[Rockhounds] Why Don't Mountains Grow Forever?

[Kreigh Tomaszewski]

Imagine a world where mountains grow so high, they poke through the upper
atmosphere and create a rocky maze for pilots to navigate.

Maybe that world exists somewhere in the far reaches of the universe. But
on Earth, mountains can't grow much higher than *Mount Everest*
<https://www.livescience.com/23359-mount-everest.html>, which extends
29,029 feet (8,840 meters) above sea level.

So what stops our planet's mountains from growing … forever?

There are two major factors that limit mountains' growth, said Nadine
McQuarrie, a professor in the department of geology and environmental
science at the University of Pittsburgh.

https://www.livescience.com/how-tall-can-mountains-get.html