Mount Everest, in Nepali “Sagarmatha”, is the highest mountain in the world above sea level.

What is the official height of Mount Everest?

The official height of Mount Everest is 29,031.69 feet (8,848.86 meters) as jointly declared by Nepal and China in 2020.

Where is Mount Everest located? 

The exact location of Mount Everest is on the border of Nepal and Tibet an autonomous region of China at 27°59′ N 86°56′ E. The borderline lies on the crest of the great Himalayas in southern Asia. The region lies in the Mahalangur Himal sub-range of the Himalayas.

How old is Mount Everest and how was it formed?

Mt. Everest is about 50 to 60 million years old. And nobody exactly knows how it was formed. But some theories conclude it was raised because of the collision of two tectonic plates, i.e., the Indian and Eurasian plates.

                        

Other Names for Mount Everest

The tallest mountain on earth has different alternate names. The Tibetans call it Chomolungma, which means, “Holy Mother.” Some Chinese refer to it as Zhumulangma Feng or Chu-mu-lang-ma Feng, also spelled as Qomolangma Feng.

The current English name, “Everest,” is the latest name it has got. The Royal Geography Society introduced the title in 1865 AD in honor of George Everest. Since then, the tallest mountain has been the famous Everest.

Before its new name, westerners used to refer to Mount Everest as Peak XV. Likewise, the Chinese, Tibetans, and Nepalese had different names assigned to them. Thus, to settle confusion and simplify the local names, the peak was renamed to its new term.

Andrew Scott Waugh is the man behind its new title. When there were enough local names, he again proposed the name “Everest” in 1856 AD. The name came from the surname of his antecedent in the post, Sir George Everest. George himself objected to the new name. But several years later, the Royal Geographical Society officially adopted the name “Mount Everest.”

Mount Everest Climbing History

Nearly everybody calls Mount Everest “the most elevated mountain on the planet,” and climbers from wherever travel to Everest wanting to get the distinction of ascending the “World’s Highest.”

Mount Everest was first climbed by Tenzing Norgay Sherpa and Sir Edmund Hillary on May 29, 1953 AD. After that, several thousand mountaineers successfully scaled the summit and several hundred lost their life while climbing Mount Everest.

To remember the first summit, Nepal celebrates Everest Day, on 29th May each year.

Mount Everest Climbing Route

While climbing the highest mountain globally, it has two primary climbing routes: the southeast edge of Nepal and the north edge of Tibet. Between them, the southeastern edge course via the Khumbu icefall is more straightforward and is even more often used to climb Mount Everest.

Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay also used the same route to become the first humans to reach the summit of Mount Everest.

The other popular route to reach the summit of Mt. Everest is via the north face. The first successful climb of Everest via the north face was made by a Chinese expedition in 1960, with Wang Fuzhou, Qu Yinhua, Liu Lianman, and a Tibetan, Konbu, in the team.

East Face, Mount Everest’s biggest face, is rarely climbed to scale the summit. However, there are a few successful summits in this section too. In 1983, Carlos Buhler, Kim Momb, and Lou Reichardt were the first to ascent the summit via the east face.

Mount Everest, Record Holders

Tenzing Norgay Sherpa and Sir Edmund Hillary (May 29, 1953 AD)–First Person to Reach the Summit of the Everest. (Read Edmund Hillary Sayings)

Junko Tabei (1975 AD)–First woman Summiteer.

Kami Rita Sherpa (28 times) – Highest numbers of Summits.

Lhakpa Sherpa (10 times) – The highest number of summits by a woman 

Pemba Dorje Sherpa (8 Hours 10 minutes from Base camp to the Summit) – Fastest person to climb Mount Everest.

Yuichiro Miura (Age 80) – The oldest man who submitted to Mount Everest.

Reinhold Messner (1978) – The first person to climb Mount Everest without oxygen.

Pasang Lhamu Sherpa (April 22, 1993) – The first woman from Nepal to climb Mount Everest.

Jordan Romero (May 22, 2010) – The youngest person to climb Mount Everest.

Lakpa Gelu Sherpa (Time Record: 10 Hours, 56 Minutes) – Fastest Person to reach the summit.

The weather and climate 

It’s always super cold at the summit of Mount Everest. The average temperature at the summit is 19 C in the summer and -36 C in the winter. It never goes above freezing. The lowest temperature recorded in Mount Everest is around -41 C (-42F) and the highest temperature is around -12 C. Winter is freezing and the temperature in January can go up to -60 C.

Besides the low temperature, the other issue for the climbers is the high-speed wind. The speed of the wind can go up very high in the winter. Wind speed at Mount Everest can go up to 175 mph, which is equivalent to a category 5 hurricane. These high-speed winds will relax at the start of the summer, i.e., May, so most of the climbers choose to scale the peak in May.

Trekking to Mt. Everest

Everest is Nepal’s highest-earning thing in tourism. Every year, hundreds of tourists climb Everest with a permit issued by the government of Nepal. And a lot of travelers go on high-altitude hikes each year to get a glimpse of the highest point on Earth, which is above sea level.

There are several tours to Mount Everest, ranging from the famous Everest Base Camp Trek to the strenuous three passes and the Chola Circuit Trek.

These trails not only showcase the best views of Mount Everest but also give the rare chance of seeing other tallest mountains in the world, such as Cho-Oyo, Makalu, and Lhotse. Besides, with any Mount Everest tours, you walk around other beautiful snowcapped Himalayas, such as Mt. Ama Dablam and Mt. Nuptse, Mt. Thamserku, Mt. Tawache, and many more.

Besides, the trail passes through several Sherpa villages, highlighting their culture and traditions. So, trekking on Everest is a complete package of adventure.

If you are an adventurer, you are, of course, a fan of Mount Everest. Hence, people who do not feel like climbing and trekking can take a helicopter ride to have an aerial view of the entire region. Similarly, extreme adventurers choose the Three High Passes Trek to make the most of what the Everest region offers.

Change in the Height of Mt. Everest

On December 8th, Nepal and China jointly announced the new height of Mt. Everest as 8848.86 M (29,032 ft.) from sea level. Before it was 8848 m.

It is the highest point on earth and continues to be the highest with a half-meter increase in height in each century.

Some geologists even say a change in height may have taken place because of the earthquake of 7.8 magnitudes that hit Nepal on April 25, 2015. A half-meter also lowered the Langtang Range because of the earthquake. Not so long after the widespread rumors about the change in height of the world’s tallest mountain, Mt. Everest, both Nepal and China, announced the new height.

Back then, in 2005, China measured the height of Mount Everest at 8844.43 M above sea level. But Nepal denied agreeing to the height, claiming that the snow cap on Nepal’s side was not included. Also, Nepal once reported to the BBC in 2012 that China had been putting pressure on the new height.

Both countries agreed to calculate the new height when Chinese President Xi Jinping visited Nepal in 2019. Eventually, the two took the summit of Everest, calculated, and agreed to an official new height of Mt. Everest of 8848.86 M (29,032 ft.).

Who measured the new height and how?

A joint effort of Nepal and China measured the new elevation. Both countries used to use the sea level as the base of Mount Everest. Nepal used the Bay of Bengal as its sea level and China used the Yellow Sea as its base.

Both countries used some trigonometric formulas to calculate the new official altitude. They multiplied the base with the angle that is used to calculate the height of a triangle.

Nepal’s land surveyors climbed the summit to measure the height in 2019. And according to the BBC, Chinese officials climbed Everest in 2020 while the entire world was on lockdown. The officials from both countries use the same method of calculation. They also used the other 12 smaller peaks in their calculations to get more accurate results.

Life in the Everest Region

The Everest Region lies at a high rise, so it doesn’t support animals or vegetation; however, you can find Juniper, Blue Pines, Firs, Bamboos, and rhododendron lower reason.

We can also find animals like Himalayan Thars, Musk deer, Yak, and Red Panda, Snow leopards, at lower altitudes. Few Deer, Langur Monkeys, Mountain Foxes, and Himalayan Wolves can be discovered in the lower locale.

Mount Everest Quotes

Read some of the best sayings and quotes from famous maintainers and authors from unique books related to Everest.

“If I know I make this much trouble, I never climb Everest.” – Tenzing Norgay

“Trekking means a traveling experience with a thrilling excitement.” – Amit Kalantri

“A barrier more formidable than Mount Everest looms between you and your consciousness: It’s called Mount Ego.” ― Khang Kijarro Nguyen

“Everest is completely out of control. It’s like crack.” – Aaron Huey.

“I have not conquered Everest; it has merely tolerated me.” – Peter Habeler

“Everyone has their own Everest to climb.” – Wanda Rutkiewicz

“This forms the nub of a dilemma that every Everest climber eventually comes up against to succeed you must be exceedingly driven, but if you’re too driven, you’re likely to die.” – Krakauer

“We do not live to eat and make money. We eat and make money to be able to live. That is what life means and what life is for.”- Mallory.

“But now that I was finally here, standing on the summit of Mount Everest, I just couldn’t summon the energy to care. ” – Jon Krakauer

“The highest of the world’s mountains, it seems, has to make but a single gesture of magnificence to be the lord of all, vast in unchallenged and isolated supremacy.” – Mallory

“We agreed that this was going to be no ordinary climb. For the time being, Everest was rather more than a mountain.” – Jon Hunt

“All the winds of Asia seemed to be trying to blow us from the ridge.” – Peter Boardman

“You’ve climbed the highest mountain in the world. What’s left? It’s all downhill from there. You’ve got to set your sights on something higher than Everest.”- Willi Unsoeld.

“We just lay on our bellies in the snow, gasping and immobile.” – Peter Habeler

“The end of the ridge and the end of the world… then nothing but that clear, empty air. There was nowhere else to climb. I was standing on the top of the world.” – Stacy Allison.

In the end,

Mount Everest is everyone’s favorite adventure and a bucket list trip. So, if you want to go on a trip to EBC, at that point, remember to keep in touch with Heaven Himalaya.

We will sort out a sensational and superb tour where you won’t need to stress over a thing! We will deal with it all.