Mount Olympus (Cyprus)
Olympus, or Chionistra, (Greek: Όλυμπος or Χιονίστρα; Turkish: Olimpos Tepesi) at 1,952 metres (6,404 ft), is the highest point in Cyprus.[3] It is located in the Troodos Mountains of Cyprus.[4] Mount Olympus peak and the "Troodos Square" fall under the territory of Platres in Limassol District. A British long range radar currently operates at Mount Olympus' peak. It has a highland warm-summer mediterranean climate.
Mount Olympus | |
---|---|
Chionistra | |
Highest point | |
Elevation | 1,952 m (6,404 ft)[1] |
Prominence | 1,952 m (6,404 ft)[2] |
Listing | Country high point Ultra |
Coordinates | 34°56′11″N 32°51′48″E[3] |
Geography | |
Mount Olympus Location of Mount Olympus in Cyprus | |
Location | Cyprus |
Parent range | Troodos |
Mount Olympus is formed of ultramafic rock, dominantly serpentinized harzburgite which is part of the Troodos ophiolite.[5]
The Mount Olympus Ski resort consists of the Sun Valley and North Face areas. Each area has its own ski lifts and runs, operated by the Cyprus Ski Club:
- Aphrodite or Sun Valley I, with a 125m T-bar ski lift and beginner-level slopes
- Hermes or Sun Valley II, with a 140m T-bar ski lift and intermediate-level slopes
- Dias/Zeus or North Face I, with a 380m chairlift and advanced-level slopes
- Hera or North Face II, with a 262m T-bar ski lift and beginner-level slopes
In the Sun Valley area there is a 55m rope tow baby lift as well.
Writing in the late first century BC or first century AD, the geographer Strabo reported that on one of its promontories was a temple to Aphrodite Acraea (Ancient Greek: Ἀφροδίτης Ἀκραίας) which means Aphrodite of the Heights, which women were forbidden to enter.[6]
References
- "Olympos (Chionistra)" on summitpost.org Retrieved 1 October 2011
- "Olympos" on Peaklist.org, Europe Ultra-Prominences Retrieved 1 October 2011
- "Olympus" on Peakbagger.com Retrieved 1 October 2011
- "Country Profile: Climate". Official Website of the Embassy of the Republic of Cyprus in Washington D.C. Archived from the original on 2012-02-05. Retrieved 2006-10-11..
- https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1029/2020JB021079 Aled D. Evans, Damon A. H. Teagle, Dave Craw, Timothy J. Henstock, Ismael Himar Falcon-Suarez. Uplift and Exposure of Serpentinized Massifs: Modeling Differential Serpentinite Diapirism and Exhumation of the Troodos Mantle Sequence, Cyprus. JGR Solid Earth, Volume 126, Issue 6, June 2021.
- Strabo. Geography, XIV.6.3.
External links