Atlas Mountains

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The Atlas Mountains are a mountain range in northwest Africa extending about 2,400 km (1,500 miles) through Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia, and including The Rock of Gibraltar. The highest peak is Jbel Toubkal, with an elevation of 4,167 m (13,665 feet) located at Template:Coor dms in southwestern Morocco. The second highest mountain is the M'Goun of 4071 meters. The Atlas ranges separate the Mediterranean and Atlantic coastlines from the Sahara Desert. The population of the Atlas mountains are mainly Berber in Morocco and Arab in Algeria.

Because North America, Europe and Africa were connected eons ago, the Atlas mountains are believed to have originally been formed as part of Alleghenian orogeny. These mountains were formed when Africa and America collided, and were once a chain far higher than today's Himalaya. Today, the remains of this chain can be seen in the Fall line in the eastern United States. Some remnants can also be found in the later formed Appalachians in North America. The Sierra Nevada mountains in Spain were similarly formed in this continental collision.

The mountains are divided into the Grand Atlas of Morocco, which includes the Middle Atlas, High Atlas and Anti-Atlas. The lower Tell Atlas running near the coast and the larger Saharan Atlas running further south are located in Algeria.

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