Amazing Facts about Magnificient Mount Everest

Posted on: by Dolma Ecotourism

As you all know, Mount Everest is the tallest mountain in the world, and it is as glorious and mesmerizing as its height. But, as eminent the Mount Everest is, it is equally mysterious and full of facts too. So today let us dig in to some facts about the mysterious Mount Everest.

Facts about the Mount Everest Height

The current official elevation of Mount Everest measured by Nepal as well as China is 8,848 meters/29,029 ft. In 1856, the height was propounded to be 8,840 meters/29,002 ft by Andrew Waugh. He came upon his result after several years of calculations based on an observation made by the Great Trigonometric Survey. The current height of Everest was first determined by an Indian survey in 1965 which was subsequently confirmed by Chinese survey in 1975.

However, China remeasured the rock height of Everest and came with a result of 8844.43 meters casing an argument between Nepal and China about the official height. Then, in 2010, both nation agreed upon the height of Mount Everest as 8,848 meters.

And now, here is another interesting fact: it is said that Mount Everest is formed from the collision between the Tibetan plate and Indian Plate and even now as a result of a small collision in tectonic plates, the Everest’s height increases by 0.25 inch every year.

Mt Everest Location

Facts about the name of Mount Everest Height

The name Everest was named by Andrew Waugh, the British Surveyor General of India, after his surveyor and his predecessor, Sir George Everest. Waugh named the mountain as Everest as several local names existed including Sagarmatha in Nepali, Chomolungma in Tibetan and Deodhunga in Darjeeling and it was very difficult to favor one over others.

Mount Everest Sunset View

Facts about the deaths in Mount Everest

To climb this tallest and glorious mountain is the wish of many, but the wish doesn’t come true so easily. Around 400 people have lost their life trying to climb the Everest. The reasons for deaths avalanches, injury from fall, collapsing of ice, exposure in the higher altitude, frostbite or health problems relating to the conditions on mountains. However, not all the bodies have been found, so the reason for those deaths is not available.

The highest death was on April 25, 2015, during the earthquake which triggered an avalanche and killed more than 22 peoples.

Facts about the total attempts

Everest Base Camp

As I said earlier, Mount Everest is on the list of many peoples. Every year hundreds of them make their attempt to achieve this glory. Around 7,000 summits by 4,000 over people has been on the record.

Facts about the route to climb the Mount Everest

You probably didn’t know this, but Everest can be climbed from two different routes, the southeast ridge from Nepal and the north ridge Tibet. The southeast ridge from Nepal is technically easier than the other one and the most frequently used one. It is the same route used by Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay Sherpa.

Facts about the first climber

Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay Sherpa were the successful climbers to make up to the top of Mount Everest for the first time. They made it to the top on May 29, 1953, at 11:30 via South Col route. Officially Hillary and Sherpa might be the first to be each the summit; there have been several attempts in the past which make us question about the history. On June 8, 1924, George Mallory and Andrew Irvine attempted via Northeast Ridge and never returned, well no one knows if they made it to the summit or not.

Facts about the first female climbers

Junko Tabei of Japan was the first female to make it up to the peak in 1975. Then in October 1988, Lydia Bardey became the first female ascent without supplemental oxygen. The first Nepalese female to climb the Everest was Pasang Lhamu Sherpa in 1993, but sadly she couldn’t make it back as she lost her life while returning.

Facts about the most repetitive climber

Making up to the world’s tallest mountain isn’t a piece of cake but for Sherpa’s, it is easier than the rest of us and the fact about the most repetitive climber will make you believe it. Kami Rita Sherpa holds the record of making up to the summit for a highest number of time, to be precise 22 times. Earlier, this record was held by Apa Sherpa, who climbed Everest for 21 times jointly with Phurba Tashi and Shishir Bhattarai.

Fact about the fastest ascent

Climbing the tallest mountain needs times and patience, otherwise, accident might occur, and our journey might become more challenging. But, Pemba Dorje of Nepal climbed the Everest in 8 hours and 10 minutes only, with an oxygen supplement from South Base Camp. Aman Kumar Sinha of India made it in 20 hours and 24 minutes from South Base Camp without oxygen supplement. However, from North Base Camp, Hans Kammerlander of Italy made it up to the summit without oxygen supplement in 16 hours and 45 minutes.
 

Facts about the eldest and younger climbers

The old saying “Age is just a number” perfectly fits this fact. It is amazing what a person can accomplish given to their confidence and will. Yuichiro Miura of Japan is the oldest person to make up to the summit. He made to the peak on May 23, 2013, when he was 80 years 224 days old. Tamae Watanabe, also from Japan is the eldest female to climb the summit at the age of 73 years and 180 days. Now let’s talk about the younger climbers, the youngest one to climb the Mount Everest is Jorden Romero from the United States, who reached the summit at the age of 13 years ten month and ten days old.

Facts about the climb by disable people

<div style=”text-align: justify;”>“Where there is a will, there is a way” this another saying comes true with this fact. We rest for days if we suffer from a small injury and here some peoples who have conquered the tallest mountain despite of their, so ironical, isn’t it? Sudarshan Gautam of Nepal (now in Canada), a man with no arms made it to the peak in 2013. Several other climbers with amputations, blindness, cancer and other disease have made up to the summit successfully.
Mount Everest

Fact about the Puja Ceremony for safety

This fact is very interesting. As I said, Mount Everest is also called Chomolungma in the Tibetan language, which means Goddess Mother of Mountains. Now, as per the Buddhist culture, the peak is a sacred place and requires all the climbers to ask permission and safe passage in their route. This ceremony takes place prior to the start of climbing in Base Camp and is performed by Buddhist Lama and monks. They ask for the protection and safety of climbers and bless them for their success and safe return and to the equipment too. Most of the climbers may not believe this fact, but Sherpa people don’t start their expedition before this puja ceremony.

Mount Everest isn’t the tallest mountain on Earth

Well, this fact might be a bit of shock for you, but it is true. Mount Everest is the highest point on the Earth, but it isn’t the tallest one. The tallest one is Mount Kea in Hawaii which us 10,200 meters/33,464.6 ft. while Mount Everest is 8,848 meters/29,029 ft. Now, you might be wondering why the honor went to the Everest? Because Mount Kea’s height of 10,200 meters is only when measured from its base, if we measure its height above sea level, then it only attains 4,205 meters/13,769 ft.

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