Compact Mountain Range

Compact mountain range crossword clue. THE BIG ONE at The Daily Telegraph (Sydney) on 26 May 2017, 6 letters

The answer is MASSIF

Massif meaning

1. A large mountain mass or compact group of connected mountains forming an independent portion of a range.
2. A large section or block of the earth’s crust that is more rigid than the surrounding rock and has been moved or displaced as a unit.

In mountaineering and climbing literature, a massif is frequently used to denote the main mass of an individual mountain. The massif is a smaller structural unit of the crust than a tectonic plate and is considered the fourth largest driving force in geomorphology.

The word is taken from French (in which the word also means “massive”), where it is used to refer to a large mountain mass or compact group of connected mountains forming an independent portion of a range. One of the most notable European examples of a massif is the Massif Central of the Auvergne region of France.

The Face on Mars is an example of an extraterrestrial massif.