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Image of the Swiss Alps, covered in snow during the daytime. The Alpine region of Switzerland, conventionally referred to as the Swiss Alps, [1] represents a major natural feature of the country and is, along with the Swiss Plateau and the Swiss portion of the Jura Mountains, one of its three main physiographic regions.
However, the Siegfried Map offered greater precision than the Dufour Map, by using a scale of 1:25,000 for the Swiss Plateau, the French Prealps, the Jura Mountains and southern Ticino, and a scale of 1:50,000 for other mountain regions and the Swiss Alps.
All mountain heights and prominences on the list are from the largest-scale maps available. [2]However, heights sometime conflict on different scales. For example, the Fletschhorn is indicated to be 3,993 m (13,100 ft), 3,982 m (13,064 ft), and 3,984 m (13,071 ft) high on the 1:100'000, 1:50'000 and 1:25'000 Swisstopo map, respectively.
The Swiss Alps occupy the southern part of Switzerland. They were formed by the thrust of the African plate, which also caused the formation of the Jura in the north-east and the plateau between the two massifs. In terms of area the Alps constitute about 60% of the country, the plateau 30% and the Jura 10%.
Topographical map (relief map) of Switzerland showing the Jura range proper (Faltenjura) in the northwest and west, and the Alps in the south and east. The Swiss Jura is one of the three distinct geographical regions of Switzerland, the others being the Swiss plateau and the Swiss Alps. Most of the range covers the western border with France.
While smaller groups within the Alps may be easily defined by the passes on either side, defining larger units can be problematic. A traditional divide exists between the Western Alps and the Eastern Alps, which uses the Splügen Pass (Italian: Passo dello Spluga) on the Swiss-Italian border, together with the Rhine to the north and Lake Como in the south as the defining features.
Most of the 26 canton high points are located in the Swiss Alps. Others (with lower altitudes), are located in the Jura Mountains. The 14 lower summits (up to the Säntis) are within the hiking trail network. The ascent of the 11 higher summits involves rock climbing or glacier touring. Canton high points are shown as red dots.
However, heights often conflict on different topographic maps, even when created by the same cartographic institution. For example, the Fletschhorn is indicated to be 3993, 3982, and 3984.5 m high on the 1:100,000, 1:50,000 and 1:25,000 Swisstopo map, respectively. This table uses the latter map's (rounded) elevation.