Italy is located in southern Europe and comprises the long, boot-shaped Italian Peninsula, the southern side of Alps, the large plain of the Po Valley and some islands including Sicily and Sardinia. Corsica, although belonging to the Italian geographical region, has been a part of France since 1769. Italy is part of the Northern Hemisphere. Two of the Pelagie islands are located in the African continent.
The Albula Alps are a mountain range in the Alps of eastern Switzerland. They are considered to be part of the Central Eastern Alps, more specifically the Western Rhaetian Alps. They are named after the river Albula. The Albula Alps are separated from the Oberhalbstein Alps in the west by the Septimer Pass and the valley of the Sursés; from the Plessur Alps in the north-west by the Landwasser valley; from the Silvretta group in the north-east by the Flüela Pass; from the Bernina Range in the south-east by the Maloja Pass and the Inn valley.
The Bernese Alps are a mountain range of the Alps, located in western Switzerland. Although the name suggests that they are located in the Berner Oberland region of the canton of Bern, portions of the Bernese Alps are in the adjacent cantons of Valais, Fribourg and Vaud, the latter being usually named Fribourg Alps and Vaud Alps respectively. The highest mountain in the range, the Finsteraarhorn, is also the highest point in the canton of Bern.
The main chain of the Alps, also called the Alpine divide is the central line of mountains that forms the water divide of the range. Main chains of mountain ranges are traditionally designated in this way, and generally include the highest peaks of a range. The Alps are something of an unusual case in that several significant groups of mountains are separated from the main chain by sizable distances. Among these groups are the Dauphine Alps, the Eastern and Western Graians, the entire Bernese Alps, the Tödi, Albula and Silvretta groups, the Jura Mountains, Ortler and Adamello ranges, and the Dolomites of South Tyrol, as well as the lower Alps of Vorarlberg, Bavaria and Salzburg.
This article lists the principal mountain passes and tunnels in the Alps, and gives a history of transport across the Alps.
The Engadin or Engadine is a long high Alpine valley region in the eastern Swiss Alps in the canton of Graubünden in southeasternmost Switzerland with about 25,000 inhabitants. It follows the route of the Inn from its headwaters at Maloja Pass in the southwest running roughly northeast until the Inn flows into Austria, one hundred kilometers downstream. The En/Inn subsequently flows at Passau into the Danube, making it the only Swiss river to drain into the Black Sea. The Engadine is protected by high mountain ranges on all sides and is famous for its sunny climate, beautiful landscapes and outdoor activities.
The Central Eastern Alps, also referred to as Austrian Central Alps or just Central Alps comprise the main chain of the Eastern Alps in Austria and the adjacent regions of Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Italy and Slovenia.
Piz Bernina is the highest mountain in the Eastern Alps, the highest point of the Bernina Range, and the highest peak in the Rhaetian Alps. It rises 4,048.6 m (13,283 ft) and is located south of Pontresina and near the major Alpine resort of St. Moritz, in the Engadin valley. It is also the most easterly mountain higher than 4,000 m (13,000 ft) in the Alps, the highest point of the Swiss canton of Graubünden, and the fifth-most prominent peak in the Alps. Although the summit lies within Switzerland, the massif is on the border with Italy. The "shoulder" known as La Spedla is the highest point in the Italian Lombardy region.
The Ortler Alps are a mountain range of the Southern Limestone Alps mountain group in the Central Eastern Alps, in Italy and Switzerland.
The Bernina Range is a mountain range in the Alps of eastern Switzerland and northern Italy. It is considered to be part of the Rhaetian Alps within the Central Eastern Alps. It is one of the highest ranges of the Alps, covered with many glaciers. Piz Bernina, its highest peak, is the most easterly four thousand-metre peak in the Alps. The peak in the range which sees the most ascents is Piz Palü.
The Sesvenna Alps are a mountain range located in the Alps of eastern Switzerland, northern Italy and western Austria. They are considered to be part of the Central Eastern Alps. They are mostly notable for their high dolomitic peaks overlooking Scuol in the lower Engadine Valley, warranting them the name Engadine Dolomites.
The Bernina Pass is a high mountain pass in the Bernina Range of the Alps, in the canton of Graubünden (Grisons) in eastern Switzerland. It connects the famous resort town of St. Moritz in the Engadin valley with the Italian-speaking Val Poschiavo, which ends in the Italian town of Tirano in Valtellina. The pass lies a few kilometres east of Piz Bernina, and south of Val Minor.
The Oberhalbstein Alps or Platta Group are a mountain range in the Alps of eastern Switzerland and northern Italy. They are considered to be part of the Central Eastern Alps. The Oberhalbstein Alps are separated from the Lepontine Alps in the west by the Splügen Pass; from the Plessur Alps in the north by the river Albula; from the Albula Alps in the east by the Septimer Pass and the river Gelgia; from the Bernina Range in the south by the Val Bregaglia.
The Alps cover a large area. This article describes the delimitation of the Alps as a whole and of subdivisions of the range, follows the course of the main chain of the Alps and discusses the lakes and glaciers found in the region.
Eastern Alps is the name given to the eastern half of the Alps, usually defined as the area east of a line from Lake Constance and the Alpine Rhine valley up to the Splügen Pass at the Alpine divide and down the Liro River to Lake Como in the south. The peaks and mountain passes are lower than the Western Alps, while the range itself is broader and less arched.
Val Poschiavo is a valley in the southern, Italian-speaking part of the Swiss canton of Graubünden (Grisons). The main town is Poschiavo.
The Western Rhaetian Alps are a mountain range in the central part of the Alps.
The Lugano Prealps are a mountain range in the western part of the Alps. They are located in Canton Ticino and in Lombardy.
The Sobretta-Gavia Group is a mountain massif that extends between the upper Veltlin and the upper Valcamonica in the Italian provinces of Sondrio and Brescia.
Lombardy is an administrative region of Italy that is split into four geographic regions — mountains, alpine forest, and the upper and lower plains south of the Po river. These are crossed and dotted by dozens of rivers and lakes, the latter of which include some of the largest in Italy. The territory is the fourth largest in Italy by surface area with 24,000 square kilometres (9,300 sq mi).
