View source for K2

{{Short description|2nd-highest mountain on Earth}}
{{Other uses}}
{{redirect|Chogori|the Korean garment|Jeogori}}
{{pp-semi-indef}}
{{pp-move|small=yes}}
{{EngvarB|date=November 2020}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2021}}
{{Infobox mountain
| fetchwikidata = ALL
| name = K2
| native_name = 
| elevation_m = 8611 {{efn|{{convert|8611|metres}} by most sources, {{convert|8609|metres}} measured in 2014}}
| elevation_ref = <br />{{small|[[List of highest mountains on Earth|Ranked 2nd]]}}
| prominence_ref = <ref>{{Cite peakbagger|pid= 10515|name=K2}}</ref><br />
{{small|[[List of mountain peaks by prominence|Ranked 22nd]]}}
| parent = [[Karakoram]]
| location = 
| map = China Xinjiang Southern#Gilgit Baltistan
| map_caption = Location of K2 relative to Xinjiang and Gilgit−Baltistan
| map_image = {{Karakoram OSM}}
| label_position = right
| coordinates = {{coord|35|52|57|N|76|30|48|E|type:mountain_scale:100000|format=dms|display=inline,title}}
| country = {{unbulleted list|[[Pakistan]]-administered [[Kashmir]]|[[China]]-administered [[Trans-Karakoram Tract]]}}
| coordinates_ref = <ref name=peaklist/>
| first_ascent = {{start date and age|df=yes|1954|7|31}}<br />[[Achille Compagnoni]] &amp; [[Lino&nbsp;Lacedelli]]<br>
{{start date and age|df=yes|2021|1}} <br>
Nepalese team (winter)
| easiest_route = [[K2#Abruzzi Spur|Abruzzi Spur]]
| mapframe = no
| listing = [[Eight-thousander]]<br />[[Seven Second Summits]]<br />[[Ultra prominent peak|Ultra]]
| etymology = *Second peak measured in the [[Karakoram Range]] by the [[Great Trigonometrical Survey|Survey of India]], hence "K2"<ref name="britannica.com">{{Cite encyclopedia |date=2024-07-27 |title=K2 {{!}} Peak, Geography, History, & Map |url=https://www.britannica.com/place/K2 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240815075455/https://www.britannica.com/place/K2 |archive-date=15 August 2024 |access-date=2024-08-31 |encyclopedia=[[Encyclopædia Britannica]] |language=en |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Voiland |first=Adam |date=December 17, 2013 |title=The Eight-Thousanders {{!}} K2 |url=https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/features/8000MeterPeaks/page14.php |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240529022008/https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/features/8000MeterPeaks/page14.php |archive-date=29 May 2024 |access-date=2024-08-31 |website=[[NASA Earth Observatory]] |publisher=[[NASA]] |language=en |url-status=live }}</ref>
*"Mount Godwin-Austen" derives from [[Henry Haversham Godwin-Austen|Henry Godwin-Austen]], who first surveyed the peak
}}

'''K2''', also known as '''Mount Godwin-Austen''',<ref name="britannica.com" /><ref>{{Cite news |last= |first= |date=August 4, 1954 |title=Italians Conquer World's Second Highest Peak; Mt. Godwin Austen in Kashmir Is Climbed in 76-Day Effort |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1954/08/04/archives/italians-conquer-worlds-second-highest-peak-mt-godwin-austen-in.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240901042739/https://www.nytimes.com/1954/08/04/archives/italians-conquer-worlds-second-highest-peak-mt-godwin-austen-in.html |archive-date=September 1, 2024 |access-date=2024-09-01 |work=[[The New York Times]] |pages=1 |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.skardu.pk/k2-chhoghori-the-king-of-karakoram/|title=K2 Chhoghori The King of Karakoram|last1=Chhoghori|first1=K2|website=Skardu.pk|access-date=23 November 2016}}</ref> at {{convert|8611|metres}} above [[sea level]], is the [[List of highest mountains on Earth|second-highest mountain on Earth]], after [[Mount Everest]] at {{convert|8849|metres}}.<ref name="britannica.com" /> It lies in the [[Karakoram|Karakoram range]], partially in the [[Gilgit-Baltistan]] region of [[Pakistan]]-administered [[Kashmir]] and partially in the [[China]]-administered [[Trans-Karakoram Tract]] in the [[Taxkorgan Tajik Autonomous County]] of [[Xinjiang]].<ref name=britannica-K2-lead>{{cite encyclopedia|date=18 November 2019|title=K2|encyclopedia=Encyclopaedia Britannica|url=https://www.britannica.com/place/K2|access-date=27 February 2021}} Quote: "K2 is located in the Karakoram Range and lies partly in a Chinese-administered enclave of the Kashmir region within the Uygur Autonomous Region of Xinjiang, China, and partly in the Gilgit-Baltistan portion of Kashmir under the administration of Pakistan."</ref><ref name="Kashmir-quotes">{{citation|title=Kashmir, region Indian subcontinent|publisher=Encyclopaedia Britannica|url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Kashmir-region-Indian-subcontinent|accessdate=15 August 2019|archive-date=13 August 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190813203817/https://www.britannica.com/place/Kashmir-region-Indian-subcontinent|url-status=live |url-access=subscription |quote=Kashmir, region of the northwestern Indian subcontinent&nbsp;... has been the subject of dispute between India and Pakistan since the partition of the Indian subcontinent in 1947. The northern and western portions are administered by Pakistan and comprise three areas: Azad Kashmir, Gilgit, and Baltistan, the last two being part of a territory called the Northern Areas. Administered by India are the southern and southeastern portions, which constitute the state of Jammu and Kashmir but are slated to be split into two union territories.}} <br /> {{citation|chapter=Kashmir|title=Encyclopedia Americana|publisher=Scholastic Library Publishing|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=l_cWAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA328|year=2006|isbn=978-0-7172-0139-6|page=328| quote=KASHMIR, kash'mer, the northernmost region of the Indian subcontinent, administered partly by India, partly by Pakistan, and partly by China. The region has been the subject of a bitter dispute between India and Pakistan since they became independent in 1947}}</ref>{{efn|name=India's claim}}

K2 became known as the ''Savage Mountain'' after [[George Irving Bell|George Bell]]—a climber on the [[1953 American Karakoram expedition|1953 American expedition]]—said, "It's a savage mountain that tries to kill you."<ref name="seattletimes">{{cite web |last1=Stone |first1=Larry |title=Summiting 'Savage Mountain': The harrowing story of these Washington climbers' K2 ascent |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/god-were-going-to-get-the-mountain-40-years-later-k2-ascent-that-included-seattles-jim-wickwire-remains-magical/ |website=The Seattle Times |date=6 September 2018 |access-date=6 September 2018}}</ref> Of the five highest mountains in the world, K2 has long been the deadliest: prior to 2021, approximately one person had died on the mountain for every four who reached the [[summit]].<ref name="seattletimes" /><ref>{{cite web|title = AdventureStats – by Explorersweb|url = http://www.adventurestats.com/tables/k2routes.shtml|website = adventurestats.com|access-date = 21 October 2015 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20151118023912/http://www.adventurestats.com/tables/k2routes.shtml |archive-date= 18 November 2015 |url-status=usurped}}</ref><ref name="LessSavage"/> After an increase in successful attempts, {{As of|lc=y|2023|8}}, an estimated 800 people have summited K2, with [[List of deaths on eight-thousanders#K2|96 deaths during attempted climbs]].<ref name="LessSavage">{{cite web |title=Is K2, the "Savage Mountain," Becoming Less Savage? |url=https://www.climbing.com/places/k2-worlds-second-highest-mountain/ |date=30 May 2024 |access-date=11 July 2024 |first1= Owen |last1=Clarke |first2=Steven |last2=Potter |website=Climbing}}</ref>

K2 is nicknamed "The King of Mountains" and "The Mountaineers' Mountain",<ref name="basecampmag">{{cite web |last1=Leger |first1=C. J. |title=K2: The King of Mountains |url=https://basecampmagazine.com/2017/02/08/k2-the-king-of-mountains/ |website=Base Camp Magazine |date=8 February 2017 |access-date=8 February 2017}}</ref> as well as "The Mountain of Mountains", a phrase popularized by [[Italians|Italian]] climber [[Reinhold Messner]] in his book on K2.<ref name="Mesner1981">{{cite book |last1=Messner |first1=Reinhold |title=K2: Mountain of Mountains |date=1981 |publisher=Kaye & Ward ; Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-520253-3 }}</ref> Although the summit of Everest is at a higher altitude, K2 is a more difficult and dangerous climb. This is in part due to its more northern location, where inclement weather is more common,<ref>{{cite web |date=10 February 2021 |title=Explainer: K2's peak beckons the daring, but climbers rarely answer call in winter |url=https://www.dawn.com/news/1606499/explainer-k2s-peak-beckons-the-daring-but-climbers-rarely-answer-call-in-winter}}</ref> as well as its steep and exposed faces. The summit was reached for the first time by the Italian climbers [[Lino Lacedelli]] and [[Achille Compagnoni]] on a [[1954 Italian expedition to K2|1954 Italian expedition]] led by [[Ardito Desio]].

Most ascents are made during July and August, typically the warmest times of the year.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Brummit |first1=Chris |date=16 December 2011 |title=Russian team to try winter climb of world's 2nd-highest peak |work=[[USA Today]] |agency=[[Associated Press]] |url=http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/world/story/2011-12-16/russian-team-winter-climb-K2-mountain/52010962/1 |access-date=26 September 2015}}</ref> In January 2021 K2 became the final [[eight-thousander]] to be summited in the winter by a team of [[Nepalis|Nepalese]] climbers led by [[Nirmal Purja]] and Mingma Gyalje Sherpa.<ref name="National Geographic">{{cite news|url=https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/nepali-mountaineers-achieve-historic-winter-first-on-k2/ar-BB1cOfjx|title=Nepali mountaineers achieve historic winter first on K2|publisher=National Geographic|access-date=29 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210122011054/https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/nepali-mountaineers-achieve-historic-winter-first-on-k2/ar-BB1cOfjx |archive-date=2021-01-22}}</ref><ref name="winter-k2">{{cite web |url=https://www.alanarnette.com/blog/2021/01/16/winter-k2-update-first-winter-k2-summit |title=Winter K2 Update: First Winter K2 Summit! |website=alanarnette.com |date=16 January 2021 |access-date=26 August 2021 }}{{unreliable source?|date=August 2021}}</ref>

K2's eastern face remains un-climbed,<ref name="ameralpineclub">{{cite web |title=Asia, Pakistan, K2 Attempt |url=http://publications.americanalpineclub.org/articles/12198824002/Asia-Pakistan-K2-Attempt |website=The American Alpine Club |access-date=8 August 2019}}</ref> partly because of the hazards associated with the instability of its ice and snow formations.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Clarke |first=Owen |date=2025-04-02 |title=Has K2—the Savage Mountain—Been Tamed? |url=https://www.climbing.com/travel/k2-worlds-second-highest-mountain/ |access-date=2025-08-25 |website=Climbing |language=en-US}}</ref>

== Name ==
[[File:K2 by Montgomery.jpg|thumb|left|[[Thomas George Montgomerie|Montgomerie]]'s original sketch from 1856 in which he applied the notation ''K2'']]
The name ''K2'' is derived from the notation used by the [[Great Trigonometrical Survey]] of [[Presidencies and provinces of British India|British India]]. [[Thomas George Montgomerie|Thomas Montgomerie]] made the first survey of the [[Karakoram]] from [[Mount Haramukh]], some {{cvt|130|mi|km|order=flip}} to the south, and sketched the two most prominent peaks, labeling them ''K1'' and ''K2'', where the ''K'' stands for ''Karakoram''.<ref>Curran, p. 25</ref>

The policy of the Great Trigonometrical Survey was to use local names for mountains wherever possible{{efn|The most obvious exception to this policy was [[Mount Everest]], where the [[Classical Tibetan|Tibetan]] name Chomolungma (Qomolongma) was probably known, but ignored in order to pay tribute to [[George Everest]]. See Curran, pp. 29–30}} and K1 was found to be known locally as [[Masherbrum]]. K2, however, appeared not to have acquired a local name—possibly due to its remoteness. The mountain is not visible from [[Askole]], one of the highest settlements on the way to the mountain, nor from the nearest habitation to the north. K2 is only fleetingly glimpsed from the end of the [[Baltoro Glacier]], beyond which few local people would have ventured.<ref name="Curran30">Curran, p. 30</ref> The name ''Chogori'', derived from two [[Balti language|Balti]] words, ''chhogo'' ཆོ་གྷའོ་ ("big") and ''ri'' རི ("mountain") (چھوغوری)<ref>{{cite web|title=Convert Roman into Urdu Script|website=changathi.com|url=http://urdu.changathi.com/}}</ref> has been suggested as a local name,<ref name=et-names>{{cite news|url=http://tribune.com.pk/story/243567/place-names--ii/|title=Place names – II|work=The Express Tribune|date=2 September 2011|access-date=4 September 2011}}</ref> but evidence for its widespread use is scant. It may have been a compound name invented by Western explorers<ref name="aaj_1983_carter"/> or simply a bemused reply to the question "What's that called?"<ref name="Curran30"/> It does, however, form the basis for the name ''Qogir'' ({{zh|s=乔戈里峰|t=喬戈里峰|p=Qiáogēlǐ Fēng}}) by which Chinese authorities officially refer to the peak. Other local names have been suggested including ''Lamba Pahar'' ("Tall Mountain" in Urdu) and ''Dapsang'', but these are not widely used.<ref name="Curran30"/>

With the mountain lacking a local name, the name ''Mount Godwin-Austen'' was suggested in honour of [[Henry Haversham Godwin-Austen|Henry Godwin-Austen]], an early explorer of the area. While the name was rejected by the [[Royal Geographical Society]],<ref name="Curran30"/> it was used on several maps and continues to be used occasionally.<ref>[https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/pakistan/ Pakistan]. ''[[The World Factbook]]''. [[Central Intelligence Agency]].</ref><ref name="aaj_1975_carter"/>

The surveyor's mark, K2, therefore continues to be the name by which the mountain is commonly known. It is now also used in the [[Balti language]], rendered as ''Kechu'' or ''Ketu''<ref name="aaj_1983_carter"/><ref name="carter_ketu">Carter, ''op cit''. Carter notes a generalisation of the word ''Ketu'': "A new word, ''ketu'', meaning 'big peak', seems to be entering the Balti language."</ref> ({{langx|bft|کے چو}}, {{langx|ur|کے ٹو}}). The Italian climber [[Fosco Maraini]] argued in his account of the ascent of [[Gasherbrum IV]] that while the name of K2 owes its origin to chance, its clipped, impersonal nature is highly appropriate for such a remote and challenging mountain. He concluded that it was:

{{blockquote|...&nbsp;just the bare bones of a name, all rock and ice and storm and abyss. It makes no attempt to sound human. It is atoms and stars. It has the nakedness of the world before the first man—or of the cindered planet after the last.<ref>{{cite book |title=Karakoram: the ascent of Gasherbrum IV |last=Maraini |first=Fosco |author-link=Fosco Maraini |year=1961 |publisher=Hutchinson }} Quoted in Curran, p. 31.</ref>}}

[[André Weil]] named [[K3 surface]]s in mathematics partly after the beauty of the mountain K2.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Lectures on K3 Surfaces [review] |first=Felipe |last=Zaldivar |date=19 September 2017 |work=MAA Reviews |publisher=Mathematical Association of America |url=https://old.maa.org/press/maa-reviews/lectures-on-k3-surfaces |access-date=26 September 2024 |archive-date=29 June 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170629034724/http://www.maa.org/press/maa-reviews/lectures-on-k3-surfaces |url-status=live}}</ref>


==Geographical setting==
[[File:Map India and Pakistan 1-250,000 Tile NI 43-4 Chulung.jpg|thumb|Map including K2 (labelled as ''K2 (MOUNT GODWIN AUSTEN)'' in upper left corner of map) ([[Army Map Service|AMS]], 1953)]]
[[File:K2-Animation 280611 DLR-Logo 1280x720.ogv|thumb|Virtual flight around K2]]
K2 lies in the northwestern [[Karakoram Range]]. It is located in the [[Baltistan]] region of [[Gilgit–Baltistan]], Pakistan, and the [[Taxkorgan Tajik Autonomous County]] of [[Xinjiang]], China.{{efn|name=India's claim}} The [[Tarim Basin|Tarim sedimentary basin]] borders the range on the north and the [[Lesser Himalayas]] on the south. Melt waters from glaciers, such as those south and east of K2, feed agriculture in the valleys and contribute significantly to the regional fresh-water supply.{{citation needed|date=January 2021}}

K2 is [[List of peaks by prominence|ranked 22nd]] by [[topographic prominence]], a measure of a mountain's independent stature. It is a part of the same extended area of uplift (including the Karakoram, the Tibetan Plateau, and the Himalayas) as [[Mount Everest]], and it is possible to follow a path from K2 to Everest that goes no lower than {{convert|4594|metres}}, at the [[Kora La]] on the Nepal/China border in the [[Mustang (kingdom)|Mustang Lo]]. Many other peaks far lower than K2 are more independent in this sense. It is, however, the most prominent peak within the Karakoram range.<ref name=peaklist/>

K2 is notable for its local relief as well as its total height. It stands over {{convert|3000|m|ft|sigfig=1}} above much of the glacial valley bottoms at its base. It is a consistently steep pyramid, dropping quickly in almost all directions. The north side is the steepest: there it rises over {{convert|3200|metres}} above the K2 (Qogir) Glacier in only {{convert|3000|metres}} of horizontal distance. In most directions, it achieves over {{convert|2800|metres}} of vertical relief in less than {{convert|4000|metres}}.<ref name="8000m_map">{{cite news|author=Wala, Jerzy |title=The Eight-Thousand-Metre Peaks of the Karakoram|work= Orographical Sketch Map|publisher= The Climbing Company Ltd/Cordee|date=1994}}</ref>

A 1986 expedition led by [[George Wallerstein]] made an inaccurate measurement showing that K2 was taller than Mount Everest, and therefore the tallest mountain on Earth.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1987/05/18/us/how-high-is-everest-climbers-seek-answer.html |title=How High Is Everest? Climbers Seek Answer |newspaper=[[The New York Times]] |date=18 May 1987}}</ref> A corrected measurement was made in 1987, but by then the claim that K2 was the tallest mountain in the world had already made it into many news reports and reference works.<ref name="straightdope">{{cite web|url=http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/1467/which-is-taller-mt-everest-or-k2|title=Which is taller, Mt. Everest or K2?|author=Ian|website=[[The Straight Dope]]|date=20 January 2000|access-date=6 September 2013}}</ref>

==Height==
K2's height given on maps and encyclopedias is {{convert|8611|metres}}. In the summer of 2014, a Pakistani-Italian expedition to K2, named "K2 60 Years Later", was organized to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the first ascent of K2. One of the goals of the expedition was to accurately measure the height of the mountain using satellite navigation. The height of K2 measured during this expedition was {{convert|8609.02|metres}}.<ref>{{cite magazine|last1=Lehmuller |first1=Katherine |last2=Mozzon |first2=Marco |title=Second to none |url=https://leica-geosystems.com/-/media/files/leicageosystems/about_us/reporter/reporter_72.ashx |magazine=The Global Magazine of Leica Geosystems |volume=Reporter 72 |pages=40–42}}</ref><ref>{{citation |title=How High Really Is K2? |url=http://www.evk2cnr.org/cms/files/evk2cnr.org/4pagine%20per%20web%20ing.pdf |date=2014 |access-date=7 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210507134712/http://www.evk2cnr.org/cms/files/evk2cnr.org/4pagine%20per%20web%20ing.pdf |archive-date=7 May 2021}}</ref>

==Geology==
The mountains of K2 and [[Broad Peak]], and the area westward to the lower reaches of [[Sarpo Laggo glacier]], consist of [[metamorphic rock]]s, known as the ''K2 Gneiss'' and part of the Karakoram Metamorphic Complex.<ref name="Searle1991a">{{cite book|author=Searle, M.P. |date=1991|title=Geology and Tectonics of the Karakoram Mountains|publisher= John Wiley & Sons|location= New York City|page= 358 |isbn=978-0471927730}}</ref><ref name="Searle1991b">{{cite book|author=Searle, M.P. |date=1991|title=Geological Map of the Central Karakoram Mountains.'' scale 1: 250,000''|publisher= John Wiley & Sons|location=New York City}}</ref> The K2 Gneiss consists of a mixture of [[orthogneiss]] and [[biotite]]-rich [[paragneiss]]. On the south and southeast face of K2, the orthogneiss consists of a mixture of a strongly [[Foliation (geology)|foliated]] [[plagioclase]]-[[hornblende]] [[gneiss]] and a biotite-hornblende-[[K-feldspar]] orthogneiss, which has been intruded by [[garnet]]-[[mica]] [[Leucogranite|leucogranitic]] [[Dike (geology)|dikes]]. In places, the paragneisses include [[clinopyroxene]]-hornblende-bearing [[psammite]]s, [[garnet]] (grossular)-[[diopside]] [[marble]]s, and biotite-[[graphite]] [[phyllite]]s. Near the memorial to the climbers who have died on K2, above Base Camp on the south spur, thin impure marbles with quartzites and mica schists, called the ''Gilkey-Puchoz sequence'', are interbanded within the orthogneisses. On the west face of Broad Peak and the south spur of K2, [[lamprophyre]] dikes, which consist of clinopyroxene and biotite-[[porphyritic]] [[vogesite]]s and [[Lamprophyre|minette]]s, have intruded the K2 gneiss. The K2 Gneiss is separated from the surrounding [[sedimentary]] and metasedimentary rocks of the surrounding Karakoram Metamorphic Complex by [[Fault (geology)|normal faults]]. For example, a fault separates the K2 gneiss of the east face of K2 from [[limestone]]s and [[slate]]s comprising nearby [[Skyang Kangri]].<ref name="Searle1991a"/><ref name="SearleOthers1990a"/>

[[Argon–argon dating|<sup>40</sup>Ar/<sup>39</sup>Ar ages]] of 115 to 120 million years ago obtained from and geochemical analyses of the K2 Gneiss demonstrate that it is an older, metamorphosed, pre-collisional [[Cretaceous]] [[granite]]. The granitic precursor ([[protolith]]) to the K2 Gneiss originated as the result of the production of large bodies of [[magma]] by a northward-dipping [[subduction zone]] along what was the [[continental margin]] of Asia at that time and their intrusion as [[batholith]]s into its lower [[continental crust]]. During the initial collision of the Asia and Indian plates, this granitic batholith was buried to depths of about {{convert|20|km}} or more, highly metamorphosed, highly deformed, and partially remelted during the Eocene Period to form gneiss. Later, the K2 Gneiss was then intruded by leucogranite dikes and finally exhumed and uplifted along major breakback thrust faults during post-Miocene time. The K2 Gneiss was exposed as the entire K2-Broad Peak-Gasherbrum range experienced rapid uplift with which erosion rates have been unable to keep pace.<ref name="Searle1991a"/><ref name="SearleOthers2010a"/>

==Climbing history==
===Early attempts===
[[File:View above Camp-IV of K2.jpg|thumb|upright|View above Camp-IV of K2]]
[[File:K2 West 1909.jpg|thumb|right|upright|The west face of K2 taken from the Savoia Glacier, on the 1909 expedition]]
The mountain was first surveyed by a British team in 1856. Team member [[Thomas George Montgomerie|Thomas Montgomerie]] designated the mountain "K2" for being the second peak of the Karakoram range. The other peaks were originally named K1, K3, K4, and K5, but were eventually renamed [[Masherbrum]], [[Gasherbrum IV]], [[Gasherbrum II]], and [[Gasherbrum I]], respectively.<ref>Kenneth Mason (1987 edition) Abode of Snow p.346</ref> In 1892, [[Martin Conway, 1st Baron Conway of Allington|Martin Conway]] led a British expedition that reached "[[Concordia (Karakoram)|Concordia]]" on the [[Baltoro Glacier]].<ref>{{cite book|author=Houston, Charles S. |date=1953|title= K2, the Savage Mountain}}McGraw-Hill.</ref>

The first serious attempt to climb K2 was undertaken in 1902 by [[Oscar Eckenstein]], [[Aleister Crowley]], [[Jules Jacot-Guillarmod]], Heinrich Pfannl, Victor Wessely, and [[Guy Knowles]] via the Northeast Ridge. In the early 1900s, modern transportation did not exist in the region: it took "fourteen days just to reach the foot of the mountain".<ref name=confessions/> After five serious and costly attempts, the team reached {{convert|6525|metres}}<ref name=k2climb/>—although considering the difficulty of the challenge, and the lack of modern climbing equipment or weatherproof fabrics, Crowley's statement that "neither man nor beast was injured" highlights the relative skill of the ascent. The failures were also attributed to sickness (Crowley was suffering the residual effects of [[malaria]]), a combination of questionable physical training, personality conflicts, and poor weather conditions—of 68 days spent on K2 (at the time, the record for the longest time spent at such an altitude) only eight provided clear weather.<ref>Booth, pp. 152–157 in chapter "Rhythms of Rapture"</ref>

{{anchor|Notable2}}The next expedition to K2, in 1909, led by [[Prince Luigi Amedeo, Duke of the Abruzzi]], reached an elevation of around {{convert|6250|metres}} on the South East Spur, now known as the ''[[Abruzzi Spur]]'' (or Abruzzi Ridge). This would eventually become part of the standard route, but was abandoned at the time due to its steepness and difficulty. After trying and failing to find a feasible alternative route on the West Ridge or the North East Ridge, the Duke declared that K2 would never be climbed, and the team switched its attention to [[Chogolisa]], where the Duke came within {{convert|150|metres}} of the summit before being driven back by a storm.<ref>Curran, pp. 65–72</ref>

[[File:K2 East Face 1909.jpg|thumb|upright|K2 from the east, photographed during the 1909 expedition]]
The next attempt on K2 was not made until 1938, when the [[1938 American Karakoram expedition to K2|First American Karakoram expedition]], led by [[Charles Snead Houston|Charles Houston]], made a reconnaissance of the mountain. They concluded that the Abruzzi Spur was the most practical route and reached a height of around {{convert|8000|meters}} before turning back due to diminishing supplies and the threat of bad weather.<ref>{{cite book |title=Five Miles High|author1=Houston, Charles S|author-link=Charles Snead Houston |year=1939 |publisher=Dodd, Mead|isbn=978-1-58574-051-2|author2=Bates, Robert |edition=2000 Reprint by First Lyon Press, with introduction by [[Jim Wickwire]]}}</ref><ref>Curran, pp. 73–80</ref>

The following year, the [[1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2|1939 American expedition]] led by [[Fritz Wiessner]] came within {{convert|200|metres}} of the summit but ended in disaster when [[Dudley Wolfe]], [[Pasang Kikuli]], Pasang Kitar, and Pintso disappeared high on the mountain.<ref>{{cite book |title=K2: The 1939 Tragedy|last1=Kaufman|first1=Andrew J.|year=1992 |publisher=Mountaineers Books|isbn=978-0-89886-323-9|author2=Putnam, William L.}}</ref><ref>Curran pp. 81–94</ref>

Charles Houston returned to K2 to lead the [[1953 American Karakoram expedition|1953 American expedition]]. The attempt failed after a storm pinned down the team for 10 days at {{convert|7800|metres||-1}}, during which time climber [[Art Gilkey]] became critically ill. A desperate retreat followed, during which [[Pete Schoening]] saved almost the entire team during a mass fall (known simply as [[Pete Schoening#The Belay|The Belay]]), and Gilkey was killed, either in an avalanche or in a deliberate attempt to avoid burdening his companions. Despite the retreat and tragic end, the expedition has been given iconic status in mountaineering history.<ref>{{cite book |title=K2 – The Savage Mountain|last=Houston|first=Charles S|author-link=Charles Snead Houston |year=1954 |publisher=Mc-Graw-Hill Book Company Inc|isbn=978-1-58574-013-0|author2=Bates, Robert |edition= 2000 Reprint by First Lyon Press with introduction by [[Jim Wickwire]]}}</ref><ref>McDonald, pp. 119–140</ref><ref>Curran, pp. 95–103</ref> The [[Gilkey Memorial]] was built in his memory at the mountain's foot.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.adventure-journal.com/2016/08/remembering-those-lost-on-the-savage-mountain/|title=Remembering Those Lost on the Savage Mountain|first=Vanessa|last=O'Brien|date=30 August 2016|website=Adventure Journal}}</ref>

===Success and repeats===
[[File:Compagnoni summit K2.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Achille Compagnoni]] on K2's summit on the first ascent (31 July 1954)]]
The [[1954 Italian expedition to K2|1954 Italian expedition]] finally succeeded in ascending to the summit of K2 via the Abruzzi Spur on 31 July 1954. The expedition was led by [[Ardito Desio]], and the two climbers who reached the summit were [[Lino Lacedelli]] and [[Achille Compagnoni]]. The team included a Pakistani member, Colonel Muhammad Ata-ullah, who had been a part of the 1953 American expedition. Also on the expedition were [[Walter Bonatti]] and Pakistani Hunza porter [[Amir Mehdi]], who both proved vital to the expedition's success in that they carried [[oxygen tank]]s to {{convert|8100|metres}} for Lacedelli and Compagnoni. The [[1954 Italian Karakoram expedition controversy|ascent is controversial]] because Lacedelli and Compagnoni established their camp at a higher elevation than originally agreed with Mehdi and Bonatti. It being too dark to ascend or descend, Mehdi and Bonatti were forced to overnight without shelter above {{convert|8,000|metres}}, leaving the oxygen tanks behind as requested when they descended. Bonatti and Mehdi survived, but Mehdi was hospitalised for months and had to have his toes amputated because of frostbite. Efforts in the 1950s to suppress these facts to protect Lacedelli and Compagnoni's reputations as Italian national heroes were later brought to light. It was also revealed that the moving of the camp was deliberate, apparently because Compagnoni feared being outshone by the younger Bonatti. Bonatti was given the blame for Mehdi's hospitalisation.<ref name="bbc_2014_0807" />

On 9 August 1977, 23 years after the Italian expedition, [[Ichiro Yoshizawa]] led the second successful ascent, with [[Ashraf Aman]] as the first native Pakistani climber. The Japanese expedition took the Abruzzi Spur and used more than 1,500 porters.<ref>Curran, Appendix I</ref>

The third ascent of K2 was in 1978, via a new route, the long and [[cornice (climbing)|cornice]]d Northeast Ridge. The top of the route traversed left across the East Face to avoid a vertical [[headwall]] and joined the uppermost part of the Abruzzi route. This ascent was made by an American team, led by [[Jim Whittaker|James Whittaker]]; the summit party was [[Louis Reichardt]], [[Jim Wickwire]], [[John Roskelley]], and [[Rick Ridgeway]]. Wickwire endured an overnight [[bivouac shelter|bivouac]] about {{convert|150|metres}} below the summit, one of the highest bivouacs in history. This ascent was emotional for the American team, as they saw themselves as completing a task that had been begun by the 1938 team forty years earlier.<ref name="aaj_1979_Reichardt" />

{{anchor|Notable1}}Another notable Japanese ascent was that of the difficult [[#North Ridge|North Ridge]] on the Chinese side of the peak in 1982. A team from the {{Interlanguage link|Japan Mountaineering Association|ja|日本山岳協会}} led by Isao Shinkai and {{Interlanguage link|Masatsugo Konishi|ja|小西政継}} put three members, Naoe Sakashita, Hiroshi Yoshino, and Yukihiro Yanagisawa, on the summit on 14 August. However Yanagisawa fell and died on the descent. Four other members of the team achieved the summit the next day.<ref name="aaj_1983_K2_North" />

The first climber to reach the summit of K2 twice was Czech climber [[Josef Rakoncaj]]. Rakoncaj was a member of the 1983 Italian expedition led by Francesco Santon, which made the second successful ascent of the North Ridge (31 July 1983). Three years later, on 5 July 1986, he reached the summit via the Abruzzi Spur (double with Broad Peak West Face solo) as a member of Agostino da Polenza's international expedition.<ref name=aaj_1987_Rakoncaj />

The first woman to summit K2 was Polish climber [[Wanda Rutkiewicz]] on 23 June 1986. Liliane and Maurice Barrard, who had summited later that day, fell during the descent; Liliane Barrard's body was found on 19 July 1986 at the foot of the south face.<ref name=aaj_1987_Women /> On July 28, 2024, Japanese climber Naoko Watanabe became the first woman to summit K2 three times.<ref name="Annapurna">{{Cite web |last=Annapurna |first=Kris |date=2024-07-28 |title=Dozens of K2 Summits; Still No News About Hiraide and Nakajima » Explorersweb |url=https://explorersweb.com/dozens-of-k2-summits-still-no-news-about-hiraide-and-nakajima/ |access-date=2024-07-29 |website=Explorersweb}}</ref> On 28 July 2024, Italian mountaineer Tommaso Lamantia summited K2 (8611m). The 42-year-old mountaineer, who is member of the CAI Biella expedition, climbed alone and without supplementary oxygen.<ref>https://www.planetmountain.com/en/news/alpinism/tommaso-lamantia-summits-k2-first-8000.html</ref>

In 1986, two Polish expeditions summited via two new routes, the Magic Line<ref name=aaj_1987_Magic_Line/> and the Polish Line ([[Jerzy Kukuczka]] and [[Tadeusz Piotrowski (mountaineer)|Tadeusz Piotrowski]]). Piotrowski fell to his death as the two were descending.

Thirteen climbers from several expeditions died in the [[1986 K2 disaster]]. Another six mountaineers died in the [[1995 K2 disaster]], while eleven climbers died in the [[2008 K2 disaster]].<ref>{{Cite web|last=Haider|first=Kamran|date=3 August 2008|title=Rescuers reach Italian after 11 die on K2|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-pakistan-climbers-korea/rescuers-reach-italian-after-11-die-on-k2-idUSPAT41292820080804|access-date=28 October 2021|website=Reuters}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|last1=Ramesh|first1=Randeep|last2=South|first2=Asia c.|date=August 5, 2008|title=K2 Tragedy: Death Toll on World's most Treacherous Mountain Reaches 11: Ice Sheet Collapse may have Triggered Events that Led to Climbing Disaster.|work=The Guardian|id={{ProQuest|<!-- add ProQuest data here -->}}}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last1=Perlez |first1=Jane |last2=Masood |first2=Salman |date=2008-08-04 |title=11 climbers reported dead on K2 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/04/world/asia/04iht-05k2.14983120.html |access-date=2024-06-29 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20240629101232/https://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/04/world/asia/04iht-05k2.14983120.html |archive-date=2024-06-29 }}</ref>

===Recent records, attempts and notable events===
{{see also|List of deaths on eight-thousanders#K2}}

;2004
:In 2004, the Spanish climber [[Carlos Soria Fontán]] became the oldest person ever to summit K2, at the age of 65.<ref name=k2summiters />
;2008
: On 1 August 2008, [[2008 K2 disaster|a group of climbers went missing]] after a large piece of ice fell during an avalanche, taking out the fixed ropes on part of the route; four climbers were rescued, but 11, including [[Meherban Karim]] from Pakistan<ref>{{Cite web|last=Kamran|date=20 December 2020|title=Karim The Dream|url=https://www.kamranonbike.com/karim-the-dream/|access-date=9 February 2021|website=Kamran On Bike|language=en-GB}}</ref> and [[Ger McDonnell]], the first Irish person to reach the summit, were confirmed dead.<ref name=cnn_2008_0803/>
;2009
: Despite several attempts, nobody reached the summit.{{citation needed|date=January 2021}}
;2010
: On 6 August 2010, [[Fredrik Ericsson]], who intended to ski from the summit, joined [[Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner]] on the way to the summit of K2. Ericsson fell {{convert|1000|metres}} and was killed. Kaltenbrunner aborted her summit attempt.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.stern.de/news2/aktuell/oesterreicherin-bricht-nach-tod-ihres-gefaehrten-besteigung-von-k2-ab-1590619.html|title=Österreicherin bricht nach Tod ihres Gefährten Besteigung von K2 ab|trans-title=Austrian cancels ascent of K2 after death of her companion|newspaper=Stern|language=de|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100820034057/http://www.stern.de/news2/aktuell/oesterreicherin-bricht-nach-tod-ihres-gefaehrten-besteigung-von-k2-ab-1590619.html|archive-date=20 August 2010}}</ref>
:Despite several attempts, nobody reached the summit.{{citation needed|date=January 2021}}
;2011
: On 23 August 2011, a team of four climbers reached the summit of K2 from the North side. [[Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner]] became the first woman to complete all 14 eight-thousanders without supplemental [[oxygen]].<ref name="Exweb_2011_0826"/> Kazakhs [[Maxut Zhumayev]] and Vassiliy Pivtsov completed their eight-thousanders quest. The fourth team member was Dariusz Załuski from Poland.<ref name="Exweb_2011_0825"/>
;2012
: The year started with a Russian team aiming for a first winter ascent. This expedition ended with the death of Vitaly Gorelik due to frostbite and pneumonia. The Russian team cancelled the ascent.<ref name="Exweb_2012_0209"/> In the summer season, K2 saw a record crowd standing on its summit—28 climbers in a single day—bringing the total for the year to 30.<ref name="Exweb_2012_0803"/>
;2014
: On 26 July 2014, the first team of Pakistani climbers scaled K2. There were six Pakistani and three Italian climbers in the expedition, called K2 60 Years Later, according to BBC. Previously, K2 had only been summited by individual Pakistanis as part of international expeditions.<ref name=bbc_2014_0726/> Another team, consisting of [[Pasang Lhamu Sherpa Akita]], [[Maya Sherpa]], and [[Dawa Yangzum Sherpa]], became the first Nepali women to climb K2.<ref name="r+i">{{cite news|title=First All-Female Nepalese Team Summits K2|first=Chris|last=Parker|date=29 July 2014|magazine=[[Rock & Ice]]|url=http://www.rockandice.com/climbing-news/first-all-female-nepalese-team-summits-k2}}</ref>
:On 27 July 2014, [[Garrett Madison]] led a team of three American climbers and six Sherpas to summit K2.<ref name=outside_2014_0709/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://madisonmountaineering.com/dispatches/k2/k2-14/|website=Madison Mountaineering|title=Dispatches: K2 2014|date=2014}}{{Dead link|date=February 2025 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> On this day, Alan Arnette became the oldest American to summit the mountain at the age of 58.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Alan Arnette |url=https://www.alanarnette.com/#:~:text=Alan%20Arnette%20is%20a%20Coach,his%20birthday%20July%2027,%202014. |access-date=2024-09-13 |website=www.alanarnette.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Allan Arnette Biography |url=https://www.himalayanstoveproject.org/alan-arnette-bio |access-date=2024-09-13 |website=www.himalayanstoveproject.org |language=en |archive-date=9 December 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241209121948/https://www.himalayanstoveproject.org/alan-arnette-bio |url-status=dead }}</ref> On 31 July 2014, [[Boyan Petrov]] completed the first Bulgarian ascent, just 8 days after climbing [[Broad Peak]].<ref>{{cite web |title=With Diabetes to the Top |url=https://www.diabetes-m.com/blog/news/with-diabetes-to-the-top-campaign-starts-with-a-wall-climbing-competition-for-children/ |website=Diabetes:M |date=23 January 2018 |access-date=7 January 2021}}</ref>
;2017
: On 28 July 2017, [[Vanessa O'Brien]] led an international team of 12 with Mingma Gyalje Sherpa of Dreamers Destination to the summit of K2 and became the first British and American woman to summit K2, and the eldest woman to summit K2 at the age of 52 years old.<ref name="vanessaaugust2017thenation">{{cite web|author=Staff Reporter|title=Vanessa thanks Pakistan govt for help in scaling K-2|url=http://nation.com.pk/sports/16-Aug-2017/vanessa-thanks-pakistan-govt-for-help-in-scaling-k-2|website=The Nation|date=16 August 2017|access-date=17 August 2017}}</ref> She paid tribute to [[Julie Tullis]] and [[Alison Hargreaves]], two British women who summited K2, in 1986 and 1995 respectively, but died during their descents. Other notable summits included [[John Snorri Sigurjónsson]] and Dawa Gyalje Sherpa who joined his sister (Dawa Yangzum Sherpa), becoming the second set of siblings to summit K2.<ref name="sigurjonssonaugust2017thehim">{{cite news|last1=Pokhrel|first1=Rajan|title=Vanessa O'Brien, John Snorri set record as 12 scale Mt K2|url=https://thehimalayantimes.com/nepal/vanessa-obrien-john-snorri-set-record-as-12-scale-mt-k2/|work=The Himalayan Times|access-date=28 July 2017}}</ref> Both Mingma Gyalje Sherpa and Fazal Ali recorded their second K2 summits.{{citation needed|date=January 2021}}
;2018
:2018 became the record year for highest number of summits in a season, at 62.<ref name="LessSavage"/>
:On 22 July 2018, [[Garrett Madison]] became the first American climber to reach the summit of K2 more than once when he led an international team of eight climbers, nine Nepali Sherpas, four Pakistani high-altitude porters, and two other Madison Mountaineering guides to the summit.<ref>{{cite web |title=K2 2018 Summer Coverage: Record Weekend on K2 and a Death |url=http://www.alanarnette.com/blog/2018/07/23/k2-2018-summer-coverage-record-weekend-on-k2-and-a-death/ |website=The Blog on alanarnette.com |access-date=2 December 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://madisonmountaineering.com/dispatches/k2/k2-2018/|title=K2 2018 Archives|website=Madison Mountaineering|access-date=13 November 2019|archive-date=13 November 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191113002343/https://madisonmountaineering.com/dispatches/k2/k2-2018/|url-status=dead}}</ref>
:On 22 July 2018, Polish mountaineer and mountain runner [[Andrzej Bargiel]] became the first person to ski from summit to base camp.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.dreamwanderlust.com/news/first-ski-descent-on-k2|title=First Ski descent on K2|date=22 July 2018|work=dreamwanderlust.com}}</ref>
;2019
:On 25 July 2019, [[Anja Blacha]] became the first German woman to summit K2. She climbed without the use of supplemental oxygen.<ref>{{Cite web|title=K2 summiteer Anja Blacha: "More flexible on the mountain without breathing mask"|url=https://abenteuer-berg.de/en/k2-summiteer-anja-blacha-more-flexible-on-the-mountain-without-breathing-mask/|date=7 August 2019|website=Adventure Mountain|language=en-GB|access-date=14 May 2020}}</ref>
;2022
:On 22 July 2022, 145 summits on K2 were recorded in a single day, making it a record for the highest number of summits in a single day ever on K2. The 2022 season also saw the highest number of summits in a season at 200, taking over the previous record of 62 summits in 2018.<ref name="LessSavage"/><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.alanarnette.com/blog/2023/08/01/k2-2023-coverage-sherpas-dominate-k2/ |title=K2 2023 Coverage: Sherpas Dominate K2 |first=Alan |last=Arnette |date=1 August 2023 |access-date=11 July 2024}}</ref>
:On 28 July 2022, [[Adriana Brownlee]] became the youngest woman to climb K2 when she summited at age 21.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2022-08-02 |title=Adriana Brownlee: 'Russian roulette' for youngest woman to climb K2 |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-62391945 |access-date=2024-09-30 |work=BBC News |language=en-GB}}</ref>
;2023
:2023 was also a busy season like 2022, with an estimated 112 summits on the only viable weather window of July 27. Norwegian mountaineer [[Kristin Harila]] and her guide, Nepali mountaineer [[Tenjen Sherpa]] successfully completed their summit of K2 on the same day, and set a record for the fastest climb of all 14 eight-thousanders in 92 days.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://thehimalayantimes.com/nepal/tenjin-sherpa-from-field-to-summit-of-14-peaks-in-92-days-with-kristin-harila |title=Tenjin Sherpa from field to summit of 14 peaks in 92 days with Kristin Harila |author=Sangay Sherpa |date=29 July 2023 |website=The Himalayan Times |access-date=10 August 2023}}</ref>

===Winter expeditions===
* 1987/1988&nbsp;— Polish-Canadian-British expedition led by [[Andrzej Zawada]] from the Pakistani side, consisting of 13 Poles, 7 Canadians and 4 Brits. 2 March [[Krzysztof Wielicki]] and [[Leszek Cichy]] established camp III at {{convert|7,300|metres}} above sea, followed by Roger Mear and Jean-Francois Gagnon few days later. Hurricane winds and frostbite forced the team to retreat.<ref name="altitudepakistan.blogspot.com">{{cite web|url=http://altitudepakistan.blogspot.com/2014/11/history-of-winter-climbing-k2.html|title=History of Winter Climbing K2|website=altitudepakistan.blogspot.com|access-date=5 July 2018}}</ref>
* 2002/2003&nbsp;— Netia K2 Polish Winter Expedition. The team of fourteen climbers was led by [[Krzysztof Wielicki]], and included four members from Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Georgia. They intended to climb North Ridge. Marcin Kaczkan, [[Piotr Morawski]] and [[Denis Urubko]] established camp IV at {{convert|7,650|metres}} above sea level. The final ascent started by Kaczkan and Urubko failed due to the destruction of the tent by harsh weather in camp IV and Kaczkan's [[cerebral edema]].<ref name="altitudepakistan.blogspot.com"/>
* 2011/2012&nbsp;— Russian expedition. Nine Russian climbers attempted K2's Abruzzi Spur route. They managed to reach {{convert|7,200|metres}} above sea level (Vitaly Gorelik, Valery Shamalo, and Nicholas Totmyanin) but had to retreat due to hurricane-force winds as well as [[frostbite]] on both of Gorelik's hands. After their descent to base camp and an unsuccessful call for Gorelik's evacuation (helicopter could not reach them through the worsening weather), the climber died of [[pneumonia]] and cardiac arrest. Following the incident, the expedition was called off.<ref name="altitudepakistan.blogspot.com"/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.alpinist.com/doc/web12w/newswire-vitaly-gorelik-dies-k2|title=Vitaly Gorelik Dies On K2 - Alpinist.com|website=www.alpinist.com|date=6 February 2012 |access-date=5 July 2018}}</ref>
* 2017/2018&nbsp;— Polish National Winter Expedition led by [[Krzysztof Wielicki]], consisting of 13 climbers, started in the end of December 2017. The team initially attempted to summit via the south-southeastern spur (Cesen route), switching to the Abruzzi Spur after an injury on the previous route.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2017/12/K2-mountain-winter-climb-poland-spd/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171229155557/https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2017/12/K2-mountain-winter-climb-poland-spd/|url-status=dead|archive-date=29 December 2017|title=Climbers Set Off to Be First to Summit World's Most Notorious Mountain in Winter|date=29 December 2017|website=nationalgeographic.com|access-date=5 July 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://gripped.com/routes/polish-heading-k2-first-winter-ascent-attempt/|title=Polish Heading to K2 for First Winter Ascent Attempt |work= Gripped Magazine|date=29 December 2017|access-date=5 July 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.scmp.com/sport/other-sport/article/2102469/how-polands-ice-warriors-aim-become-first-team-summit-k2-savage|title=Poland's 'ice warriors' risk life and limb to be first to summit K2 in winter|website=scmp.com|date=13 July 2017|access-date=5 July 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.camp.it/blogPost.aspx?CAT=32&ID=427&T=CB |title=&#124; CAMP |publisher=Camp.it |access-date=13 November 2019}}</ref> Via the Cesen/Basque route they reached up to {{convert|6300|metres}}, while on the Abruzzi Spur route they reached up to {{convert|7400|metres}}. However, Denis Urubko reported that during his solo attempt he probably reached up to {{convert|7600|metres}}.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.dreamwanderlust.com/news/k2-remains-notoriously-savage-during-winter|title=K2 remains notoriously savage during winter|date=6 March 2018|website=dreamwanderlust.com}}</ref>
* 2021&nbsp;— Ten climbers made the first winter summit on 16 January 2021. The group summited together, and consisted of Mingma Gyalje Sherpa, [[Nirmal Purja]], Gelje Sherpa, [[Mingma Gyabu Sherpa|Mingma David Sherpa]], Mingma Tenzi Sherpa, Dawa Temba Sherpa, Pem Chhiri Sherpa, Kilu Pemba Sherpa, Dawa Tenjing Sherpa, and Sona Sherpa. The summiting group consisted entirely of indigenous climbers from Nepal. [[Nirmal Purja]] was the only one who reached the summit without the use of supplemental oxygen. The summit temperature was {{convert|−40|°C|F}}. On the same day, Spanish climber [[Sergi Mingote]] died on the descent from Camp III; he fell somewhere between Camp I and Advanced Base Camp.<ref name="winter-k2" /><ref name="National Geographic"/><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/all-nepali-winter-first-on-k2/|title = All-Nepali winter first on K2| date=16 January 2021 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Parsain |first1=Sangam |title=Mission possible: Ten Nepalis become first to climb Mt K2 in the dead of winter |url=https://kathmandupost.com/national/2021/01/16/mission-possible-ten-nepalis-become-first-to-climb-mt-k2-in-the-dead-of-winter |access-date=17 January 2021 |agency=The Kathmandu Post |publisher=The Kathmandu Post |date=17 January 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Nepali climbers script history scaling K2 in winter season |url=https://thehimalayantimes.com/nepal/nepali-climbers-script-history-scaling-k2-in-winter-season/ |access-date=16 January 2021 |agency=The Himalayan Times |issue=16 January 2021 |publisher=The Himalayan Times}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|last=Geiger|first=Stephanie|title=Aufstieg bei minus 40 Grad: Nepalesische Bergsteiger erreichen erstmals im Winter den Gipfel des K2|language=de|work=FAZ.NET|url=https://www.faz.net/1.7150612|access-date=17 January 2021|issn=0174-4909}}</ref><ref name="SP">{{cite web |author=Sangam Prasain|title=My body was freezing. I told my teammates I couldn't move.|url=https://kathmandupost.com/national/2021/01/19/nirmal-purja-announces-he-climbed-k2-without-supplemental-oxygen |website=kathmandupost.com|publisher=The Kathmandu Post|date=19 January 2021|access-date=29 January 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|author=Nirmal Purja|title=Update 11 – With or without O2 ?|url=https://www.nimsdai.com/post/k2-winter-update-11-with-or-without-o2|website=www.nimsdai.com|date=18 January 2021|access-date=29 January 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.alanarnette.com/blog/2021/01/19/winter-k2-update-oxygen-update-next-chapter-in-winter-k2/ |title=Winter K2 Update: Oxygen Update. Next Chapter in Winter K2. |work=alanarnette.com |date=19 January 2021 |access-date=26 August 2021 }}</ref> Four other climbers would die during the 2020–21 winter season: [[Atanas Skatov]],<ref name="Anadolu">{{cite web|url=https://nation.com.pk/06-Feb-2021/bulgarian-alpinist-skatov-dies-during-k2-expedition|title=Bulgarian alpinist Skatov dies during K2 expedition|work=The Nation|date=5 February 2021|access-date=2 June 2021}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.ibtimes.com/bulgarian-climber-dies-k2-expedition-3138722 |title=Bulgarian Climber Dies On K2 Expedition |agency=[[Agence France-Presse|AFP News]] |date=5 February 2021 |access-date=2 June 2021 |work=[[International Business Times]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://tribune.com.pk/story/2282795/bulgarian-climber-dies-during-expedition-on-pakistans-k2 |title=Bulgarian climber dies during expedition on Pakistan's K2 |agency=[[Agence France-Presse|AFP]] |date=5 February 2021 |access-date=2 June 2021 |work=[[The Express Tribune]]}}</ref> [[Ali Sadpara]], [[John Snorri]], and [[Juan Pablo Mohr Prieto]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://explorersweb.com/2021/02/07/k2-the-fallen-five/|title=K2: The Fallen Five
|date=7 February 2021|website=explorersweb.com|access-date=12 February 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ukclimbing.com/news/2021/02/sadpara_snorri_and_mohr_missing_on_k2_rescue_mission_temporarily_suspended-72708|title=Sadpara, Snorri and Mohr Missing on K2; Rescue Mission Temporarily Suspended
|date=9 February 2021|website=ukclimbing.com|access-date=12 February 2021}}</ref>

==Climbing routes and difficulties==

K2 features several routes, each with distinct characteristics; however, they all share common challenges. The first is the extreme altitude, which results in a significant reduction in available oxygen. At the summit of K2, only one-third of the oxygen present at sea level is available to climbers.<ref name=alt_calc/> The second challenge is the mountain's tendency to experience extreme storms lasting several days, which have resulted in many of the deaths on the peak. The third is the steep, exposed, and demanding nature of all routes on the mountain, which makes retreat particularly difficult, especially during storms. Despite numerous attempts, the first successful winter ascent occurred only in 2021. All major climbing routes are located on the Pakistani side.{{citation needed|date=January 2021}} The base camp is also located on the Pakistani side.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Watson|first=Peter|date=January 12, 2021|title=Trekking to K2 base camp in Pakistan: everything you need to know|url=https://www.lonelyplanet.com/articles/how-to-trek-to-k2-base-camp|website=Lonely Planet}}</ref>

===<span id="Abruzzi Spur"></span><span id="Abruzzi Ridge"></span>Abruzzi Spur===
[[File:K2 Abruzzi Spur.jpg|thumb|right|The south side of K2 with the Abruzzi Spur route]]
The standard route of ascent, used by 75% of all climbers, is the Abruzzi Spur,<ref name="him_alpine_style"/><ref name="world_mountaineering"/> located on the Pakistani side, [[#Notable2|first attempted]] by [[Prince Luigi Amedeo, Duke of the Abruzzi]] in 1909. This is the peak's southeast ridge, rising above the [[Godwin-Austen Glacier]]. The spur proper begins at an altitude of {{convert|5400|m|ft}}, where Advanced Base Camp is usually placed. The route follows an alternating series of rock ribs, snow/ice fields, and some technical [[rock climbing]] on two famous features, "[[House's Chimney]]" and the "Black Pyramid." Above the Black Pyramid, the route continues along dangerously exposed and difficult-to-navigate slopes leading to the easily visible "Shoulder" and then on to the summit.  The last major obstacle is a narrow [[couloir]] known as the "[[Bottleneck (K2)|Bottleneck]]", which places climbers dangerously close to a wall of [[serac]]s that form an ice cliff to the east of the summit. It was partly due to the collapse of one of these seracs around 2001 that no climbers reached the summit in 2002 and 2003.<ref name="aaj_2005"/>

Between 1 and 2 August 2008, 11 climbers from several expeditions died during [[2008 K2 disaster|a series of accidents]], including several icefalls in the Bottleneck.<ref name=cnn_2008_0803/><ref name=bbc_2008_0803/>

===North Ridge===
[[File:K2 Nordseite.jpg|thumb|right|The north side of K2. The North Ridge is in the centre of the picture.]]
Almost opposite the Abruzzi Spur is the North Ridge,<ref name="him_alpine_style"/><ref name="world_mountaineering"/> which ascends the Chinese side of the peak. It is rarely climbed, partly due to very difficult access, involving crossing the [[Shaksgam River]], which is a hazardous undertaking.<ref name="aaj_1991"/> In contrast to the crowds of climbers and trekkers at the Abruzzi basecamp, usually at most two teams are encamped below the North Ridge. This route, more technically difficult than the Abruzzi,{{Citation needed|date=December 2020}} ascends a long, steep, primarily rock ridge to high on the mountain—Camp IV, the "Eagle's Nest" at {{convert|7900|m|ft}}—and then crosses a dangerously slide-prone [[hanging glacier]] by a leftward climbing traverse, to reach a snow couloir which accesses the summit.{{citation needed|date=January 2021}}

Besides the [[#Notable1|original Japanese ascent]], a notable ascent of the North Ridge was the one in 1990 by Greg Child, Greg Mortimer, and [[Steve Swenson]], which was done [[alpine style]] above Camp 2, though using some [[fixed rope]]s already put in place by a Japanese team.<ref name="aaj_1991"/>

===Other routes===
[[File:K2-Northwestface.jpg|thumb|right|The routes climbed on the Northwest of the mountain. A: West Ridge; B: West Face; C: Northwest Ridge; D: North Ridge; E: Northeast Ridge.]]
[[File:K2 south routes.svg|thumb|right|The routes climbed on the southern side of the mountain. A: West Ridge; B; West Face (behind mountain); C: Southwest Pillar ("Magic Line"); D: South Face ("Polish Line"/"Central Rib"); E: South-southeast Spur ("Cesen route"/"Basque route"); F: Abruzzi Spur.]]
Because 75% of people who climb K2 use the Abruzzi Spur, these listed routes are rarely climbed. No one has climbed the East Face of the mountain due to the instability of the snow and ice formations on that side.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://explorersweb.com/2019/01/28/winter-8000ers-update-gale-on-manaslu-east-face-of-k2-impossible/|title = Winter 8000'ers Update: Gale on Manaslu, East Face of K2 "Impossible"|date = 28 January 2019}}</ref> In addition to the East Face, the North Face has not yet been climbed either. In 2007, [[Denis Urubko]] and Serguey Samoilov intended to climb the K2's North Face but they were stymied by increasingly deteriorating conditions. After finding their intended route menaced by growing avalanche danger, they traversed onto the normal North Ridge route and summited on 2 October 2007, making the latest summer season ascent of the peak in history.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.alpinist.com/doc/web07f/newswire-kazakhs-k2 |title=Kazakhs Make Latest Season Ascent of K2 in History |work=Alpinist |last=Bauer |first=Luke |date=4 October 2007 |access-date=26 August 2021 }}</ref>

;Northeast Ridge: Long and marked with the presence of multiple ice cornices, this ridge finishes on the uppermost part of Abruzzi route. First crossed by a Polish expedition led by [[Janusz Kurczab]] in 1976. The team was not able to summit due to poor weather.<ref name=thj_1979/> First climbed by Louis Reichardt and James Wickwire on 6 September 1978.<ref>{{Cite web |last1 = Parris-Hoshour |first1 = Aer |url=https://www.rei.com/blog/climb/the-first-american-ascent-k2 |title = 40 Years Later: The Story Behind the First American Ascent of K2 |work = Uncommon Path – An REI Co-op Publication |date = 18 October 2018}}</ref>

; West Ridge: First climbed in 1981 by a Japanese team.<ref name=aaj_1992_K2_West/> This route starts on the distant Negrotto Glacier and goes through unpredictable bands of rock and snowfields.{{citation needed|date=January 2021}}

; Southwest Pillar or "Magic Line": Very technical, and the second most demanding. First climbed in 1986 by the Polish-Slovak trio Piasecki-Wróż-Božik. Since then Jordi Corominas from Spain has been the only successful climber on this route (he summited in 2004),<ref name=BaseCamp/> despite many other attempts.{{citation needed|date=January 2021}}

; South Face or "Polish Line" or "Central Rib": Extremely exposed, demanding, and dangerous. In July 1986, [[Jerzy Kukuczka]] and [[Tadeusz Piotrowski (mountaineer)|Tadeusz Piotrowski]] summited on this route. Piotrowski was killed while descending on the Abruzzi Spur. The route starts off the first part of the Southwest Pillar and then deviates into a totally exposed, snow-covered cliff area, then through a gully known as "the Hockey Stick", and then up to yet another exposed cliff face, continuing through yet another extremely exposed section all the way up to the point where the route joins with the Abruzzi Spur about {{cvt|1000|ft|order=flip||}} before the summit. [[Reinhold Messner]] called it a suicidal route and so far, no one has repeated Kukuczka and Piotrowski's achievement. "The route is so avalanche-prone, that no one else has ever considered a new attempt."<ref name=Messner1982/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.k2climb.net/expguide/route.htm|title=The Route – Climbers guide to K2|website=www.k2climb.net|access-date=23 October 2017}}</ref>

; Northwest Face: First ascent via this route was in 1990 by a Japanese team; this route is located on the Chinese side of the mountain. This route is known for its chaotic rock and snowfields all the way up to the summit.<ref name=BaseCamp/>

; Northwest Ridge: First climbed in 1991 by a French team: Pierre Beghin and Christophe Profit. Finishes on North Ridge. The second attempt in 1995 by an American team, they reached {{cvt|8100|m|ft}} on 2 August before turning back in deteriorating weather.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://publications.americanalpineclub.org/articles/12199628602/Asia-Pakistan-K2-Northwest-Ridge-Attempt|title = AAC Publications – Asia, Pakistan, K2, Northwest Ridge Attempt}}</ref>

; South-southeast spur or "Cesen route" or "Basque route": It runs the pillar between the Abruzzi Spur and the Polish Route. It connects with the Abruzzi Spur on the Shoulder, above the Black Pyramid and below the Bottleneck; since it avoids the Black Pyramid, it is considered safer. In 1986, [[Tomo Česen]] ascended to {{cvt|8000|m|||}} via this route. The first summit via this route was by a Basque team in 1994.<ref name=BaseCamp>{{cite web|url=https://basecampmagazine.com/2017/06/09/routes-up-to-k2s-summit/|title=Routes Up to K2's Summit|date=9 June 2017|first=CJ|last=Leger|publisher=Base Camp Magazine}}</ref>

; West Face: Technical difficulty at high altitude, first climbed by a Russian team in 2007.<ref name=RussianClimb_2007/> This route is almost entirely made up of rock crevasses and snow-covered couloirs.<ref name=BaseCamp/> In 2024, Japanese climbers [[Kazuya Hiraide]] and [[Kenro Nakajima]] were lost in attempting a new line on this route.<ref name="Annapurna"/>

===Use of supplemental oxygen===
For most of its climbing history, K2 was not usually climbed with supplemental oxygen. Small, lightweight teams were the norm.<ref name="him_alpine_style">{{cite book |last1=Fanshawe |first1=Andy |last2=Venables |first2=Stephen|title=Himalaya Alpine-Style |publisher= Hodder and Stoughton |date= 1995 |isbn=0-340-64931-3}}</ref><ref name="world_mountaineering">{{cite book |editor-last=Salkeld |editor-first=Audrey |title=World Mountaineering |publisher=Bulfinch Press|year= 1998 |isbn=0-8212-2502-2}}</ref> However, the 2004 season saw a great increase in the use of oxygen: 28 of 47 summiteers used oxygen in that year.<ref name="aaj_2005"/>

Acclimatisation is essential when climbing without oxygen to avoid some degree of [[altitude sickness]].<ref name=Acclimatisation/> K2's summit is well above the altitude at which [[high-altitude pulmonary edema]] (HAPE) and [[high-altitude cerebral edema]] (HACE) can occur.<ref name=MedicalProblems/> In [[mountaineering]], when ascending above an altitude of {{convert|8000|m|ft}}, the climber enters what is known as the ''[[death zone]]''.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Woodward |first1=Aylin |title=What happens to your body in Mount Everest's 'death zone,' where 11 people have died in the past week |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/mount-everest-death-zone-what-happens-to-body-2019-5 |website=Business Insider |access-date=4 November 2022}}</ref>

==Films==
* ''[[K2 (film)|K2]]'' (1991), an adventure drama film adaption of Patrick Meyers' original stage play, directed by [[Franc Roddam]] and loosely based on the story of [[Jim Wickwire]] and [[Louis Reichardt]], the first Americans to summit K2
* ''[[Vertical Limit]]'' (2000), an American survival thriller film directed by [[Martin Campbell]]
* ''[[K2: Siren of the Himalayas]]'' (2012), an American documentary film directed by Dave Ohlson, that follows a group of climbers during their 2009 attempt to summit K2 on the 100-year anniversary of the [[Duke of Abruzzi]]'s landmark K2 expedition in 1909
* ''[[The Summit (2012 film)|The Summit]]'' (2012), a documentary film about the [[2008 K2 disaster]], directed by [[Nick Ryan]]
* ''K2: The Impossible Descent'' (2020), a documentary film about Polish ski mountaineer [[Andrzej Bargiel]]'s 2018 K2 climb and descent on skis, directed by Sławomir Batyra and Steven Robillard

==Disasters==
* [[1986 K2 disaster]]
* [[1995 K2 disaster]]
* [[2008 K2 disaster]]
* [[2021 K2 disaster]]

== Passes ==
'''Windy Gap''' is a {{convert|6111|m|ft|adj=mid|-high|sp=us}} [[mountain pass]] {{Coord|35.87318|N|76.57692|E|type:pass|display=inline}} at east of K2, north of [[Broad Peak]], and south of [[Skyang Kangri]].{{citation needed|date=January 2021}}

==See also==
{{Div col|colwidth=30em}}
* [[List of books about K2]]
* [[Concordia (Karakoram)|Concordia]]
* [[Gilgit–Baltistan]]
* [[The Himalayan Database]]
* [[Kangchenjunga]] (3rd highest after Everest and K2)
* [[List of deaths on eight-thousanders]]
* [[List of highest mountains]]
* [[List of Mount Everest death statistics]]
* [[List of mountains in Pakistan]]
* [[List of peaks by prominence]]
* [[List of people who died climbing Mount Everest]]
* [[List of tallest mountains in the Solar System]]
* [[Mount Hood climbing accidents]]
* [[Trans-Karakoram Tract]]
{{div col end}}
{{Portal|Mountains|Pakistan|China}}

==Notes==
{{Notelist
| notes =

{{efn
| name = India's claim
| K2 is located in [[Gilgit–Baltistan]], a region, which along with [[Azad Kashmir]], forms [[Pakistan administered Kashmir]]. The [[Kashmir]] region is currently the centre of a [[Kashmir conflict|territorial dispute]] between Pakistan and India. India maintains a territorial dispute on Pakistan-administered Kashmir. Likewise, Pakistan maintains a territorial dispute on [[Jammu and Kashmir (state)|Jammu and Kashmir]], the Indian-administered part of the region.
}}
}}

==References==
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   | title = Balti Place Names in the Karakoram| author = Carter, H. Adams | author-link = H. Adams Carter
   | access-date = 6 November 2016 | department = Feature Article
   | pages = 52–53  | volume = 20 | issue = 1 | quote = Godwin Austen is the name of the glacier at its eastern foot and is only incorrectly used on some maps as the name of the mountain.}}</ref>
<ref name="aaj_1979_Reichardt">
  {{cite aaj | article_id = 12197900100 | year = 1979 | links=off
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<ref name="aaj_1983_carter">
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   | access-date = 6 November 2016 | department = Notes
   | page = 296  | volume = 25 | issue = 57}}
  Carter, the long-time editor of the ''AAJ'', goes on to say that the name ''Chogori'' "has no local usage. The mountain was not prominently visible from places where local inhabitants ventured and so had no local name&nbsp;... The Baltis use no other name for the peak than K2, which they pronounce 'Ketu'. I strongly recommend ''against'' the use of the name ''Chogori'' in any of its forms."</ref>
<ref name="aaj_1983_K2_North">
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<ref name=aaj_1987_Magic_Line>
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<ref name=aaj_1987_Rakoncaj>
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<ref name=aaj_1987_Women>
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<ref name="aaj_1991">
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<ref name=aaj_1992_K2_West>
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<ref name="aaj_2005">
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<ref name=alt_calc>{{cite web
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<ref name=confessions>
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<ref name=k2climb>
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<ref name=bbc_2008_0803>
  {{cite news | url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/7539543.stm
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<ref name=bbc_2014_0726>
  {{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-28500721|title=First Pakistan team of climbers scale K2 summit
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<ref name="bbc_2014_0807">
  {{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-28696985|title=Amir Mehdi: Left out to freeze on K2 and forgotten
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<ref name="Exweb_2011_0825">
  {{cite news | url=http://www.explorersweb.com/world/news.php?id=20317
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<ref name="Exweb_2011_0826">
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<ref name="Exweb_2012_0209">
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<ref name="Exweb_2012_0803">
  {{cite news | url=http://www.explorersweb.com/everest_k2/news.php?id=20978
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<ref name=k2summiters>
  {{cite web | url = http://www.climbing.com/news/hotflashes/k2summiters/
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   | archive-date = 23 September 2015}}</ref>
<ref name=outside_2014_0709>
  {{cite web|url=http://www.outsideonline.com/1924546/everest-isnt-only-mountain-matters
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<ref name=Acclimatisation>
  {{cite journal |author1=Muza, SR | author2 = Fulco, CS | author3 = Cymerman, A.
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<ref name=Messner1982>
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<ref name=RussianClimb_2007>
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<ref name="SearleOthers1990a"><!-- 30 November 2018 -->
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<ref name="SearleOthers2010a"><!-- 30 November 2018 -->
   {{cite journal | journal = Journal of the Geological Society
   | year = 2010 | volume = 167 | pages = 183–202 | location = London | doi = 10.1144/0016-76492009-043
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<ref name=thj_1979>
   {{cite journal | journal = The Himalayan Journal | year = 1979 | volume = 35
   | title = Polish K2 Expedition – 1976 | author = Kurczab, Janusz | author-link = Janusz Kurczab
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</references>

== Bibliography ==
* {{cite book
  | last = Booth | first = Martin | author-link = Martin Booth
  | title=A Magick Life: A Biography of Aleister Crowley | orig-year=2000
  | type=[[paperback|trade paperback]] | edition=Coronet | year=2001
  | publisher=Hodder and Stoughton | location=London
  | isbn=0-340-71806-4}}
* {{cite book | title=K2: The Story of the Savage Mountain
  | author = Curran, Jim
  | year=1995 | publisher=Hodder & Stoughton | isbn=978-0-340-66007-2}}
* {{cite book | title=Brotherhood of the Rope – The Biography of Charles Houston
  | author = McDonald, Bernadette | year=2007
  | publisher=The Mountaineers Books
  | isbn=978-0-89886-942-2}}

==External links==
{{commons and category|K2}}
{{Wiktionary|K2}}
* [http://www.himalaya-info.org/Map%20karakorum_baltoro.htm Himalaya-Info.org page on K2 (German)]
* {{cite web |url=http://photographic.co.nz/everestposter/K2%20Poster.pdf |title=Sample of K2 poster product including Routes and Notes}}&nbsp;{{small|(235&nbsp;KB)}} From [http://photographic.co.nz/everestposter/ Everest-K2 Posters]
* {{cite summitpost|id=150257|title=K2}}
* [http://www.8000ers.com/cms/content/view/53/192/ List of ascents to December 2007]

{{k2nav}}
{{Karakoram}}
{{Eight-thousander}}
{{Seven Second Summits}}
{{Highest points of Asia}}
{{Baltistan}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:K2 (Mountain)}}
[[Category:K2| ]]
[[Category:China–Pakistan border]]
[[Category:Eight-thousanders of the Karakoram]]
[[Category:Highest points of Chinese provinces]]
[[Category:International mountains of Asia]]
[[Category:Kashgar Prefecture]]
[[Category:Mountains of Gilgit-Baltistan]]
[[Category:Seven Second Summits]]
[[Category:Articles containing video clips]]
[[Category:Highest points of countries]]
[[Category:National symbols of Pakistan]]
[[Category:Shigar District]]
[[Category:Pyramidal peaks]]