Mount Everest
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Mount Everest (known locally as SagarmāthāTemplate:Efn in Nepal and QomolangmaTemplate:Efn in Tibet) is Earth's highest mountain above sea level. It lies in the Mahalangur Himal sub-range of the Himalayas and marks part of the China–Nepal border at its summit.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> Its height was most recently measured in 2020 by Chinese and Nepali authorities as Template:Convert.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Mount Everest attracts many climbers, including highly experienced mountaineers. There are two main climbing routes, one approaching the summit from the southeast in Nepal (known as the standard route) and the other from the north in Tibet. While not posing substantial technical climbing challenges on the standard route, Everest presents dangers such as altitude sickness, weather, and wind, as well as hazards from avalanches and the Khumbu Icefall. As of May 2024, 340 people have died on Everest. Over 200 bodies remain on the mountain and have not been removed due to the dangerous conditions.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="Nuwer">Template:Cite web</ref>
Climbers typically ascend only part of Mount Everest's elevation, as the mountain's full elevation is measured from the geoid, which approximates sea level. The closest sea to Mount Everest's summit is the Bay of Bengal, almost Template:Convert away. To approximate a climb of the entire height of Mount Everest, one would need to start from this coastline, a feat accomplished by Tim Macartney-Snape's team in 1990. Climbers usually begin their ascent from base camps above Template:Convert. The amount of elevation climbed from below these camps varies. On the Tibetan side, most climbers drive directly to the North Base Camp. On the Nepalese side, climbers generally fly into Kathmandu, then Lukla, and trek to the South Base Camp, making the climb from Lukla to the summit about Template:Convert in elevation gain.
The first recorded efforts to reach Everest's summit were made by British mountaineers. As Nepal did not allow foreigners to enter the country at the time, the British made several attempts on the North Ridge route from the Tibetan side. After the first reconnaissance expedition by the British in 1921 reached Template:Convert on the North Col, the 1922 expedition on its first summit attempt marked the first time a human had climbed above Template:Convert and it also pushed the North Ridge route up to Template:Convert. On the 1924 expedition George Mallory and Andrew Irvine made a final summit attempt on 8 June but never returned, sparking debate as to whether they were the first to reach the top. Tenzing Norgay and Edmund Hillary made the first documented ascent of Everest in 1953, using the Southeast Ridge route. Norgay had reached Template:Convert the previous year as a member of the 1952 Swiss expedition. The Chinese mountaineering team of Wang Fuzhou, Gonpo, and Qu Yinhua made the first reported ascent of the peak from the North Ridge on 25 May 1960.<ref name="NorthRidge">Template:Cite book</ref> Template:Anchor
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Mount Everest's Nepali/Sanskrit name is Sagarmāthā (IAST transcription) or Sagar-Matha<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> (सगर-माथा, Template:IPA, lit. "goddess of the sky"<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>),<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> which means "the head in the great blue sky", being derived from सगर (sagar), meaning "sky", and माथा (māthā), meaning "head".<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
The Tibetan name for Everest is Qomolangma (Template:Lang, lit. "holy mother"). The name was first recorded (in a Chinese transcription) in the 1721 Kangxi Atlas, issued during the reign of Qing Emperor Kangxi; it first appeared in the West in 1733 as Tchoumour Lancma, on a map prepared by the French geographer D'Anville and based on Kangxi Atlas.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The Tibetan name is also popularly romanised as Chomolungma and (in Wylie) as Jo-mo-glang-ma.Template:Refn
The official Chinese transcription is Template:Nowrap Template:Nowrap or Zhūmùlǎngmǎ Fēng in pinyin. While other Chinese names have been used historically, including Shèngmǔ Fēng Template:Nowrap Template:Nowrap lit. "holy mother peak"), these names were largely phased out after the Chinese Ministry of Internal Affairs issued a decree to adopt a sole name in May 1952.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
The British geographic survey of 1849 attempted to preserve local names when possible (e.g., Kangchenjunga and Dhaulagiri). However, Andrew Waugh, the British Surveyor General of India, claimed that he could not find a commonly used local name, and that his search for one had been hampered by the Nepalese and Tibetan policy of exclusion of foreigners. Waugh argued that – because there were many local names – it would be difficult to favour one name over all others; he therefore decided that Peak XV should be named after British surveyor Sir George Everest, his predecessor as Surveyor General of India.<ref name="everest_bwp70" /><ref name="ReferenceA">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="rgs1857">Template:Cite journal</ref> Everest himself opposed the honour, and told the Royal Geographical Society in 1857 that "Everest" could neither be written in Hindi nor pronounced by "the native of India". Despite Everest's objections, Waugh's proposed name prevailed, and the Royal Geographical Society officially adopted the name "Mount Everest" in 1865.<ref name="everest_bwp70" /><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> The modern pronunciation of Everest (Template:IPAc-en)<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> is different from Sir George's pronunciation of his surname (Template:IPAc-en Template:Respell).<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
In the late 19th century, many European cartographers incorrectly believed that a native name for the mountain was Gaurishankar, a mountain between Kathmandu and Everest.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
Other names
- "Peak XV" (temporary, assigned by British Imperial Survey)<ref name="everest_bwp70" /><ref name="ReferenceA" /><ref name="rgs1857" />
- "Deodungha"<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> (Old Darjeeling)
- "Gauri Shankar", "Gaurishankar", or "Gaurisankar" (misattribution; used occasionally until about 1900. In modern times the name is used for a different peak about Template:Convert away.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>)
Surveys
19th century
In 1802, the British began the Great Trigonometrical Survey of India to fix, among other things, the locations, heights, and names of the world's highest mountains. Starting in southern India, the survey teams moved northward using giant theodolites, each weighing Template:Convert and requiring 12 men to carry, to measure heights as accurately as possible. They reached the Himalayan foothills by the 1830s, but Nepal was unwilling to allow the British to enter the country due to suspicions of their intentions. Several requests by the surveyors to enter Nepal were denied.<ref name="everest_bwp70">Template:Cite book</ref>
The British were forced to continue their observations from Terai, a region south of Nepal which is parallel to the Himalayas. Conditions in Terai were difficult because of torrential rains and malaria. Three survey officers died from malaria while two others had to retire because of failing health.<ref name="everest_bwp70" />
Nonetheless, in 1847, the British continued the survey and began detailed observations of the Himalayan peaks from observation stations up to Template:Convert distant. Weather restricted work to the last three months of the year. In November 1847, Andrew Scott Waugh, the British Surveyor General of India, made several observations from the Sawajpore station at the east end of the Himalayas. Kangchenjunga was then considered the highest peak in the world, and with interest, he noted a peak beyond it, about Template:Convert away. John Armstrong, one of Waugh's subordinates, also saw the peak from a site farther west and called it peak "b". Waugh would later write that the observations indicated that peak "b" was higher than Kangchenjunga, but closer observations were required for verification. The following year, Waugh sent a survey official back to Terai to make closer observations of peak "b", but clouds thwarted his attempts.<ref name="everest_bwp70" />
In 1849, Waugh dispatched James Nicolson to the area, who made two observations from Jirol, Template:Convert away. Nicolson then took the largest theodolite and headed east, obtaining over 30 observations from five different locations, with the closest being Template:Convert from the peak.<ref name="everest_bwp70" />
Nicolson retreated to Patna on the Ganges to perform the necessary calculations based on his observations. His raw data gave an average height of Template:Convert for peak "b", but this did not consider light refraction, which distorts heights. However, the number clearly indicated that peak "b" was higher than Kangchenjunga. Nicolson contracted malaria and was forced to return home without finishing his calculations. Michael Hennessy, one of Waugh's assistants, had begun designating peaks based on Roman numerals, with Kangchenjunga named Peak IX. Peak "b" now became known as Peak XV.<ref name="everest_bwp70" />
In 1852, stationed at the survey headquarters in Dehradun, Radhanath Sikdar, an Indian mathematician and surveyor from Bengal was the first to identify Everest as the world's highest peak, using trigonometric calculations based on Nicolson's measurements.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> An official announcement that Peak XV was the highest was delayed for several years as the calculations were repeatedly verified. Waugh began work on Nicolson's data in 1854, and along with his staff spent almost two years working on the numbers, having to deal with the problems of light refraction, barometric pressure, and temperature over the vast distances of the observations. Finally, in March 1856 he announced his findings in a letter to his deputy in Calcutta. Kangchenjunga was declared to be Template:Convert, while Peak XV was given the height of Template:Convert. Waugh concluded that Peak XV was "most probably the highest in the world".<ref name="everest_bwp70" /> Peak XV (measured in feet) was calculated to be exactly Template:Convert high, but was publicly declared to be Template:Convert in order to avoid the impression that an exact height of 29000 ft was nothing more than a rounded estimate.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Waugh is sometimes playfully credited with being "the first person to put two feet on top of Mount Everest".<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
20th century
In 1856, Andrew Waugh announced Everest (then known as Peak XV) as Template:Convert high, after several years of calculations based on observations made by the Great Trigonometrical Survey.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> From 1952 to 1954, the Survey of India, using triangulation methods, determined that the height of Everest was Template:Convert.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In 1975 it was subsequently reaffirmed by a Chinese measurement of Template:Convert.<ref name="ABC_au" /> In both cases the snow cap, not the rock head, was measured. The Template:Convert height given was officially recognised by Nepal and China.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Nepal planned a new survey in 2019 to determine if the April 2015 Nepal earthquake affected the height of the mountain.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
In May 1999, an American Everest expedition directed by Bradford Washburn anchored a GPS unit into the highest bedrock. A rock head elevation of Template:Convert, and a snow/ice elevation Template:Convert higher, were obtained via this device.<ref name="alpres">Template:Cite web</ref> Although as of 2001, it has not been officially recognised by Nepal,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> this figure is widely quoted. Geoid uncertainty casts doubt upon the accuracy claimed by both the 1999 and 2005 (see § 21st-century surveys) surveys.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
In 1955, a detailed photogrammetric map (at a scale of 1:50,000) of the Khumbu region, including the south side of Mount Everest, was made by Erwin Schneider as part of the 1955 International Himalayan Expedition, which also attempted Lhotse.
In the late 1980s, an even more detailed topographic map of the Everest area was made under the direction of Bradford Washburn, using extensive aerial photography.<ref name="washburn_map" />
21st century
On 9 October 2005, after several months of measurement and calculation, the Chinese Academy of Sciences and State Bureau of Surveying and Mapping announced the height of Everest as Template:Convert with accuracy of ±Template:Convert, claiming it was the most accurate and precise measurement to date.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> This height is based on the highest point of rock and not the snow and ice covering it. The Chinese team measured a snow-ice depth of Template:Convert,<ref name="ABC_au">Template:Cite web</ref> which is in agreement with a net elevation of Template:Convert. An argument arose between China and Nepal as to whether the official height should be the rock height (8,844 m, China) or the snow height (8,848 m, Nepal). In 2010, both sides agreed that the height of Everest is 8,848 m, and Nepal recognises China's claim that the rock height of Everest is 8,844 m.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> On 8 December 2020, it was jointly announced by the two countries that the new official height is Template:Convert.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
It is thought that the plate tectonics of the Main Himalayan Thrust and related faults, which form the convergent boundary between the Eurasian Plate and Indian Plate, are adding to the height and moving the summit northeastwards. Two accounts suggest the rates of change are Template:Convert per year vertically and Template:Convert per year horizontally,<ref name="alpres" /><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> but another account mentions more lateral movement (Template:Convert),<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and even shrinkage has been suggested.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Comparisons
The summit of Everest is the point at which Earth's surface reaches the greatest distance above sea level. Several other mountains are sometimes claimed to be the "tallest mountains on Earth". Mauna Kea in Hawaii is tallest when measured from its base;Template:NoteTag it rises over Template:Convert from its base on the mid-ocean floor, but only attains Template:Convert above sea level.
By the same measure of base to summit, Denali (also called Mount McKinley) in Alaska is taller than Everest as well.Template:NoteTag Despite its height above sea level of only Template:Convert, Denali sits atop a sloping plain with elevations from Template:Convert, yielding a height above base in the range of Template:Convert; a commonly quoted figure is Template:Convert.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> By comparison, reasonable base elevations for Everest range from Template:Convert on the south side to Template:Convert on the Tibetan Plateau, yielding a height above base in the range of Template:Convert.<ref name="washburn_map">Mount Everest (1:50,000 scale map), prepared under the direction of Bradford Washburn for the Boston Museum of Science, the Swiss Foundation for Alpine Research, and the National Geographic Society, 1991, Template:ISBN.</ref>
The summit of Chimborazo in Ecuador is Template:Convert farther from Earth's centre (Template:Convert) than that of Everest (Template:Convert), because the Earth bulges at the equator.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> This is despite Chimborazo having a peak of Template:Convert above sea level versus Mount Everest's Template:Convert.
Context and maps
Many of the highest mountains in the world are near Mount Everest, for example Lhotse, Template:Convert; Nuptse, Template:Convert, Changtse, Template:Convert and Khumbutse, Template:Convert. On the southwest side, a major feature in the lower areas is the Khumbu icefall and glacier, an obstacle to climbers on those routes but also to the base camps. Template:Himalaya annotated imagemap
Geology
Geologists have subdivided the rocks comprising Mount Everest into three units called formations.<ref name="Scientiav5">Yin, C.-H., and S.-T. Kuo. 1978. "Stratigraphy of the Mount Jolmo Langma and its north slope." Scientia Sinica. v. 5, pp. 630–644</ref><ref name="IslandArcv14">Sakai, H., M. Sawada, Y. Takigami, Y. Orihashi, T. Danhara, H. Iwano, Y. Kuwahara, Q. Dong, H. Cai, and J. Li. 2005. "Geology of the summit limestone of Mount Qomolangma (Everest) and cooling history of the Yellow Band under the Qomolangma detachment." Island Arc. v. 14 no. 4 pp. 297–310.</ref> Each formation is separated from the other by low-angle faults, called detachments, along which they have been thrust southward over each other. From the summit of Mount Everest to its base these rock units are the Qomolangma Formation, the North Col Formation, and the Rongbuk Formation.
The Qomolangma Formation, also known as the Jolmo Lungama Formation,<ref name="Everest1953Geo" /> runs from the summit to the top of the Yellow Band, about Template:Convert above sea level. It consists of greyish to dark grey or white, parallel laminated and bedded, Ordovician limestone interlayered with subordinate beds of recrystallised dolomite with argillaceous laminae and siltstone. Gansser first reported finding microscopic fragments of crinoids in this limestone.<ref>Gansser, A. 1964. Geology of the Himalayas, John Wiley Interscience, London, 1964 289 pp.</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Later petrographic analysis of samples of the limestone from near the summit revealed them to be composed of carbonate pellets and finely fragmented remains of trilobites, crinoids, and ostracods. Other samples were so badly sheared and recrystallised that their original constituents could not be determined. A thick, white-weathering thrombolite bed that is Template:Convert thick comprises the foot of the "Third Step", and base of the summit pyramid of Everest. This bed, which crops out starting about Template:Convert below the summit of Mount Everest, consists of sediments trapped, bound, and cemented by the biofilms of micro-organisms, especially cyanobacteria, in shallow marine waters. The Qomolangma Formation is broken up by several high-angle faults that terminate at the low angle normal fault, the Qomolangma Detachment. This detachment separates it from the underlying Yellow Band. The lower five metres of the Qomolangma Formation overlying this detachment are very highly deformed.<ref name="Scientiav5" /><ref name="IslandArcv14" /><ref name="MyrowOthers2009">Myrow, P.M., N.C. Hughes, M.P. Searle, C.M. Fanning, S.-C. Peng, and S.K. Parcha, 2009, "Stratigraphic correlation of Cambrian Ordovician deposits along the Himalaya: Implications for the age and nature of rocks in the Mount Everest region". Geological Society of America Bulletin. v. 121, no. 3–4, pp. 323–332.</ref>
The bulk of Mount Everest, between Template:Convert, consists of the North Col Formation, of which the Yellow Band forms the upper part between Template:Convert. The Yellow Band consists of intercalated beds of Middle Cambrian diopside-epidote-bearing marble, which weathers a distinctive yellowish brown, and muscovite-biotite phyllite and semischist. Petrographic analysis of marble collected from about Template:Convert found it to consist as much as five per cent of the ghosts of recrystallised crinoid ossicles. The upper five metres of the Yellow Band lying adjacent to the Qomolangma Detachment is badly deformed. A Template:Convert thick fault breccia separates it from the overlying Qomolangma Formation.<ref name="Scientiav5" /><ref name="IslandArcv14" /><ref name="MyrowOthers2009" />
The remainder of the North Col Formation, exposed between Template:Convert on Mount Everest, consists of interlayered and deformed schist, phyllite, and minor marble. Between Template:Convert, the North Col Formation consists chiefly of biotite-quartz phyllite and chlorite-biotite phyllite intercalated with minor amounts of biotite-sericite-quartz schist. Between Template:Convert, the lower part of the North Col Formation consists of biotite-quartz schist intercalated with epidote-quartz schist, biotite-calcite-quartz schist, and thin layers of quartzose marble. These metamorphic rocks appear to be the result of the metamorphism of Middle to Early Cambrian deep sea flysch composed of interbedded, mudstone, shale, clayey sandstone, calcareous sandstone, graywacke, and sandy limestone. The base of the North Col Formation is a regional low-angle normal fault called the "Lhotse detachment".<ref name="Scientiav5" /><ref name="IslandArcv14" /><ref name="MyrowOthers2009" />
Below 7,000 m (23,000 ft), the Rongbuk Formation underlies the North Col Formation and forms the base of Mount Everest. It consists of sillimanite-K-feldspar grade schist and gneiss intruded by numerous sills and dikes of leucogranite ranging in thickness from 1 cm to 1,500 m (0.4 in to 4,900 ft).<ref name="IslandArcv14" /><ref>Searle, M.P. (1999) "Emplacement of Himalayan leucogranites by magma injection along giant sill complexes: examples from the Cho Oyu, Gyachung Kang and Everest leucogranites (Nepal Himalaya)". Journal of Asian Earth Sciences. v. 17, no. 5–6, pp. 773–783.</ref> These leucogranites are part of a belt of Late Oligocene–Miocene intrusive rocks known as the Higher Himalayan leucogranite. They formed as the result of partial melting of Paleoproterozoic to Ordovician high-grade metasedimentary rocks of the Higher Himalayan Sequence about 20 to 24 million years ago during the subduction of the Indian Plate.<ref>Guo, Z., and M. Wilson (2012) "The Himalayan leucogranites: Constraints on the nature of their crustal source region and geodynamic setting." Gondwana Research. v. 22, no. 2, pp. 360–376.</ref>
Mount Everest consists of sedimentary and metamorphic rocks that have been faulted southward over continental crust composed of Archean granulites of the Indian Plate during the Cenozoic collision of India with Asia.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Current interpretations argue that the Qomolangma and North Col formations consist of marine sediments that accumulated within the continental shelf of the northern passive continental margin of India before it collided with Asia. The Cenozoic collision of India with Asia subsequently deformed and metamorphosed these strata as it thrust them southward and upward.<ref>Myrow, P.M., N.C. Hughes, T.S. Paulsen, I.S. Williams, S.K. Parcha, K.R. Thompson, S.A. Bowring, S.-C. Peng, and A.D. Ahluwalia. 2003. "Integrated tectonostratigraphic reconstruction of the Himalaya and implications for its tectonic reconstruction." Earth and Planetary Science Letters. vol. 212, pp. 433–441.</ref><ref>Myrow, P.M., N.C. Hughes, J.W. Goodge, C.M. Fanning, I.S. Williams, S.-C. Peng, O.N. Bhargava, S.K. Tangri, S.K. Parcha, and K.R. Pogue. 2010. "Extraordinary transport and mixing of sediment across Himalayan central Gondwanaland during the Cambrian-Ordovician." Geological Society of America Bulletin. vol. 122, pp. 1660–1670.</ref> The Rongbuk Formation consists of a sequence of high-grade metamorphic and granitic rocks that were derived from the alteration of high-grade metasedimentary rocks. During the collision of India with Asia, these rocks were thrust downward and to the north as they were overridden by other strata; heated, metamorphosed, and partially melted at depths of over Template:Convert below sea level; and then forced upward to surface by thrusting towards the south between two major detachments.<ref>Searle, M. 2012. Colliding Continents: A geological exploration of the Himalaya, Karakoram, & Tibet. Oxford University Press, Oxford. 464 pp. Template:ISBN</ref> Mount Everest is rising by about 2 mm per year.<ref>Han, X., Dai, J.G., Smith, A.G., Xu, S.Y., Liu, B.R., Wang, C.S., and Fox, M., 2024. "Recent uplift of Chomolungma enhanced by river drainage piracy." Nature Geoscience. published online September 30, 2024, pp.1–7.</ref>
IUGS geological heritage site
In respect of the recognition of the "highest rocks on the planet" as fossiliferous, marine limestone, the Ordovician Rocks of Mount Everest were included by the International Union of Geological Sciences (IUGS) in its assemblage of 100 geological heritage sites around the world in a listing published in October 2022. The organisation defines an IUGS Geological Heritage Site as "a key place with geological elements and/or processes of international scientific relevance, used as a reference, and/or with a substantial contribution to the development of geological sciences through history."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Flora and fauna
There is very little native flora or fauna on Everest. A type of moss grows at Template:Convert on Mount Everest and it may be the highest altitude plant species.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> An alpine cushion plant called Arenaria is known to grow below Template:Convert in the region.<ref name="autumn">Template:Cite book</ref> According to the study based on satellite data from 1993 to 2018, vegetation is expanding in the Everest region. Researchers have found plants in areas that were previously deemed bare.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
A minute black jumping spider of the genus Euophrys has been found at elevations as high as Template:Convert,<ref name="wanless">Template:Cite journal</ref> possibly making it the highest confirmed non-microscopic permanent resident on Earth. Another Euophrys species, E. everestensis, has been found at Template:Convert, and may feed on insects that have been blown there by the wind.<ref name="wanless" /> There is a high likelihood of microscopic life at even higher altitudes.
The bar-headed goose migrates over the Himalayas and have been seen flying at the higher altitudes of the mountain.<ref name="his7">Template:Cite web</ref> In 1953, George Lowe (part of the expedition of Tenzing and Hillary) said that he saw bar-headed geese flying over Everest's summit.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Another bird species, the chough, have been spotted as high as the South Col at Template:Convert<ref>The Ascent of Everest by John Hunt (Hodder & Stoughton, 1953) In chapter 14, Hunt describes seeing a chough on the South Col; meanwhile Charles Evans saw some unidentified birds fly over the col</ref> and yellow-billed choughs have been seen as high as Template:Convert.<ref name="his7" />
Yaks are often used to haul gear for Mount Everest climbs. They can haul around 100 kg (220 pounds), have thick fur and large lungs.<ref name="autumn" /> Other animals in the region include the Himalayan tahr, which is sometimes the prey of the snow leopard.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The Himalayan black bear can be found up to about Template:Convert and the red panda is also present in the region.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> One expedition found a surprising range of species in the region including a pika and ten new species of ants.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Conservation
From the Nepalese side, Everest is protected as part of Sagarmatha National Park,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> while from the Chinese side the mountain is protected as part of Qomolangma National Nature Reserve.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Climate
Mount Everest has an ice cap climate (Köppen EF) with all months averaging well below freezing.Template:NoteTag
Climate change
The base camp for Everest expeditions based out of Nepal is located by Khumbu Glacier, which is rapidly thinning and destabilizing due to climate change, making it unsafe for climbers. As recommended by the committee formed by Nepal's government to facilitate and monitor mountaineering in the Everest region, Taranath Adhikari—the director general of Nepal's tourism department—said they have plans to move the base camp to a lower altitude. This would mean a longer distance for climbers between the base camp and Camp 1. However, the present base camp is still useful and could still serve its purpose for three to four years. The move may happen by 2024, per officials.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Meteorology
| Atmospheric pressure comparison | Pressure | Reference | |
|---|---|---|---|
| kilopascal | psi | ||
| Olympus Mons summit | Template:Convert | – | |
| Mars average | Template:Convert | – | |
| Hellas Planitia bottom | Template:Convert | – | |
| Armstrong limit | Template:Convert | – | |
| Mount Everest summit | Template:Convert | <ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> | |
| Earth sea level | Template:Convert | – | |
| Dead Sea level | Template:Convert | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | |
| Surface of Venus | Template:Convert | <ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> | |
In 2008, a new weather station at about Template:Convert elevation went online.<ref name="uiaa">Template:Cite web</ref> The project was orchestrated by Stations at High Altitude for Research on the Environment (SHARE), which also placed the Mount Everest webcam in 2011.<ref name="uiaa" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The solar-powered weather station is on the South Col.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Mount Everest extends into the upper troposphere and penetrates the stratosphere.<ref name="dz">Template:Cite web</ref> The air pressure at the summit is generally about one-third what it is at sea level. The altitude can expose the summit to the fast and freezing winds of the jet stream.<ref name="Peplow2004">Template:Cite journal</ref> Winds commonly attain Template:Convert;<ref name="theweek">Template:Cite news</ref> in February 2004, a wind speed of Template:Convert was recorded at the summit.
These winds can hamper or endanger climbers, by blowing them into chasms<ref name="theweek" /> or (by Bernoulli's principle) by lowering the air pressure further, reducing available oxygen by up to 14 percent.<ref name="Peplow2004" /><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> To avoid the harshest winds, climbers typically aim for a 7- to 10-day window in the spring and fall when the Asian monsoon season is starting up or ending.
Mount Everest hosts several weather stations that collect important data on high-altitude weather conditions. Among them is the Balcony Station, the highest weather station on the planet, located at about Template:Convert above sea level. Set up by climate scientists Tom Matthews and Baker Perry in 2019, this station is positioned just below the summit of Everest, which is the highest point on Earth.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
As of January 20, 2020, the Balcony Station ceased transmitting data.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Expeditions
Because Everest is the highest mountain in the world, it has attracted considerable attention and climbing attempts. Whether the mountain was climbed in ancient times is unknown. It may have been climbed in 1924, although this has never been confirmed, as neither man making the attempt returned. Climbing routes have been established over decades of expeditions.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
The summit is first known to have been reached by humans in 1953.<ref name="la">Template:Cite news</ref> Despite the effort poured into expeditions, only about 200 people had summited by 1987.<ref name="la" /> Everest remained a difficult climb for decades, even by professional climbers and large national expeditions, which were the norm until the commercial era began in the 1990s.<ref name="japtimes">Template:Cite news</ref> Template:As of, The Himalayan Database recorded just under 13,000 total summits, by around 7,200 different people.<ref>Template:Cite web Total climbers and summits as of December 2024.</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web Full list of Mount Everest climbers as of December 2024.</ref>
Although lower mountains have longer or steeper climbs, Everest is so high the jet stream can hit it. Climbers can be faced with winds beyond Template:Convert when the weather shifts.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> At certain times of the year the jet stream shifts north, providing periods of relative calm at the mountain.<ref name="wind">Template:Cite web</ref> Other dangers include blizzards and avalanches.<ref name="wind" />
Early attempts
In 1885, Clinton Thomas Dent, president of the Alpine Club, suggested climbing Everest was possible in his book Above the Snow Line.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The northern approach to the mountain was discovered by George Mallory and Guy Bullock on the initial 1921 British Reconnaissance Expedition. It was not equipped for a serious attempt to climb the mountain. With Mallory leading, and thus becoming the first European to set foot on Everest's flanks, they climbed the North Col to an altitude of Template:Convert. From there, Mallory espied a route to the top, but the party was unprepared to climb further and descended. The British returned for a 1922 expedition. On the first summit attempt Mallory, Col. Felix Norton, and Howard Somervell without supplemental oxygen reached Template:Convert, the first time a human reported to climb higher than Template:Convert. George Finch together with Geoffrey Bruce climbed using oxygen for the first time. They ascended at a remarkable speed—Template:Convert per hour—and reached an altitude of Template:Convert.
The next expedition was in 1924. The initial attempt by Mallory and Geoffrey Bruce was aborted when weather conditions prevented the establishment of Camp VI. The next attempt was by Norton and Somervell, who climbed without oxygen and in perfect weather, traversing the North Face into the Great Couloir. Norton managed to reach, Template:Convert though he ascended only Template:Convert or so in the last hour. Mallory used oxygen equipment for a last-ditch effort. He chose young Andrew Irvine as his partner.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> On 8 June 1924, George Mallory and Andrew Irvine made an attempt on the summit via the North Col-North Ridge-Northeast Ridge route from which they never returned. On 1 May 1999, the Mallory and Irvine Research Expedition found Mallory's body on the North Face in a snow basin below and to the west of the traditional site of Camp VI. Controversy has raged in the mountaineering community whether one or both reached the summit 29 years before the first confirmed ascent and safe descent in 1953. Irvine's detached foot, still in a boot and sock, was found in 2024.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
In 1933, Lady Houston, a British millionaire, funded the Houston Everest Flight of 1933, which saw a formation of two aeroplanes led by the Marquess of Clydesdale fly over the Everest summit.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
Early expeditions—such as Charles Bruce's in the 1920s and Hugh Ruttledge's two unsuccessful attempts in 1933 and 1936—tried to ascend the mountain from Tibet, via the North Face. Access was closed from the north to Western expeditions in 1950 after China took control of Tibet. In 1950, Bill Tilman and a small party which included Charles Houston, Oscar Houston, and Betsy Cowles undertook an exploratory expedition to Everest through Nepal along the route which has become the standard approach to Everest from the south.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
The 1952 Swiss Mount Everest expedition was granted permission to attempt a climb from Nepal. It established a route through the Khumbu icefall and ascended to the South Col at an elevation of Template:Convert. Raymond Lambert and Sherpa Tenzing Norgay were able to reach an elevation of about Template:Convert on the Southeast Ridge, setting a new climbing altitude record. Tenzing's experience was useful when he was hired to be part of the British expedition in 1953.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The Swiss made another post-monsoon attempt in the autumn; they made it to the South Col but were driven back by winter winds and severe cold.<ref>Ullman, Tenzing Man of Everest</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
First successful ascent by Tenzing and Hillary, 1953
In 1953, a ninth British expedition, led by John Hunt, returned to Nepal. Hunt selected two climbing pairs to attempt the summit. The first, Tom Bourdillon and Charles Evans, came within Template:Convert of the summit on 26 May 1953, but turned back after running into oxygen problems. As planned, their work in routefinding, breaking trail and oxygen caches were of great aid to the following pair. Two days later, the expedition made its second assault with the second pair: New Zealander Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay, a Nepali Sherpa climber. They reached the summit at 11:30Template:Nbspam local time on 29 May 1953 via the South Col route. At the time, both acknowledged it as a team effort by the whole expedition, but Tenzing revealed a few years later that Hillary had put his foot on the summit first.<ref name="Ullman" /> They took photos and buried sweets and a small cross in the snow before descending.<ref>Conefrey, Mick. Everest 1953: the Epic Story of the first ascent. Mountaineers Books, 2014. p. 213-214</ref>
1950s–60s
On 23 May 1956, Ernst Schmied and Juerg Marmet ascended.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Wang Fuzhou, Gonpo and Qu Yinhua of China made the first reported ascent of the peak from the North Ridge in May 1960.<ref name="NorthRidge" /> The first American to climb Everest, Jim Whittaker, joined by Nawang Gombu, reached the summit on 1 May 1963 on the American Mount Everest expedition and on 22 May on the same expedition Tom Hornbein and Willi Unsoeld were the first the traverse the mountain by climbing via the North Face and descending via the South Col.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
1970s
In 1970, Japanese mountaineers conducted a major expedition. The centrepiece was a large "siege"-style expedition, working on finding a new route up the Southwest Face.Template:Sfnp Another element was an attempt to ski Everest.<ref name="japtimes" /> Despite a staff of over one hundred and a decade of planning, the expedition suffered eight deaths and failed to summit.<ref name="japtimes" /> However, Japanese expeditions enjoyed some successes. Yuichiro Miura became the first man to ski down Everest from the South Col—he descended nearly Template:Convert from the South Col before falling with extreme injuries. Another success was an expedition that put four on the summit via the South Col route.<ref name="japtimes" /><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Miura's exploits became the subject of film, and he went on to become the oldest person to summit Everest in 2003 aged 70 and in 2013 aged 80.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
In 1975, Junko Tabei became the first woman to summit Everest.<ref name="japtimes" /> The 1975 British Mount Everest Southwest Face expedition led and organised by Chris Bonington made the first ascent of the Southwest Face from the Western Cwm. In 1978, Reinhold Messner and Peter Habeler made the first ascent of Everest without supplemental oxygen.
1979/1980: Winter Himalaism
The Polish climber Andrzej Zawada headed the first winter ascent of Everest, the first winter ascent of an eight-thousander. On 15 January, the team managed to set up Camp III at Template:Convert above sea level, but further action was stopped by hurricane-force winds. The weather improved after 11 February, when Leszek Cichy, Walenty Fiut and Krzysztof Wielicki set up camp IV on South Col at Template:Convert. Cichy and Wielicki started the final ascent at 6:50Template:Nbspam on 17 February. At 2:40Template:Nbsppm Andrzej Zawada at base camp heard the climbers' voices over the radio – "We are on the summit! The strong wind blows all the time. It is unimaginably cold."<ref>Mount Everest the first winter ascent Template:Webarchive Andrzej Zawada www.alpinejournal.org.uk, accessed 12 December 2020</ref><ref name="theclymb.com">Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The successful winter ascent started a new decade of Winter Himalaism, which became a Polish specialisation. After 1980 Poles did ten first winter ascents on 8000 metre peaks.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="theclymb.com" /><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Lho La tragedy, 1989
In 1989, Polish climbers under the leadership of Eugeniusz Chrobak organised an international expedition to Everest on a difficult western ridge. Ten Poles and nine foreigners participated, but only the Poles remained in the attempt for the summit. On 24 May, Chrobak and Andrzej Marciniak, starting from camp V at Template:Convert, overcame the ridge and reached the summit. But on 27 May, during an avalanche from the side of Khumbutse near the Lho La pass, four climbers were killed: Mirosław Dąsal, Mirosław Gardzielewski, Zygmunt Andrzej Heinrich and Wacław Otręba. The following day, due to his injuries, Chrobak died. Marciniak, who was injured, was saved by a rescue expedition in which Artur Hajzer and New Zealanders Gary Ball and Rob Hall took part. The organisation of the rescue included Reinhold Messner, Elizabeth Hawley, Carlos Carsolio and the US consul.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
1996 disaster
Template:Main On 10 and 11 May 1996, eight climbers died after guided expeditions were caught in a blizzard during a summit attempt on 10 May. During the 1996 season, 15 people died. These were the highest death tolls for a single weather event, and season, until the 16 deaths in the 2014 Mount Everest ice avalanche. The guiding disaster gained publicity and raised questions about the commercialisation of climbing and the safety of guiding clients on Everest.
Journalist Jon Krakauer, on assignment from Outside magazine, was in one of the affected guided parties, and published the bestseller Into Thin Air, which related his experience. Krakauer was critical of guide Anatoli Boukreev.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Russia Beyond" /> A year later, Boukreev co-authored The Climb, in part as a rebuttal of Krakauer's portrayal.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The dispute sparked debate within the climbing community. Boukreev was awarded The American Alpine Club's David Sowles Award for his rescue efforts on the expedition.<ref name="Russia Beyond">Template:Cite web</ref> In 2004 researchers from the University of Toronto told the New Scientist that analysis of conditions on 11 May suggested that weather caused oxygen levels to plunge about 14 per cent.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
One survivor was Beck Weathers, left for dead about 275 metres (900 feet) from Camp 4 at 7,950 metres (26,085 feet). After spending a night on the mountain, Weathers made it back to Camp 4 with massive frostbite and vision impaired due to snow blindness.<ref name="badassoftheweek.com">Template:Cite web</ref> Fellow climbers considered his condition terminal and left him in a tent to die overnight.<ref name="DMag">Template:Cite journal</ref> Weathers was lowered to Camp 2 and a helicopter rescue was organised by the Nepali Army.<ref name="badassoftheweek.com" /><ref name="DMag" /> The storm's impact on climbers on the North Ridge, where several climbers also died, was detailed in a first-hand account by Matt Dickinson in his book The Other Side of Everest. Sixteen-year-old Mark Pfetzer was on the climb and wrote about it in, Within Reach: My Everest Story. The 2015 feature film Everest is based on the events of this guiding disaster.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
2006
| 2006 fatalities | |
|---|---|
| Deaths<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> | Nation<ref name="himalayandatabase2006">Template:Cite web</ref> |
| Tuk Bahadur Thapa Masa | Template:Flagcountry |
| Igor Plyushkin | Template:Flagcountry |
| Vitor Negrete | Template:Flagcountry |
| David Sharp | Template:Flagcountry |
| Thomas Weber | Template:Flagcountry |
| Tomas Olsson | Template:Flagcountry |
| Jacques-Hugues Letrange | Template:Flagcountry |
| Ang Phinjo | Template:Flagcountry |
| *Pavel Kalny | Template:Flagcountry |
| Lhakpa Tseri<ref name="deaths">Template:Cite web</ref> | Template:Flagcountry |
| Dawa Temba<ref name="deaths" /> | Template:Flagcountry |
| Sri Kishan<ref name="himalayandatabase2006" /> | Template:Flagcountry |
| *Lhotse face fatality | |
In 2006, 12 people died.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> David Sharp's death triggered debate and years of discussion about climbing ethics. The question was whether climbers had left a man to die and whether he could have been saved. He attempted to summit alone with two bottles of oxygen, compared to the standard five used by most climbers.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="top">Template:Cite web</ref> He arranged his permit through Asian Trekking, a Kathmandu-based company that provided basic services to base camp, but not beyond that point.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Sharp climbed without a radio or guide.<ref name="top" /> Multiple climbing parties encountered Sharp in distress.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Double-amputee climber Mark Inglis said that on 15 May his climbing party, and many others, had passed Sharp, sheltering under a rock overhang Template:Convert below the summit, without attempting a rescue.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Inglis said 40 people had passed by Sharp, but he might have been overlooked as climbers assumed Sharp was the corpse nicknamed "Green Boots",<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> but Inglis was not aware that climbers had tried to help Sharp despite being in the process of helping an injured woman, Burçak Özoğlu Poçan, down. There has been discussion about Himex in the commentary on Inglis and Sharp. In regard to Inglis's initial comments, he later revised details because he had been interviewed while he was "physically and mentally exhausted, and in much pain. He had suffered frostbite – he later had five fingertips amputated."<ref name="thefever">Template:Cite newsTemplate:Cbignore</ref> It was estimated that Sharp summited on 14 May and began his descent, but on 15 May he was in trouble and being passed by climbers on their way up and down.<ref name="change" /> It is believed he was suffering from hypoxia and was about Template:Convert from the summit on the North Side route.<ref name="change" />
The Tribune, India, quoted someone who described what happened to Sharp as "the most shameful act in the history of mountaineering".<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Much of this controversy was captured by the Discovery Channel while filming Everest: Beyond the Limit. A crucial decision affecting Sharp is shown where a returning climber, adventurer Maxim Chaya, is descending and radios his base camp manager (Russell Brice) that he has found a frostbitten and unconscious climber in distress. Chaya is unable to identify Sharp, who had chosen to climb solo and did not identify himself to other climbers. The manager assumes Sharp is part of a group that has already calculated they must abandon him, and informs his lone climber there is no chance of him being able to help Sharp by himself. As Sharp's condition deteriorates and other descending climbers pass him, his opportunities for rescue diminish: his legs and feet curl from frostbite, preventing him walking; later descending climbers are lower on oxygen and lack the strength to offer aid; time runs out for Sherpas to return and rescue him. Sharp's body remained just below the summit on the Chinese side next to "Green Boots"; they shared a space in a rock cave that was an ad hoc tomb.<ref name="change">Template:Cite book</ref> Sharp's body was removed from the cave in 2007,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and since 2014, Green Boots has been missing, presumably removed or buried.<ref name="Nuwer" />
As the Sharp debate started, on 26 May Australian climber Lincoln Hall was found alive after being left.<ref name=":2" /> He was found by a party of four climbers who, giving up their own attempt, stayed with Hall and descended with him and 11 Sherpas sent up to carry him down. Hall fully recovered. His team had assumed he had died from cerebral edema, and were instructed to cover him with rocks.<ref name=":2">Template:Cite newsTemplate:Cbignore</ref> There were no rocks to do this and he was abandoned.<ref name=":3">Template:Cite news</ref> The erroneous information of his death was passed to his family.<ref name=":3" />
2007
On 21 May 2007, Canadian climber Meagan McGrath initiated the successful high-altitude rescue of Nepali Usha Bista. McGrath was selected as a 2011 recipient of the Sir Edmund Hillary Foundation of Canada Humanitarian Award, which recognises a Canadian who has contributed a significant service in the Himalayan Region of Nepal.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Ascent statistics up to 2010 season
By the end of 2010, there had been 5,104 summits by about 3,142 individuals, with 77 per cent accomplished since 2000.<ref name="8000ers" /> The summit was achieved in 7 of the 22 years from 1953 to 1974 and not missed between 1975 and 2014.<ref name="8000ers" /> An illustration of the explosion of popularity is provided by the number of daily ascents. Analysis of the 1996 Mount Everest disaster shows part of the blame was on the bottleneck caused by a large number of climbers (33 to 36) attempting to summit on the same day; this was unusually high at the time. By comparison, on 23 May 2010, the summit was reached by 169 climbers – more summits in a single day than in the 31 years from the first successful summit in 1953 to 1983.<ref name="8000ers" /> Nearly all attempts at the summit are done using one of two main routes. In 2005–07, more than half elected to use the more challenging, but cheaper northeast route. In 2008, the northeast route was closed by the Chinese government for the season, and the only people able to summit from the north that year were athletes carrying the Olympic torch for the 2008 Summer Olympics.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The route was closed to foreigners in 2009 in the run-up to the 50th anniversary of the Dalai Lama's exile.<ref>Template:Cite newsTemplate:Cbignore</ref> These closures led to declining interest in the north route, and in 2010, two-thirds summitted from the south.<ref name="8000ers" />
2010s
The 2010s were a time of new highs and lows for the mountain, with disasters in 2013 and 2014 causing record deaths. In 2015 there were no summits for the first time in decades.<ref name=":0x">Template:Cite web</ref> A record was set in 2019 with over 890 summiters.<ref name="time5604758">Template:Cite magazine</ref>
2014 avalanche
On 18 April 2014, an avalanche hit the area just below Base Camp 2.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> 16 people were killed, all Nepali guides, and nine injured.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In response, Sherpa climbing guides walked off the job and most climbing companies pulled out in respect for the Sherpa people mourning their loss.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
2015 avalanche and earthquake
2015 was set to be a record-breaking season of climbs, with hundreds of permits. However, on 25 April 2015, an earthquake measuring 7.8 Mw triggered an avalanche that hit Everest Base Camp,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> shutting down the season.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> 18 bodies were recovered by the Indian Army mountaineering team.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The avalanche began on Pumori,<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> moved through the Khumbu Icefall on the southwest side of Everest, and slammed into the South Base Camp.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> 2015 was the first time since 1974 with no spring summits, as all climbing teams pulled out.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="WillEverest" /> One reason for this was the high probability of aftershocks.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Just weeks after the first quake, the region experienced a 7.3 quake and there were many aftershocks.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
The quakes trapped hundreds of climbers above the Khumbu icefall, and they had to be evacuated by helicopter as they ran low on supplies.<ref name="supplies">Template:Cite news</ref> The quake shifted the route through the ice fall, making it impassable.<ref name="supplies" /> Bad weather made helicopter evacuation difficult.<ref name="supplies" /> There was a large impact overall on Nepal, with 9,000 dead.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In Tibet, by 28 April at least 25 had died.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
2016 and 2017
| Year | Summiters | References |
|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 543 | <ref name="time5604758" /> |
| 2011 | 538 | <ref name="time5604758" /> |
| 2012 | 547 | <ref name="NG-20130600" /> |
| 2013 | 658–670 | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="time5604758" /> |
| 2014 | 106 | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 2015 | 0 | <ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="time5604758" /> |
| 2016 | 641 | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 2017 | 648 | <ref name="telegraph.co.uk1">Template:Cite newsTemplate:Cbignore</ref> |
| 2018 | 807 | <ref name=":0x" /><ref name=":0" /> |
| 2019 | 891 | <ref name="time5604758" /> |
| 2020 | 0 | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
Hawley's database records 641 made it to the summit in early 2016.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> 2017 was the biggest season yet, yielding hundreds of summiters and a handful of deaths.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> On 27 May, Kami Rita made his 21st summit with the Alpine Ascents Everest Expedition, one of three people, along with Apa Sherpa and Phurba Tashi Sherpa to make it to the summit 21 times.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The season had a tragic start with the death of Ueli Steck, who died from a fall during a warm-up climb.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> There was continued discussion about possible changes to the Hillary Step.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Summiters for 2017 was tallied up to be 648.<ref name="telegraph.co.uk1" />
2018
Template:Main A record 891 summited in 2018.<ref name=":4" /> One factor that aided this was an especially long and clear weather window of 11 days during the critical spring climbing season.<ref name=":0x" /><ref name="auto5">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name=":0">Template:Cite web</ref> Various records were broken, including a summit by double-amputee Xia Boyu, after winning a case in the Nepali Supreme Court.<ref name=":0x" /> 7 climbers died.<ref name=":0x" /> Although record numbers summitted, old-time summiteers that made expeditions in the 1980s lamented the crowding, feces, and cost.<ref name="auto5" />
2019
| 2019 fatalities<ref name="upi.com">Template:Cite web</ref> | |
|---|---|
| Fatalities | Nationality |
| Chris Daly | Template:Flagcountry |
| Donald Cash | Template:Flagcountry |
| Robin Fisher | Template:Flagcountry |
| Druba Bista | Template:Flagcountry |
| Kevin Hynes | Template:Flagcountry |
| Kalpana Dash | Template:Flagcountry |
| Anjali S. Kulkarni | Template:Flagcountry |
| Ernst Landgraf | Template:Flagcountry |
| Nihal Bagwan | Template:Flagcountry |
| Ravi Thakar | Template:Flagcountry |
| Chris Kulish | Template:Flagcountry |
| Séamus Lawless*<ref name="Slater">Template:Cite news</ref> | Template:Flagcountry |
| *Declared dead after missing | |
The spring or pre-monsoon window for 2019 witnessed the deaths of climbers. Images of hundreds queuing to reach the summit and reports of climbers stepping over dead bodies dismayed people around the world.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
There was an announcement of an expedition to re-measure the height of Everest, particularly in light of the 2015 earthquakes.<ref>Template:Cite newsTemplate:Cbignore</ref><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Among the climbing teams was a scientific expedition with a planned study of pollution, and how things like snow and vegetation influence the availability of food and water in the region.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In the 2019 spring season, there were roughly 40 teams with almost 400 climbers and several hundred guides attempting to summit on the Nepali side.<ref name="nbcrita">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="cnnrita">Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Nepal issued 381 climbing permits for 2019.<ref name=":4">Template:Cite news</ref> For the northern routes in Chinese Tibet, several hundred more permits were issued.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In May, Nepali mountaineering guide Kami Rita summited twice within a week, his 23rd and 24th ascents.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="nbcrita" /><ref name="cnnrita" />
By 28 May, the death toll reached 11, when a climber died at about Template:Convert during the descent,<ref name="upi.com" /> and a 12th climber was missing and later declared dead.<ref name="Slater" /> The deaths were possibly due to crowding leading to delays high on the mountain, and shorter weather windows.<ref name=":4" /> Someone who had summited previously noted that when the weather window opens, long lines form as everyone rushes to summit and get back down.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Despite the number of deaths, reports indicated that a record 891 climbers summited in the spring 2019 climbing season.<ref name=":6" /><ref name="time5604758" /> Although China has had permit restrictions, and Nepal requires a doctor to sign off on climbing permits,<ref name=":6">Template:Cite web</ref> the natural dangers of climbing such as falls and avalanches combined with medical issues aggravated by Everest's extreme altitude led to 2019 being a year with a comparatively high death toll.<ref name=":6" />
2020s
Both Nepal and China prohibited foreign climbing groups during the 2020 season, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 2020 saw no summits from the Nepal (South) Side.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
In October 2025, blizzard-like conditions prompted Chinese authorities to evacuate nearly 350 people by October 6, with about 200 more stranded on the Everest Scenic Area.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Climbing
Permits
| Location | Altitude (km) | |
|---|---|---|
| Summit 8848 m / 29035 ft | Template:Bartable | |
| Camp 4 8000 m / 26000 ft | Template:Bartable | |
| Camp 3 6800 m / 22300 ft | Template:Bartable | |
| Camp 2 6400 m / 21000 ft | Template:Bartable | |
| Camp 1 6100 m / 20000 ft | Template:Bartable | |
| Base camp 5400 m / 17700 ft | Template:Bartable | |
.jpg){kind=link}
In 2014, Nepal issued 334 climbing permits, which were extended until 2019 due to the closure.<ref name="ekantipur1" /> In 2015, Nepal issued 357 permits, but the mountain was closed again because of the avalanche and earthquake, and these permits were given a two-year extension to 2017.<ref name="kathmandupost.ekantipur.com">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="ekantipur1">Template:Cite web</ref>
In 2017, a person who tried to climb Everest without the $11,000 permit was caught after he made it past the Khumbu icefall. He faced, among other penalties, a $22,000 fine and a possible four years in jail. In the end, he was allowed to return home but banned from mountaineering in Nepal for 10 years.<ref>Mt. Everest Beckoned, So He Climbed Without a Permit. Now He's Under Arrest Template:Webarchive www.nytimes.com accessed 12 December 2020</ref>
The number of permits issued each year by Nepal is:<ref name="kathmandupost.ekantipur.com" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
- 2008: 160
- 2009: 220
- 2010: 209
- 2011: 225
- 2012: 208
- 2013: 316
- 2014: 326 (extended for use through 2019)
- 2015: 356 (extended for use through 2017)
- 2016: 289
- 2017: 366 to 373
- 2018: 346
- 2019: 381
- 2020: 0 (no permits issued during the pandemic)
- 2021: 408 (current record)<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
The Chinese side in Tibet is also managed with permits for summiting Everest.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> They did not issue permits in 2008, due to the Olympic torch relay being taken to the summit of Mount Everest.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
In March 2020, the governments of China and Nepal cancelled all climbing permits for Mount Everest due to the COVID-19 pandemic.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In April 2020, a group of Chinese mountaineers began an expedition from the Chinese side. The mountain remained closed on the Chinese side to all foreign climbers.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> On 10 May 2021, a separation line was announced by Chinese authorities to prevent the spread of coronavirus from climbers ascending Nepal's side.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Commercial climbing
.jpg){kind=link}
According to Jon Krakauer, the era of commercialisation of Everest started in 1985, when the summit was reached by a guided expedition led by David Breashears that included Richard Bass, a wealthy 55-year-old businessman and an amateur mountain climber with four years of climbing experience.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> By the early-1990s, several companies were offering guided tours to the mountain. Rob Hall, one of the mountaineers who died in the 1996 disaster, had successfully guided 39 clients to the summit before that incident.<ref name="Krakauer-1997" />Template:RP
By 2016, most guiding services cost between US$35,000 and US$200,000.<ref name="heraldsun.com.au">Template:Cite web</ref> Going with a "celebrity guide", usually a well-known mountaineer typically with decades of climbing experience and perhaps several Everest summits, can cost over £100,000 as of 2015.<ref>Template:Cite newsTemplate:Cbignore</ref> However, the services offered vary widely and it is "buyer beware" when doing deals in Nepal, one of the poorest and least developed countries in the world.<ref name="heraldsun.com.au" /><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Tourism contributed 7.9 per cent of the gross domestic product (GDP) in 2019<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> in a country with high unemployment,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> but an Everest porter can make nearly double the nation's average wage in a region in which other sources of income are lacking.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Costs beyond the guiding service can vary widely. It is technically possible to reach the summit with minimal additional expenses, and there are "budget" travel agencies that offer logistical support for such trips. A limited support service, offering only some meals at base camp and bureaucratic overhead like a permit, can cost as little as US$7,000 as of 2007.<ref name="thefever" /> However, this is considered difficult and dangerous (as illustrated by the case of David Sharp).<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Climbing gear required to reach the summit may cost in excess of US$8,000, and most climbers also use bottled oxygen, which adds around US$3,000.<ref name="ClimbingMagazineCost">Template:Cite magazine</ref> The permit to enter the Everest area from the south via Nepal costs US$10,000 to US$30,000 per person, depending on the size of the team.<ref name="ClimbingMagazineCost" /> The ascent typically starts at one of the two base camps near the mountain, both of which are approximately Template:Convert from Kathmandu and Template:Convert from Lhasa (the two nearest cities with major airports). Transferring one's equipment from the airport to the base camp may add as much as US$2,000.<ref name="ClimbingMagazineCost" />
Many climbers hire "full service" guide companies, which provide a wide spectrum of services, including the acquisition of permits, transportation to/from base camp, food, tents, fixed ropes,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> medical assistance while on the mountain, an experienced mountaineer guide, and even personal porters to carry one's backpack and cook one's meals. The cost of such a guide service may range from US$40,000 to $80,000 per person.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Since most equipment is moved by Sherpas, clients of full-service guide companies can often keep their backpack weights under Template:Convert, or hire a Sherpa to carry their backpack for them. By contrast, climbers attempting less commercialised peaks, like Denali, are often expected to carry backpacks over Template:Convert and, occasionally, to tow a sled with Template:Convert of gear and food.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
The degree of commercialisation of Mount Everest is a frequent subject of criticism.<ref name="NG-20130600">Template:Cite news</ref> Jamling Tenzing Norgay, the son of Tenzing Norgay, said in a 2003 interview that his late father would have been shocked to discover that rich thrill-seekers with no climbing experience were now routinely reaching the summit, "You still have to climb this mountain yourself with your feet. But the spirit of adventure is not there any more. It is lost. There are people going up there who have no idea how to put on crampons. They are climbing because they have paid someone $65,000. It is very selfish. It endangers the lives of others."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
One example of this is Shriya Shah-Klorfine, who had to be taught how to put on crampons during her summit attempt in 2012.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> She paid at least US$40,000 to a new guiding company for the trip, and died when she ran out of oxygen during the descent after climbing for 27 hours straight.<ref>Template:Cite webTemplate:Cbignore</ref>
Reinhold Messner concurred in 2004:
You could die in each climb and that meant you were responsible for yourself. We were real mountaineers: careful, aware and even afraid. By climbing mountains we were not learning how big we were. We were finding out how breakable, how weak and how full of fear we are. You can only get this if you expose yourself to high danger. I have always said that a mountain without danger is not a mountain....High altitude alpinism has become tourism and show. These commercial trips to Everest, they are still dangerous. But the guides and organisers tell clients, 'Don't worry, it's all organised.' The route is prepared by hundreds of Sherpas. Extra oxygen is available in all camps, right up to the summit. People will cook for you and lay out your beds. Clients feel safe and don't care about the risks.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
By 2015, Nepal was considering requiring that climbers have some experience, hoping this would both make the mountain safer and increase revenue.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> One barrier to this is that low-budget firms make money not taking inexperienced climbers to the summit.<ref name="heraldsun.com.au" /> Those turned away by Western firms can often find another firm willing to take them for a price—that they return home soon after arriving after base camp, or part way up the mountain.<ref name="heraldsun.com.au" />
However, not all opinions on the subject among prominent mountaineers have been strictly negative. For example, Edmund Hillary stated in 2003 that while "Having people pay $65,000 and then be led up the mountain by a couple of experienced guides...isn't really mountaineering at all",<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> he was pleased by the changes brought to Everest area by Westerners:
I don't have any regrets because I worked very hard indeed to improve the condition for the local people. When we first went in there they didn't have any schools, they didn't have any medical facilities, all over the years we have established 27 schools, we have two hospitals and a dozen medical clinics and then we've built bridges over wild mountain rivers and put in fresh water pipelines so in cooperation with the Sherpas we've done a lot to benefit them.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
One of the early guided summiters, Richard Bass (of Seven Summits fame) stated in 2003 that "Climbers should have high altitude experience before they attempt the really big mountains. People don't realise the difference between a Template:Convert mountain and Template:Convert. It's not just arithmetic. The reduction of oxygen in the air is proportionate to the altitude alright, but the effect on the human body is disproportionate—an exponential curve. People climb Denali [[[:Template:Convert]]] or Aconcagua [[[:Template:Convert]]] and think, 'Heck, I feel great up here, I'm going to try Everest.' But it's not like that."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Speed climbing
Altitude tents
Template:Main article Some expedition teams have clients use altitude tents to pre-acclimatise prior to leaving for the mountain. Compared to traditional Everest expeditions that last 50 to 60 days, altitude tents can reduce the expedition time frame to 30 to 35 days.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Xenon gas
Template:Further In 2025, four men climbed the mountain in one week. They claimed their inhalation of xenon gas 10 days prior to stimulate erythropoietin production had eliminated the need for altitude acclimatisation over several weeks. The International Climbing and Mountaineering Federation (UIAA) criticised the decision, citing that there is no evidence that the inhalation of xenon improves performance in high elevation environments. Furthermore, the UIAA warned that as an anesthetic, xenon gas could result in impaired brain function, respiratory compromise, and death if used in an unmonitored setting.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Summiting with disabilities
Summiting Everest with disabilities has become popular in the 21st century. Sudarshan Gautam, a Canadian double-amputee, summited the mountain in 2013.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In the same year, Eli Reimer, a teenager with Down syndrome, hiked to the South Base Camp as part of a fundraising effort for his father's foundation.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Routes
Mount Everest has two main climbing routes, the Southeast Ridge from Nepal and the North Ridge from Tibet, as well as many other less frequently climbed routes.<ref name="evhist">Template:Cite web</ref> Of the two main routes, the Southeast Ridge is technically easier and more frequently used. It was the route used by Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay in 1953 and the first recognised of 15 routes to the top by 1996.<ref name="evhist" /> This was, however, a route decision dictated more by politics than by design, as the Chinese border was closed to the western world in the 1950s, after Annexation of Tibet by the People's Republic of China.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Most attempts are made during May, before the summer monsoon season. As the monsoon season approaches, the jet stream shifts northward, thereby reducing the average wind speeds high on the mountain.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> While attempts are sometimes made in September and October, after the monsoons, when the jet stream is again temporarily pushed northward, the additional snow deposited by the monsoons and the less stable weather patterns at the monsoons' tail end makes climbing extremely difficult.
Southeast Ridge
The ascent via the Southeast Ridge begins with a trek to Base Camp at Template:Convert on the south side of Everest, in Nepal. Expeditions usually fly into Lukla (2,860 m) from Kathmandu and pass through Namche Bazaar. Climbers then hike to Base Camp, which usually takes six to eight days, allowing for proper altitude acclimatisation in order to prevent altitude sickness.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Climbing equipment and supplies are carried by yaks, dzopkyos (yak-cow hybrids), and human porters to Base Camp on the Khumbu Glacier. When Hillary and Tenzing climbed Everest in 1953, the British expedition they were part of (comprising over 400 climbers, porters, and Sherpas at that point) started from the Kathmandu Valley, as there were no roads further east at that time.
Climbers spend a couple of weeks in Base Camp, acclimatising to the altitude. During that time, Sherpas and some expedition climbers set up ropes and ladders in the treacherous Khumbu Icefall.
Seracs, crevasses, and shifting blocks of ice make the icefall one of the most dangerous sections of the route. Many climbers and Sherpas have been killed in this section. To reduce the hazard, climbers usually begin their ascent well before dawn, when the freezing temperatures glue ice blocks in place.
Above the icefall is Camp I at Template:Convert.
From Camp I, climbers make their way up the Western Cwm to the base of the Lhotse Face, where Camp II or Advanced Base Camp (ABC) is established at Template:Convert. The Western Cwm is a flat, gently rising glacial valley, marked by huge lateral crevasses in the centre, which prevent direct access to the upper reaches of the Cwm. Climbers are forced to cross on the far right, near the base of Nuptse, to a small passageway known as the "Nuptse corner". The Western Cwm is also called the "Valley of Silence" as the topography of the area generally cuts off wind from the climbing route. The high altitude and a clear, windless day can make the Western Cwm unbearably hot for climbers.<ref name="nova-climb">Template:Cite web</ref>
From Camp II, climbers ascend the Lhotse Face on fixed ropes, up to Camp III, located on a small ledge at Template:Convert. From there, it is another 500 metres to Camp IV on the South Col at Template:Convert.
From Camp III to Camp IV, climbers are faced with two additional challenges: the Geneva Spur and the Yellow Band. The Geneva Spur is an anvil-shaped rib of black rock named by the 1952 Swiss expedition. Fixed ropes assist climbers in scrambling over this snow-covered rock band. The Yellow Band is a section of interlayered marble, phyllite, and semischist, which also requires about 100 metres of rope for traversing it.<ref name="nova-climb" />
On the South Col, climbers enter the death zone. Climbers making summit bids typically can endure no more than two or three days at this altitude. If the weather is not clear with low winds during these short few days, climbers are forced to descend, many all the way back down to Base Camp.
From Camp IV, climbers begin their summit push around midnight, with hopes of reaching the summit (still another 1,000 metres above) within 10 to 12 hours. Climbers first reach "The Balcony" at Template:Convert, a small platform where they can rest and gaze at peaks to the south and east in the early light of dawn. Continuing up the ridge, climbers are then faced with a series of imposing rock steps which usually forces them to the east into the waist-deep snow, a serious avalanche hazard. At Template:Convert, a small table-sized dome of ice and snow marks the South Summit.<ref name="nova-climb" />
From the South Summit, climbers follow the knife-edge Southeast Ridge along what is known as the "Cornice traverse", where snow clings to intermittent rock. This is the most exposed section of the climb, and a misstep to the left would send one Template:Convert down the Southwest Face, while to the immediate right is the Template:Convert Kangshung Face. At the end of this traverse is an imposing Template:Convert rock wall, the Hillary Step, at Template:Convert.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
Hillary and Tenzing were the first climbers to ascend this step, and did so using primitive ice climbing equipment and ropes. Nowadays, climbers ascend using fixed ropes previously set up by Sherpas. Once above the step, it is a comparatively easy climb to the top on moderately angled snow slopes—though the exposure on the ridge is extreme, especially while traversing large cornices of snow. With increasing numbers climbing the mountain, the Step has frequently become a bottleneck, with climbers forced to wait significant amounts of time for their turn on the ropes, leading to problems in getting climbers efficiently up and down the mountain.Template:Citation needed
After the Hillary Step, climbers must traverse a loose and rocky section that has a large entanglement of fixed ropes that can be troublesome in bad weather. Climbers typically spend less than half an hour at the summit to allow time to descend to Camp IV before darkness sets in, to avoid serious problems with afternoon weather, or because supplemental oxygen tanks run out.
North Ridge route
The North Ridge route begins from the north side of Everest, in Tibet. Expeditions trek to the Rongbuk Glacier, setting up base camp at Template:Convert on a gravel plain just below the glacier. To reach Camp II, climbers ascend the medial moraine of the east Rongbuk Glacier up to the base of Changtse, at around Template:Convert. Camp III (ABCTemplate:SndAdvanced Base Camp) is situated below the North Col at Template:Convert. To reach Camp IV on the North Col, climbers ascend the glacier to the foot of the col where fixed ropes are used to reach the North Col at Template:Convert. From the North Col, climbers ascend the rocky North Ridge to set up Camp V at around Template:Convert. The route crosses the North Face in a diagonal climb to the base of the Yellow Band, reaching the site of Camp VI at Template:Convert. From Camp VI, climbers make their final summit push.
Climbers face a treacherous traverse from the base of the First Step: ascending from Template:Convert, to the crux of the climb, the Second Step, ascending from Template:Convert. (The Second Step includes a climbing aid called the "Chinese ladder", a metal ladder placed semi-permanently in 1975 by a party of Chinese climbers.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> It has been almost continuously in place since, and ladders have been used by virtually all climbers on the route.) Once above the Second Step the inconsequential Third Step is clambered over, ascending from Template:Convert. Once above these steps, the summit pyramid is climbed by a snow slope of 50 degrees, to the final summit ridge along which the top is reached.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Summit
The summit of Everest has been described as "the size of a dining room table".<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The summit is capped with snow over ice over rock, and the layer of snow varies from year to year.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The rock summit is made of Ordovician limestone and is a low-grade metamorphic rock.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> (See the Surveys section for more on its height and about the Everest rock summit.)
Below the summit, there is an area known as "rainbow valley", filled with dead bodies still wearing brightly coloured winter gear. Down to about Template:Convert is an area commonly called the "death zone", due to the high danger and low oxygen because of the low pressure.<ref name="dz" />
Death zone
At the higher regions of Mount Everest, climbers seeking the summit typically spend substantial time within the death zone (altitudes higher than Template:Convert), and face significant challenges to survival. Temperatures can dip to very low levels, resulting in frostbite of any body part exposed to the air. Since temperatures are so low, snow is well-frozen in certain areas and death or injury by slipping and falling can occur. High winds at these altitudes on Everest are also a potential threat to climbers.
Another significant threat to climbers is low atmospheric pressure. The atmospheric pressure at the top of Everest is about a third of sea level pressure or Template:Convert, resulting in the availability of only about a third as much oxygen to breathe.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
A sea-level dweller exposed to the atmospheric conditions at the altitude above Template:Convert without acclimatisation would likely lose consciousness within two to three minutes.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> At sea level, blood oxygen saturation is generally 98 to 99 per cent. At base camp, blood saturation fell to between 85 and 87 per cent. Blood samples taken at the summit indicated very low oxygen levels in the blood. A side effect of low blood oxygen is a greatly increased breathing rate, often 80–90 breaths per minute as opposed to a more typical 20–30. Exhaustion can occur merely by attempting to breathe.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Lack of oxygen, exhaustion, extreme cold, and climbing hazards all contribute to the death toll. An injured person who cannot walk is in serious trouble, since rescue by helicopter is generally impractical and carrying the person off the mountain is very risky. People who die during the climb are typically left behind. As of 2015, over 200 bodies remain on the mountain.<ref name="Nuwer" />
A 2008 study noted that the "death zone" is indeed where most Everest deaths occur, but also noted that most deaths occur during descent from the summit.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> A 2014 article in The Atlantic about deaths on Everest noted that while falling is one of the greatest dangers the death zone presents for all 8000ers, avalanches are a more common cause of death at lower altitudes.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Despite this, Everest is safer for climbers than a number of peaks by some measurements, but it depends on the period.<ref name="safer">Template:Cite web</ref> Some examples are Kangchenjunga, K2, Annapurna, Nanga Parbat, and the Eiger (especially the nordwand).<ref name="safer" /> Some factors that affect total mountain lethality include the level of popularity of the mountain, the skill of those climbing, and the difficulty of the climb.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Another health hazard is retinal haemorrhages, which can damage eyesight and cause blindness.<ref name="eyes">Template:Cite news</ref> Up to a quarter of Everest climbers can experience retinal haemorrhages, and although they usually heal within weeks of returning to lower altitudes, in 2010 a climber went blind and died in the death zone.<ref name="eyes" />
The team made a huge effort for the next 12 hours to try to get him down the mountain, but to no avail, as they were unsuccessful in getting him through the difficult sections.<ref name="theweek1">Template:Cite web</ref> Even for the able, Everest's Northeast Ridge is recognised as a challenge. It is hard to rescue someone who has become incapacitated and it can be beyond the ability of rescuers to save anyone in such a difficult spot.<ref name="theweek1" /> One way around this situation was pioneered by two Nepali men in 2011, who had intended to paraglide off the summit. They had no choice and were forced to go through with their plan anyway, because they had run out of bottled oxygen and supplies.<ref name="abcnews1">Template:Cite web</ref> They successfully launched off the summit and para-glided down to Namche Bazaar in just 42 minutes, without having to climb down the mountain.<ref name="abcnews1" />
Supplemental oxygen
Most expeditions use oxygen masks and tanks above Template:Convert.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Everest can be climbed without supplementary oxygen, but only by the most accomplished mountaineers and at increased risk. Low oxygen impairs cognition, and the combination of extreme weather, low temperatures, and steep slopes often requires quick, accurate decisions. While about 95 per cent of climbers who reach the summit use bottled oxygen in order to reach the top, about five per cent of climbers have summited Everest without supplemental oxygen. The death rate is double for those who attempt to reach the summit without supplemental oxygen.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Travelling above Template:Convert altitude is a factor in cerebral hypoxia.<ref name="thom" /> One study found that Mount Everest may be the highest an acclimatised human could go, but also found that climbers may suffer permanent neurological damage despite returning to lower altitudes.<ref name="thom" />
The use of bottled oxygen to ascend Mount Everest has been controversial. It was first used on the 1922 British Mount Everest Expedition by George Finch and Geoffrey Bruce who climbed up to Template:Convert at a spectacular speed of Template:Convert. Pinned down by a fierce storm, they escaped death by breathing oxygen from a jury-rigged set-up during the night. The next day they climbed to Template:Convert at Template:Convert – nearly three times as fast as non-oxygen users. Yet the use of oxygen was considered so unsportsmanlike that none of the rest of the Alpine world recognised this high ascent rate.Template:Citation needed
George Mallory described the use of such oxygen as unsportsmanlike, but he later concluded that it would be impossible for him to summit without it and consequently used it on his final attempt in 1924.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> When Tenzing and Hillary made the first successful summit in 1953, they also used open-circuit bottled oxygen sets, with the expedition's physiologist Griffith Pugh referring to the oxygen debate as a "futile controversy", noting that oxygen "greatly increases subjective appreciation of the surroundings, which after all is one of the chief reasons for climbing."<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> For the next twenty-five years, bottled oxygen was considered standard for any successful summit.
Reinhold Messner was the first climber to break the bottled oxygen tradition and in 1978, with Peter Habeler, made the first successful climb without it. In 1980, Messner summited the mountain solo, without supplemental oxygen or any porters or climbing partners, on the more difficult northwest route. Once the climbing community was satisfied that the mountain could be climbed without supplemental oxygen, many purists then took the next logical step of insisting that is how it should be climbed.<ref name="Krakauer-1997">Template:Cite book</ref>Template:RP
The aftermath of the 1996 disaster further intensified the debate. Jon Krakauer's Into Thin Air (1997) expressed the author's personal criticisms of the use of bottled oxygen. Krakauer wrote that the use of bottled oxygen allowed otherwise unqualified climbers to attempt to summit, leading to dangerous situations and more deaths. The disaster was partially caused by the sheer number of climbers (34 on that day) attempting to ascend, causing bottlenecks at the Hillary Step and delaying many climbers, most of whom summited after the usual 14:00 turnaround time. He proposed banning bottled oxygen except for emergency cases, arguing that this would both decrease the growing pollution on Everest—many bottles have accumulated on its slopes—and keep marginally qualified climbers off the mountain.
The 1996 disaster also introduced the issue of the guide's role in using bottled oxygen.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Guide Anatoli Boukreev's decision not to use bottled oxygen was sharply criticised by Jon Krakauer. Boukreev's supporters (who include G. Weston DeWalt, who co-wrote The Climb) state that using bottled oxygen gives a false sense of security.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Krakauer and his supporters point out that, without bottled oxygen, Boukreev could not directly help his clients descend.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
The low oxygen can cause a mental fog-like impairment of cognitive abilities described as "delayed and lethargic thought process, clinically defined as bradypsychia" even after returning to lower altitudes.<ref name="altitude">Template:Cite web</ref> In severe cases, climbers can experience hallucinations. Some studies have found that high-altitude climbers, including Everest climbers, experience altered brain structure.<ref name="altitude" />
Autumn climbing
Although generally less popular than spring, Mount Everest has also been climbed in the autumn (also called the "post-monsoon season").<ref name="autumn" /><ref name="fall">Template:Cite web</ref> For example, in 2010 Eric Larsen and five Nepali guides summited Everest in the autumn for the first time in ten years.<ref name="fall" /> The autumn season, when the monsoon ends, is regarded as more dangerous because there is typically a lot of new snow which can be unstable.<ref name="wind" /> However, this increased snow can make it more popular with certain winter sports like skiing and snowboarding.<ref name="autumn" /> Two Japanese climbers also summited in October 1973.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Chris Chandler and Bob Cormack summited Everest in October 1976 as part of the American Bicentennial Everest Expedition that year, the first Americans to make an autumn ascent of Mount Everest according to the Los Angeles Times.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> By the 21st century, summer and autumn can be more popular with skiing and snowboard attempts on Mount Everest.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> During the 1980s, climbing in autumn was actually more popular than in spring.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> U.S. astronaut Karl Gordon Henize died in October 1993 on an autumn expedition, conducting an experiment on radiation. The amount of background radiation increases with higher altitudes.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
The mountain has also been climbed in the winter, but that is not popular because of the combination of cold high winds and shorter days.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> By January the peak is typically battered by Template:Convert winds and the average temperature of the summit is around Template:Cvt.<ref name="autumn" />
Thefts and crime
Some climbers have reported life-threatening thefts from supply caches. In May 2006, Vitor Negrete, the first Brazilian to climb Everest without oxygen and part of David Sharp's party, died during his descent, and theft of gear and food from his high-altitude camp may have contributed.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In addition to theft, Michael Kodas describes in his book, High Crimes: The Fate of Everest in an Age of Greed (2008):<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> unethical guides and Sherpas, prostitution and gambling at the Tibet Base Camp, fraud related to the sale of oxygen bottles, and climbers collecting donations under the pretense of removing trash from the mountain.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
The Chinese side of Everest in Tibet was described as "out of control" in 2007 after one Canadian had all his gear stolen and was abandoned by his Sherpa.<ref name="stolen">Template:Cite web</ref> Another Sherpa helped the victim get off the mountain safely and gave him some spare gear. Other climbers have also reported missing oxygen bottles, which can be worth hundreds of dollars each. Hundreds of climbers pass by people's tents, making it hard to safeguard against theft.<ref name="stolen" /> In the late 2010s, the reports of theft of oxygen bottles from camps became more common.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Timeline
Template:Main Template:See also
By the end of the 2010 climbing season, there had been 5,104 ascents to the summit by about 3,142 individuals.<ref name="8000ers">Template:Cite web</ref> Some notable "firsts" by climbers include:
- 1922: First climb to Template:Convert, by George Mallory, Col. Felix Norton, and Howard Somervell
- 1952: First climb to South Col by 1952 Swiss Mount Everest expedition
- 1953: First ascent, by Tenzing Norgay and Edmund Hillary on 1953 British Mount Everest expedition
- 1960: First reported ascent from the North Ridge by Wang Fuzhou, Gonpo and Qu Yinhua of China.<ref name="NorthRidge" />
- 1975: First female ascent, by Junko Tabei (16 May).<ref name="8000ers" /><ref name="JapanTimes" />
- 1975: First female ascent from the North Ridge, by Phanthog, deputy head of the second Chinese Everest expedition that sent nine climbers to the summit (27 May).<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
- 1978: First ascent without supplemental oxygen by Reinhold Messner and Peter Habeler<ref name="NOVA_fwo">Template:Cite web</ref>
- 1978: First solo ascent, by Franz Oppurg<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
- 1980: First winter ascent, by Polish National Expedition Winter 1979/1980 (Leszek Cichy and Krzysztof Wielicki<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>)
- 1980: Second solo ascent, and the first without supplemental oxygen, by Reinhold Messner<ref name="NOVA_fwo" />
- 1988: First "cross-over" climb by Chinese, Japanese and Nepali teams which ascended the peak simultaneously from both the North and South sides of the mountain and descended down the other side.<ref name="JapanTimes">Template:Cite news</ref> The cross-over climb was also the first to be recorded on live broadcast television.
- 1988: First descent by paraglider, by Jean-Marc Boivin<ref name="A view from the top of the world" />
- 1988: First female ascent without supplemental oxygen by Lydia Bradey<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
- 2000: Lhakpa Sherpa becomes first Nepali woman to summit Everest and survive.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
- 2000: First descent by ski by Davo Karničar<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
- 2001: First descent by snowboard by Marco Siffredi<ref name="Everest News">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="Smith">Template:Cite news</ref>
- 2001: First ascent by a blind climber, Erik Weihenmayer<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
- 2025: First descent by ski without supplemental oxygen by Andrzej Bargiel<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite AV media</ref>
Aviation
1933: Flight over Everest
Lucy, Lady Houston, a British millionaire former showgirl, funded the Houston Everest Flight of 1933. A formation of airplanes led by the Marquess of Clydesdale flew over the summit in an effort to photograph the unknown terrain.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
1988: First climb and glide
On 26 September 1988, having climbed the mountain via the Southeast Ridge, Jean-Marc Boivin made the first paraglider descent of Everest,<ref name="A view from the top of the world">Template:Cite news</ref> in the process creating the record for the fastest descent of the mountain and the highest paraglider flight. Boivin said: "I was tired when I reached the top because I had broken much of the trail, and to run at this altitude was quite hard."<ref name="Back">Template:Cite journal</ref>
1991: Hot air balloon flyover
In 1991, four men in two balloons achieved the first hot-air balloon flight over Mount Everest.<ref name="balloon">Template:Cite web</ref> In one balloon were Andy Elson and Eric Jones (cameraman), and in the other balloon Chris Dewhirst and Leo Dickinson (cameraman).<ref name="elson">Template:Cite web</ref> Dickinson went on to write a book about the adventure called Ballooning Over Everest.<ref name="elson" /> The hot-air balloons were modified to function at up to Template:Convert altitude.<ref name="elson" /> Reinhold Messner called one of Dickinson's panoramic views of Everest, captured on the now discontinued Kodak Kodachrome film, the "best snap on Earth", according to UK newspaper The Telegraph.<ref>Template:Cite newsTemplate:Cbignore</ref> Dewhirst has offered to take passengers on a repeat of this feat for US$2.6 million per passenger.<ref name="balloon" />
2005: Pilot summits with helicopter
In May 2005, pilot Didier Delsalle of France landed a Eurocopter AS350 B3 helicopter on the summit of Mount Everest.<ref name="eurocopter">Template:Cite web</ref> He needed to land for two minutes to set the Template:Lang (FAI) official record, but he stayed for about four minutes, twice.<ref name="eurocopter" /> In this type of landing the rotors stay engaged, which avoids relying on the snow to fully support the aircraft. The flight set rotorcraft world records, for highest of both landing and take-off.<ref name="fai" />
Some press reports suggested that the report of the summit landing was a misunderstanding of a South Col landing, but he had also landed on South Col two days earlier,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> with this landing and the Everest records confirmed by the FAI.<ref name="fai">Template:Cite web</ref> Delsalle also rescued two Japanese climbers at Template:Convert while he was there. One climber noted that the new record meant a better chance of rescue.<ref name="eurocopter" />
2011: Paraglide off summit
On 21 May 2011, Nepalis Lakpa Tsheri Sherpa and Sano Babu Sunuwar paraglided from Everest's summit to Namche Bazaar in 42 minutes.<ref name="abcnews1" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> After the flight they hiked, biked, and kayaked to the Indian Ocean, reaching the Bay of Bengal by 27 June 2011, thereby becoming the first people to complete a continuous summit-to-sea descent from Everest.<ref name="nationalgeographic1">Template:Cite web</ref> They accomplished the ground-breaking feat despite Babu having never previously climbed, and Lakpa having never kayaked and not even knowing how to swim.<ref name="nationalgeographic1" /> The duo subsequently won National Geographic Adventurers of the Year for 2012 for their exploits.<ref name="nationalgeographic1" /> In 2013 footage of the flight was shown on the television news program Nightline.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
2014: Helicopter-assisted ascent
In 2014, a team financed and led by mountaineer Wang Jing used a helicopter to fly from South Base Camp to Camp II to avoid the Khumbu Icefall, and thence climbed to the Everest summit.<ref name="nationalgeographic2">Template:Cite web</ref> This climb immediately sparked outrage and controversy in much of the mountaineering world over the legitimacy and propriety of her climb.<ref name="news.nationalgeographic.com">Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Nepal ended up investigating Wang, who initially denied the claim that she had flown to Camp II, admitting only that some support crew were flown to that higher camp, over the Khumbu Icefall.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In August 2014, however, she stated that she had flown to Camp II because the icefall was impassable. "If you don't fly to Camp II, you just go home", she said in an interview. In that same interview, she also insisted that she had never tried to hide this fact.<ref name="news.nationalgeographic.com" />
Her team had had to use the south side because the Chinese had denied them a permit to climb. Ultimately, the Chinese refusal may have been beneficial to Nepal's interests, allowing the government to showcase improved local hospitals and providing the opportunity for a new hybrid aviation/mountaineering style, triggering discussions about helicopter use in the mountaineering world.<ref name="news.nationalgeographic.com" /> National Geographic noted that a village festooned Wang with honours after she donated US$30,000 to the town's hospital. Wang won the International Mountaineer of the Year Award from the Nepal government in June 2014.<ref name="nationalgeographic2" />
2016: Helicopter business increases
In 2016 the increased use of helicopters was noted for increased efficiency and for hauling material over the deadly Khumbu icefall.<ref name="blogs.dw.com">Template:Cite web</ref> In particular it was noted that flights saved icefall porters 80 trips but still increased commercial activity at Everest.<ref name="blogs.dw.com" /> After many Nepalis died in the icefall in 2014, the government had wanted helicopters to handle more transportation to Camp 1 but this was not possible because of the 2015 earthquake closing the mountain, so this was then implemented in 2016 (helicopters did prove instrumental in rescuing many people in 2015 though).<ref name="blogs.dw.com" /> That summer Bell tested the 412EPI, which conducted a series of tests including hovering at Template:Convert and flying as high as Template:Convert altitude near Mount Everest.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Extreme sports
Mount Everest has been host to other winter sports and adventuring besides mountaineering, including snowboarding, skiing, paragliding, and BASE jumping.
Yuichiro Miura became the first man to ski down Everest in the 1970s. He descended nearly Template:Convert from the South Col before falling with extreme injuries.<ref name="japtimes" /> Stefan Gatt and Marco Siffredi snowboarded Mount Everest in 2001.<ref name="TransWorld SNOWboarding">Template:Cite news</ref> Other Everest skiers include Davo Karničar of Slovenia, who completed a top to South Base Camp descent in 2000, Hans Kammerlander of Italy in 1996 on the north side, and Kit DesLauriers of the United States in 2006.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Marco Siffredi died in 2002 on his second snow-boarding expedition.<ref name="TransWorld SNOWboarding" />
Various types of gliding descents have slowly become more popular, and are noted for their rapid descents to lower camps. In 1986 Steve McKinney led an expedition to Mount Everest.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Frenchman Jean-Marc Boivin made the first paraglider descent of Everest in September 1988, descending in minutes from the Southeast Ridge to a lower camp.<ref name="A view from the top of the world" /> In 2011, two Nepalis made a gliding descent from the Everest summit down Template:Convert in 45 minutes.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Religious significance
The southern part of Mount Everest is regarded as one of several "hidden valleys" of refuge designated by Padmasambhava, a ninth-century "lotus-born" Buddhist saint.<ref name="natgeo1" />
Near the base of the north side of Everest lies Rongbuk Monastery, which has been called the "sacred threshold to Mount Everest, with the most dramatic views of the world."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> For Sherpas living on the slopes of Everest in the Khumbu region of Nepal, Rongbuk Monastery is an important pilgrimage site, accessed in a few days of travel across the Himalayas through Nangpa La.<ref name="Ullman">Template:Cite book</ref>
Miyolangsangma, a Tibetan Buddhist "Goddess of Inexhaustible Giving", is believed to have lived at the top of Mount Everest. According to Sherpa Buddhist monks, Mount Everest is Miyolangsangma's palace and playground, and all climbers are only partially welcome guests, having arrived without invitation.<ref name="natgeo1" />
The Sherpa people also believe that Mount Everest and its flanks are blessed with spiritual energy, and one should show reverence when passing through this sacred landscape. Here, the karmic effects of one's actions are magnified, and impure thoughts are best avoided.<ref name="natgeo1">Template:Cite news</ref>
Waste management
In 2015, the president of the Nepal Mountaineering Association warned that pollution, especially human waste, has reached critical levels. As much as Template:Convert of human excrement each season is left behind on the mountain.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Human waste is strewn across the verges of the route to the summit, making the four sleeping areas on the route up Everest's south side minefields of human excrement. Climbers above Base Camp—for the 62-year history of climbing on the mountain—have most commonly either buried their excrement in holes they dug by hand in the snow, or slung it into crevasses, or simply defecated wherever convenient, often within metres of their tents. The only place where climbers can defecate without worrying about contaminating the mountain is Base Camp. At approximately Template:Convert, Base Camp sees the most activity of all camps on Everest because climbers acclimate and rest there. In the late-1990s, expeditions began using toilets that they fashioned from blue plastic Template:Convert barrels fitted with a toilet seat and enclosed.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
The problem of human waste is compounded by the presence of more anodyne waste: spent oxygen tanks, abandoned tents, empty cans and bottles. The Nepali government now requires each climber to pack out eight kilograms of waste when descending the mountain.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
In February 2019, due to the mounting waste problem, China closed the base camp on its side of Everest to visitors without climbing permits. Tourists are allowed to go as far as the Rongbuk Monastery.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
In April 2019, the Solukhumbu district's Khumbu Pasanglhamu Rural Municipality launched a campaign to collect nearly Template:Cvt of garbage from Everest.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Five years later, 2024, waste removal is receiving continuing attention.<ref>A record-holding Sherpa guide concerned about garbage on higher camps on Mount Everest, apnews.com, Binaj Gurubacharya, May 29, 2024</ref><ref>Mount Everest's highest camp is littered with frozen garbage, and cleanup is likely to take years, apnews.com, Binaj Gurubacharya, July 6, 2024</ref><ref>Everest's highest camp littered with frozen garbage, and cleanup likely to take years, Sherpas say, apnews.com/video, July 6, 2024</ref>
See also
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- Chinese plan for a rail tunnel under Mount Everest
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- List of elevation extremes by country
- List of Mount Everest death statistics
- List of Mount Everest summiters by number of times to the summit
- List of people who died climbing Mount Everest
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- List of tallest mountains in the Solar System
- Mount Everest in popular culture
- Mount Hood climbing accidents
- Mukhiyapatti Musharniya – The lowest point of Nepal
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- Timeline of Mount Everest expeditions
Notes
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References
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Further reading
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External links
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- Mount Everest on Himalaya-Info.org (German)
- 360 panorama view from top of Mount Everest – large dimension drawing
- National Geographic site on Mount Everest
- NOVA site on Mount Everest
- Imaging Everest, a collection of photographs Template:Webarchive
- Mount Everest on Summitpost
- Full list of all ascents of Everest up to and including 2008 (in PDF format)
- Deaths by year (Summits and deaths per year)
- Mount Everest panorama, Mount Everest interactive panorama (QuickTime format), Virtual panoramas
- National Geographic, 2015 article with info-graphic on climbing routes
- Himalayan Database: Data Visualization of Mount Everest Summit, Attempt, and Death
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- Pages with broken file links
- Articles containing video clips
- China–Nepal border
- Eight-thousanders of the Himalayas
- Extreme points of Asia
- First 100 IUGS Geological Heritage Sites
- Highest points of Chinese provinces
- Highest points of countries
- International mountains of Asia
- Mount Everest
- Mountaineering disasters
- Mountains of Koshi Province
- Mountains of Tibet
- Seven Summits
- Shigatse
- Tourist attractions in Nepal
- Tourist attractions in Tibet