A Mountaineer By Heart? 65 Mount Everest Facts About The Highest Peak

Mount Everest's peak is iconic, it's Earth’s highest peak and attracts millions of climbers from around the world.

Mount Everest was formed more than 60 million years ago when India’s continent plate collided with that of Asia. Mount Everest is a Himalayan Mountain range that is sandwiched between Nepal and Tibet.

Mount Everest happens to be the highest point on Earth, standing at 29,032 ft (8,849 m). The peak is named after Sir George Everest, who was the former British Surveyor General of India, in the 18th century. Climbing Mount Everest is not a simple task, the world's highest mountain has one of the most chaotic climates and journeys to reach the top. The Everest summit and the region surrounding the summit have a long and rich history. Continue reading to find out interesting Mount Everest facts.

Facts About Mount Everest

You might be surprised to know, but Mount Everest is still growing! Everest grows about 1.7 in (44 mm) every day.

Mount Everest's height was initially estimated to be 29,002 ft (8,840 m) in 1856. However, in 1955, the height was reevaluated, and the measurement was raised to 29,028 ft (8,848 m), which is currently the height of Mt Everest stated by the official Nepalese government. Scientists are now re-measuring the world's highest mountain, as there is a possibility that the height of Himalayan mountains may have altered since the 2015 earthquake. The project was supposed to be completed by 2020 but was delayed because of the Covid-19 pandemic. The people of Nepal initially gave Mount Everest the name Sagarmatha, which means 'Goddess of the Sky.' People of Tibet refer to Mt Everest as Chomolungma, which means 'Goddess Mother of Mountains.'

In 1841, Sir George West, a surveyor, and geographer was the first western person to recognize Mount Everest. You might be surprised to know, but Mount Everest is not the world’s tallest mountain. The Mauna Kea of Hawaii's island is taller than Mount Everest but not higher. Everest is 29,028 ft (8,849 m) above sea level, whereas Mauna Kea of Hawaiian island stands at just 13,796 ft (4,250 m). Mauna Kea, on the other hand, stretches 6,004 m (19,700 ft) beneath the Pacific Ocean. Mauna Kea mountain is buried in water for more than half of its length. From base to peak, Mt Everest is 13,780 ft (4,200 m) on the south side and 17,060 ft (5,200 m) on the Tibetan side. The top of Chimborazo Mountain in Ecuador is the furthest from the earth's core, due to Earth's round shape.

Mount Everest is the world's highest-altitude graveyard. Because of the level of difficulty and danger involved, the attempts to climb Mount Everest have taken the lives of over 300 mountaineers. At least 200 people have died on Everest's slopes, most of them in what is now commonly known as the 'Death Zone'. Cold temperatures end up mummifying the bodies of those who have passed away while attempting to climb Mount Everest. Bringing the bodies down is incredibly tough and risky. As a result, they are left in the state in which they perished on the mountain. The highest mountain also happens to be one of the dirtiest mountains in the world. On the famous peak, more than 50 tons of climbing garbage are strewn about. The Everest Mountain is gathering rubbish because of many Everest summit attempts. Mt Everest is one of the dirtiest mountains because of the sheer volume of garbage.

The Summit Of Mount Everest

 The summit of Mount Everest is the highest known point of the mountain. Throughout the years, many climbers have conquered the highest point of Everest.

When people reach the summit of Mount Everest, their bodies actually start dying, as strange as that sounds. Body cells gradually begin to die in the death zone of Mount Everest, which is over 26,400 ft (8000 m). This is due to a lack of oxygen. It's very difficult for human bodies to survive at these heights. The summit of Everest has extreme wind flows. The top of Mount Everest reaches the upper troposphere, just above the stratosphere's edge. This exposes the summit of Mount Everest to jet stream winds that are both rapid and cold. Wind speeds of up to 175 mph (280 kph) were recorded at the summit in the month of February during the year 2004. At the top, winds exceeding 100 mph (160 kph) are common. They are very difficult to face, even with proper climbing and protection equipment.

You might be surprised to know, but an actual wedding has happened at the top of Mount Everest! A couple from Nepal got married at the Everest summit in 2005. The couple had about 10 minutes to complete the rituals of the wedding. On May 14, 2005, Didier Delsalle, a fighter pilot from France, made a record by landing a helicopter on the summit of Mount Everest. He accomplished this amazing feat using the Euro copter AS350.

Reinhold Messner and Peter Habeler from Italy were the foremost climbers to summit Everest without carrying bottled oxygen.

1974 was the only year when no one climbed Everest’s summit ever since the beginning of the climbing to the mountain peak.

Did you know that by the year 2019, almost 6000 mountaineers have climbed to the top of Mount Everest! This includes climbers of different age groups, ranging from 12 years to 80 years.

Everest's summit is located on the Nepal-China border. The majority of climbers of Mt Everest choose the Nepalese route to climb Everest. One of the key reasons to go for the Nepalese route is because the Everest Base Camp trekking path is gentle, which helps them adapt to their surroundings before progressing to the top. Sherpa, who are indigenous to the area and live there, are the heroes who generally lead the expeditions in the entire Everest region.

The First Person To Climb Mount Everest

The first successful summit to Mt Everest happened on May 29, 1953, and it was done by Sir Edmund Hilary from New Zealand.

Edmund Hilary had begun climbing in New Zealand's Southern Alps even when he was in school. After serving in the military during World War II, Sir Edmund Hillary returned to climbing and became motivated to conquer the mountains of Everest. In 1951, he went to the middle Himalayas with a New Zealand group, and later that year, he took part in a British reconnaissance mission on Everest's southern slope. He was then asked to join a group of mountaineers preparing to reach the Everest summit. The expedition to Everest began after months of planning and preparation by the team, the expedition set up nine camps along the route, some of which are still used by climbers today.

Only four climbers on the Everest climb got the opportunity to make an attempt to reach the summit of Everest. Colonel John Hunt, the team leader, divided the climbers of Everest into two groups. Tom Bourdillon and Charles Evans made up the first team, while Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay made up the second. Edmund Hillary and Tibetan climber Tenzing Norgay made the historic first ascent of Mount Everest summit. However, Hillary and Tenzing were not the first men to attempt to reach the top of Everest. Two days prior to their climb, another two-man exhibition failed to reach the summit of Mount Everest. The majority of the people who make a climb for Mount Everest climbers experience headaches, foggy thinking, lack of sleep, loss of appetite, and exhaustion. If not properly acclimated and taken care of, individuals may exhibit more severe symptoms of altitude sickness, such as dementia, difficulty walking, lack of physical coordination, delusions, and even coma.

People who climb the summit of Everest spend a lot of time gently acclimating their bodies to progressively high elevations to avoid acute symptoms of altitude sickness. Preparing to climb Mt. Everest can take many weeks because of this, particularly given the importance of being well prepared due to the many dangers of climbing to such high altitudes. In earlier times, it used to be much more difficult to climb Mt Everest without proper setups.

Climatic Conditions At Mount Everest

The climate conditions of Mount Everest can be extreme, even for the most experienced climbers. They can be dangerous for someone who is not familiar with the Everest region. The adjusted wind chill temperatures of -158° F (70° C) on the summit compared to the world's coldest locales, such as Siberia's record low of -90.4° F (-67.8° C) and Antarctica's Vostok at -67° F (-89° C) are incredibly challenging for any climber. Winter is a fantastic season to go trekking since the masses who are attempting to avoid the cold have dispersed.

Although it can dip far below zero at night, daytime temperatures are pleasant and bright skies are common on the base camp from December 15, until the end of January. The lowest temperatures of the year occur on Mount Everest, with temperatures at the summit averaging -34.6° F (-37° C) and those at Mount Everest Basecamp averaging 1.4° F(-17° C). It is important to be alert to the extreme climates of the region for any climber.