A mesa is an isolated, flat-topped elevation, ridge or hill, which is bounded from all sides by steep escarpments and stands distinctly above a surrounding plain. Mesas characteristically consist of flat-lying soft sedimentary rocks capped by a more resistant layer or layers of harder rock, e.g. shales overlain by sandstones. The resistant layer acts as a caprock that forms the flat summit of a mesa. The caprock can consist of either sedimentary rocks such as sandstone and limestone; dissected lava flows; or a deeply eroded duricrust. Unlike plateau, whose usage does not imply horizontal layers of bedrock, e.g. Tibetan Plateau, the term mesa applies exclusively to the landforms built of flat-lying strata. Instead, flat-topped plateaus are specifically known as tablelands.
Lushan County is located in the central and western part of Henan Province, at the eastern foot of Funiu Mountain, longitude 112 degrees 14-113 degrees 14 east, latitude 33 degrees 34-34 degrees 00 north, Luoyang City in the north, Nanyang City in the south, and Pingdingshan City in the east. It is located in the transitional zone from north subtropical zone to warm temperate zone, with an average annual temperature of 14.8 ℃ and an average annual precipitation of 1000 mm. The county covers an area of 2432.32 square kilometers, with 25 townships (towns and offices) and 559 administrative villages with a total population of 927000. Zheng Yao Expressway, Taiao Expressway, National Highway 311, National Highway 207 and Provincial Highway S242, S231 run across the county. The Yaoshan-Central Plains Giant Buddha Scenic spot is a national 5A tourist scenic spot and a national key scenic spot, while the Shammei Valley Scenic spot is a national 4A tourist scenic spot with ancient buildings such as Confucian Temple and Ming Dynasty.