volcano that collapsed about 7,700 years ago after a huge eruption. The resulting basin now holds Crater Lake.
Mount Merapi
One of Indonesia’s most active volcanoes, erupting frequently with hot gas and ash flows. Many people live on its slopes despite the danger.
Mount Mayon
Known for its almost perfectly shaped cone. It is the most active volcano in the Philippines.
Mount Meager
A volcanic complex that produced Canada’s largest recorded landslide in 2010. It is part of the Garibaldi volcanic belt.
Mount Nyiragongo
Home to one of the largest lava lakes in the world. Its runny lava can flow very fast down the slopes.
Mount Katmai
Site of the huge 1912 Novarupta eruption, one of the largest of the 20th century. The area created the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes.
Mid-Atlantic Ridge
A long chain of undersea mountains where the Eurasian and North American plates and the African and South American plates pull apart. New seafloor forms here constantly.
Mid-ocean ridge
A vast system of undersea mountains running about 40,000 miles around the globe. Magma rises here to create new oceanic crust.
Mariana Trench
The deepest known place in Earth’s oceans, reaching almost 36,000 feet. It forms where the Pacific plate sinks beneath the Mariana plate.
Mammoth Cave
The longest known cave system in the world, with over 400 miles of mapped passages. It was carved by water dissolving limestone.
Meteor Crater
A bowl-shaped crater about 4,000 feet wide formed by a meteorite impact roughly 50,000 years ago. It is one of the best preserved impact sites on Earth.
Monument Valley
A desert landscape of towering sandstone buttes and mesas. Wind and water slowly eroded the surrounding rock to leave these isolated formations.
Mesa
A broad, flat-topped hill with steep sides, capped by hard rock that resists erosion. Mesas are common in dry regions.
Moraine
A ridge or mound of rock and soil left behind by a moving glacier. It marks where the ice once reached.
Meander
A winding curve in a river caused by erosion on the outer bank and deposition on the inner bank. Over time meanders can shift across a valley.
Moulin
A narrow, tube-like shaft in a glacier where surface meltwater drains down into the ice. It can carry water all the way to the bedrock.
Mud volcano
A cone or pool formed when mud, water, and gas push up through the ground. Some are small bubbling pits and others grow into large hills.
Mudflat
A coastal wetland of fine mud that is exposed at low tide and covered at high tide. It is an important feeding ground for birds.
Mountain range
A long series of connected mountains linked by high ground. Most are formed by colliding tectonic plates or volcanic activity.
Massif
A compact group of mountains or a single large mountain mass, often bounded by faults or valleys. Mont Blanc is a well-known example.
Magma chamber
A large pool of molten rock deep underground that feeds volcanic eruptions. It slowly builds pressure as magma collects.
Mantle plume
A column of hot rock rising from deep in the Earth’s mantle. It can create volcanic hotspots far from plate edges.
Maar
A broad, low crater formed when rising magma meets groundwater and causes a violent steam explosion. Many fill with water to form lakes.
Mesosiderite
Not a landform but a rare type of stony-iron meteorite that is a mix of metal and silicate rock. It records early events in the solar system.
Mohorovicic Discontinuity
Often called the Moho, this boundary marks the change from the Earth’s crust to the denser mantle below. Seismic waves speed up as they cross it.
Mid-Continent Rift
A 1.1-billion-year-old rift that tried to split North America apart but failed. It left behind thick volcanic rocks beneath the Great Lakes region.
Moine Thrust
A major fault in northwest Scotland where older rocks were pushed over younger ones. It was key to early understanding of mountain building.
Mono Lake tufa towers
Spires of calcium carbonate that formed underwater where freshwater springs meet alkaline lake water. They stand exposed after the lake level dropped.
Meteora
Huge rock pillars rising from the Thessaly plain, topped by medieval monasteries. They were shaped by millions of years of erosion.
Moeraki Boulders
Large, round boulders scattered across Koekohe Beach. They formed slowly on the seabed as minerals built up around a core.
Mount Baker
An active, heavily glaciated volcano in the North Cascades. It holds more snow and ice than any other Cascade volcano except Mount Rainier.
Mount Shasta
A large volcano in the Cascade Range that is visible for many miles. It has several summit cones and glaciers on its slopes.
Mount Hood
Oregon’s tallest peak and a potentially active volcano. It has several glaciers and frequent small earthquakes.
Mount Lassen
One of the world’s largest lava domes, last erupted from 1914 to 1917. It features active hydrothermal areas with boiling pools.
Mount Redoubt
An active volcano that has erupted several times since the 1960s. Its ash plumes can disrupt air travel near Anchorage.
Mount Pelee
Its 1902 eruption destroyed the town of Saint-Pierre in minutes, killing about 30,000 people. It is one of the deadliest eruptions in history.
Mount Unzen
A volcanic group in Kyushu that produced a deadly pyroclastic flow in 1991. Lava domes grew in the crater for years afterwards.
Mount Asama
One of the most active volcanoes in Japan. It frequently produces ash and sometimes larger explosive eruptions.
Mount Ararat
The highest peak in Turkey, with two volcanic cones. It is traditionally linked with the resting place of Noah’s Ark.
Mount Sinai
A rugged mountain of ancient granite in the Sinai Peninsula. It is tied to biblical tradition and is a popular pilgrimage site.
Mount Kosciuszko
The highest peak on mainland Australia at 7,310 feet. It is a gently sloped summit shaped by ancient ice.
Mount Roraima
A huge table-top mountain with cliffs several hundred feet high. Its isolated plateau holds many unique plants and animals.
Mount Ruapehu
The largest active volcano in New Zealand, with a crater lake near the summit. It is also a popular ski area.
Mount Rushmore
A granite mountain in the Black Hills that is carved with the faces of four US presidents. The granite is very hard and weathers slowly.
Mount Tamalpais
A prominent peak north of San Francisco that rises above the Bay. Its rock includes chert and serpentine formed on an ancient seafloor.
Mackenzie Mountains
A long, remote range of rugged peaks and deep canyons. Much of it is undeveloped wilderness.
Mourne Mountains
A rounded range of granite hills rising near the Irish Sea. The highest peak, Slieve Donard, is the tallest in Northern Ireland.
Mohave Desert
A hot desert with dry lakebeds, dunes, and volcanic cones. It also contains Death Valley and Joshua tree forests.
Mojave Crater Field
Not an official feature name, but a general term for clusters of old cinder cones across the desert floor. They were created by past volcanic activity.
Mesabi Range
A long ridge of iron-rich rock in northeastern Minnesota. It has been a major source of iron ore in the United States for over a century.
Mackinac Breccia
A jumble of angular rock fragments formed when underground cavities collapsed. It is visible at places like Arch Rock on Mackinac Island.
Mid-Atlantic Ridge Iceland rift
One of the few places where the Mid-Atlantic Ridge rises above sea level. Visitors can walk through a rift where two plates are pulling apart.
Mylonite
A fine-grained rock formed when rocks are stretched and crushed deep inside a fault zone. It often has a streaked, banded look.
Marble
A rock made when limestone is changed by heat and pressure. It is prized for sculpture and building.