The Mount Everest is the mountain top in the world with a height of 8,848 meters. 1 is located in the Himalayas , on the continent of Asia , and marks the border between Nepal and China . In Nepal it is called Sagarmatha (“the face of heaven”) and China Chomolungma or Qomolangma Feng (“mother of the universe “). The mountain was named Everest in honor of George Everest , Geographer British in 1865 .

The name Tibet to Mount Everest is Chomolungma or Qomolangma (which means “Mother of the Universe”), and the name Chinese is for Zhūmùlǎngmǎ Feng and Feng Shèngmǔ .
According to records English mid- s. XIX , the local name in Darjeeling for the mountain was Deodungha , or “Sacred Mountain”. 2 In the year 1960 , the Government of Nepal gave the mountain an official name in Nepal : Sagarmatha (सगरमाथा), meaning “head of the sky “.
In 1865 , the British Andrew Waugh , the British Surveyor General of India, gave the first English name to the mountain. Formerly named as “gamma peak,” “peak b”, “sharp peak h” or “Peak XV”. At that time, both Nepal and the Tibet remained closed to foreign travelers. Regarding the name of the mountain, Andrew Waugh wrote:
Colonel George Everest , the respected chief and predecessor, my real name recommended allocating the native or local to each geographic feature, but here is a mountain, probably the highest in the world who do not have any local name have been discovered and whose native name, if any, probably will not find it until we are allowed to enter Nepal. Meanwhile it is my duty and my privilege to assign a name to be known among citizens and geographers and become a household name among civilized nations.
Waugh decided that the name of the mountain was that of his predecessor, George Everest , first using the spelling Mont Everest , and then Mount Everest. Interestingly, the current pronunciation of Everest differs from the original pronunciation of the name of “Sir George Everest.”
In early 1960, the Government of Nepal realized that Mount Everest had no name Nepalese . This is because the mountain was not known or had a name in Nepal, ie, in the Valley of Kathmandu and surrounding areas, and began to look for a name. The name Tibetan (the Sherpas ) was not acceptable as it was against policy nepalización the country, so he invented a new one, Sagarmatha (सगरमाथा) created by Baburam Acharya .
In 2002, the Chinese newspaper People’s Daily published an article speaking out against the constant use of the English name in the West , insisting that it should use its Tibetan name. The newspaper argued that the Chinese name (actually a Tibetan name) is older than English, as the name “Mount Qomolangma” is printed on Chinese maps which date back 280 years. 3
Height Measurement

Mount Everest seen from the Tibet

Volcano Chimborazo , 2.1 miles higher than Everest (from the center of the planet ), Ecuador 4
The Indian Radhanath Sikdar , a mathematician and surveyor from Bengal , was the first to identify the peak as the highest mountain on Earth , in 1852 , using trigonometric calculations based on measurements of “Peak XV” (as he was known so far) and made ​​with theodolites from about 150 km away in India. These measures could not be more closely by the inability to enter Nepal. We found that the “Peak XV” was exactly 29,000 feet (8839 meters ). The arbitrary increase of 2 feet was made ​​to not give the impression that a number could be as accurate an estimate.
More recently, there have been new calculations of height resulting in 8,848 meters (29,029 feet), although there is some variation in the measurements. After Everest, the highest mountain is K2 , with 8,611 meters (28,251 feet). However, from the center of the Earth the volcano Chimborazo in Ecuador is 2.1 miles higher than Everest. 5
The height of 8848 m was determined in an Indian study conducted in 1955 , closer to the mountain and also using theodolites . This height was subsequently reaffirmed in 1975 by a Chinese measurement. 6 In both cases we measured the height of snow and rock. In May 1999 , an American expedition led by Bradford Washburn , put a GPS on the rock of the summit. The device was a height of 8,850 m for the rock and 1 m for snow and ice. 7 Although Nepal has not officially recognized. 8
On May 22 of 2005 the team of “Expedition Everest” of the “Republic of China” climbed to the top of the mountain. After several months of complex measurements and calculations, the October 9th of 2005 , the State Bureau of Surveying and Mapping announced that the height of Everest is 8844.43 ± 0.21 m and stated that it is the most accurate measurements done to date. 9 This new height is based on the highest point of the rock from the top and not in the snow and ice is on the rock. The Chinese team also measured the depth of ice and snow, being of 3.5 m, 10 which agrees with the calculated height of 8,848 meters above. In any case, how geoid of the Earth brings doubts about the accuracy shown by the measures of 1999 and 2005 , and the usefulness of determining the height with high accuracy.

Mount Everest, seen from space.
A map photogrammetric detailed (scale 1:50.000) of the region of Khumbu , including the southern part of Mount Everest, was made ​​by Erwin Schneider as part of the international expedition to the Himalayas made ​​in 1955 , which also made ​​an attempt unsuccessful to climb Lhotse . A topographic map of the area even more detailed Everest was made ​​in the late eighties , under the direction of Bradford Washburn , using aerial photographs.
Mount Everest is still rising and moving toward the northeast, driven by plate tectonics of the area of southern Asia . Two sources, 11 12 suggest that the movement speed is 4 mm per year and 3-6 mm in elevation to the northeast. It has even suggested a diminution of their height. 13
Everest is the mountain whose summit rises higher above the sea level , but the Mount Chimborazo is the highest mountain in the world but far from the center of the earth, and that from the sea level reaches only 6268 m.
The lowest point of the ocean is deeper than the height of Everest and Chimborazo: the Challenger Deep , located in the Mariana Trench , is so deep that if Everest will be placed in your background would be missing more than 2 km to reach the surface.
The region of Mount Everest and the Himalaya in general are suffering and loss of snow melt, possibly due to global warming . 14
Climbing Routes

View from space of climbing routes and the South Col North Col.
Mount Everest has two main routes of ascent: the route through the southwest side or the South Col Route , from Nepal , and the North-East or the North Col Route , from Tibet and other 13 routes 15 less frequented. Of the two main routes, the easiest and most used is technically the southwest. It was the route used by Hillary and Tenzing in 1953 and the first of the 15 routes described in 1996 . This was, however, a choice dictated more by political than technical, as the Chinese border was closed to foreigners in 1949 . Reinhold Messner ( Italy ) came out on top for the first time solo, without oxygen or otherwise, by road northwest, more difficult, crossing the North Col to the North Ridge and the Great Couloir, on August 20th of 1980 . Messner reached the summit after climbing for three consecutive days, all alone, from the base camp, situated at an altitude of 6,500 m . This path is the number 8 to the top.
Many of the attempts to run between April and May before the summer starts, the season of monsoon . A change in the jet stream at this time of year reduces the average wind speed at higher elevations of the mountain. Although attempts are made ​​to climb even after the monsoons in September and October, the snow deposited by the monsoon and less stable weather makes climbing more difficult.
South Col Route

View from base camp, from Kala Patthar.
Main article: South Col Route
The ascent of the southwest path begins with an approach to Base Camp, situated at an altitude of 5,380 m asl in the south of Everest in Nepal. The expedition usually travel to Lukla (2860 m) from Kathmandu and going through Namche Bazaar . Climbers walk, then to Base Camp, which takes between 6 and 8 days, and can adjust to the altitude and prevent altitude sickness . The equipment and supplies are moved by yaks , dzos and human porters to Base Camp Glacier Khumbu . When Hillary and Tenzing climbed Everest in 1953 , left Kathmandu, since, at that time, there were no roads to the east.
Climbers often spend a couple of days at Base Camp, acclimatizing to the altitude. During this time, the sherpas of the expedition and climbers bring ropes and ladders in the Icefall Khumbu Glacier. Cracks and unstable ice blocks make the icefall one of the most dangerous sections on the route. Many climbers and Sherpas have died on this stretch. To reduce risk, climbing usually begins before dawn, when low temperatures remain fixed blocks of ice. Above the glacier is the Base Camp I or Advanced Base Camp at an altitude of 6,065 meters.

The Western Cwm, with Lhotse in the background.
From Camp I, climbers go through the Western Cwm (valley in Welsh ) to the wall at the base of Lhotse , establishing Camp II at 6,500 m altitude. The Western Cwm is a glacial valley that goes up slightly, but marked by large cracks cross the middle of the valley, which prevent direct access to the higher elevations of the valley. Climbers must cross to the far right until you reach the base of Nuptse and go through a corridor known as the “Nuptse corner”. The Western Cwm is also called the “Valley of Silence”, as its closed topography reduces the wind on the road. The high altitude and a clear day with no wind can make the Western Cwm is unbearably hot for climbers.
From Camp II, climbers ascend the north face of Lhotse by a section prepared with fixed ropes up to Camp III, located on a platform at 7,470 m. From there, another 500 meters to Camp IV on the South Col at 7,920 m. From Camp III to Camp IV, must overcome two challenges: The Geneva Spur and the Yellow Band. The Geneva Spur is an outcrop of black rock that gave its name to Swiss Expedition 1952 . The strings are installed on the tour help climbers to pass over the snow-covered rock. The Yellow Band is a section of stone sandstone sediment that requires about 100 m of rope to pass through.
In the South Col, climbers enter the “zone of death”. The climbers have only two or three days of resistance at this altitude to try to round the top. Clear weather and little wind are of great importance when deciding to make an attempt to reach the top. If the weather is not suitable for these days, climbers must be lowered, in many cases to Base Camp.
From Camp IV, climbers should start climbing around midnight, hoping to reach the top in 10 or 12 hours . First is reached balcony, at 8,400 meters, a small platform on which to rest while watching the sunrise peaks to the south and east. Continuing along the ridge, they find some awesome rock steps which require to venture into the snow, which can reach the waist, which represents a significant risk of avalanche . At an altitude of 8,750 meters, a small formation of the size of a table formed by ice and snow marks the South Summit.
From the South Summit, climbers continue southeast along the ridge, known as the “Voyage de la Corniche”, where snow covers rock staple. This is the section where the climbers are more exposed as a false step is a disaster, either to the left (with a drop of 2,400 m along the slope west) or right (3,050 m drop by Kangshung face slope). At the end of this journey is the imposing rock wall 12 meters high called the “Hillary Step” at an altitude of 8,760 meters.
Hillary and Tenzing were the first climbers to overcome the “Low” and did so with rudimentary equipment and without fixed ropes. Today it exceeds the “Low” by a ladder bolted by a Chinese expedition in 1960, and rope installed by the Sherpas . Once completed, the rest of the climb to the summit is comparatively simple and easy, with a moderate slope covered with snow, but in which the climber is very exposed, especially while going through long stretches of snow. Also after the “Hillary Step” must pass a rocky area and shifting with a tangle of strings that can be problematic, especially in bad weather.
Climbers should abandon the “Top of the World” in less than half an hour, as it is necessary to descend to Camp IV before dark.
Way of North Col

North face of Everest.
Main article: Way of the North Col
The way of the North Col of Everest begins north, in Tibet . The expeditions reach the Rongbuk Glacier , setting up Base Camp at 5,180 meters , in a gravel plain just below the glacier. To reach Camp II, climbers ascend the medial moraine of the eastern part of the glacier to the base of Mount Changtse , at 6,100 meters. Camp III (advanced field) is under the “North Col”, at 6,500 meters. To reach Camp IV, the “North Col”, the climbers ascend the glacier to the foot of the Hill, where fixed ropes allow to reach the North Col at 7,010 m. From there, you climb the rocky North Ridge up to Camp V, at 7,775 meters. The route continues along the north side through a series of gullies and ravines, on rocky ground plate to reach Camp VI at 8,230 m.
From Camp VI, is made the final ascent to the summit along the ridge northeast. Climbers must pass three rock bands known as First Step (from 8500 to 8534 meters), the Second Tier (from 8575 to 8625 m) and the Third Tier (from 8,690 to 8,800 m). Once passed, there is a steep slope (50 to 60 degrees inclination) to the top.
Ascents

See also Appendix: Chronology of Everest climbs

Mount Everest seen from the Rongbuk Monastery .
Early expeditions
See also: British Everest Expedition of 1924
On June 8th of 1924 , George Mallory and Andrew Irvine , both British , made ​​an attempt to climb to the top of the Way of North Col, which never returned.
In 1999 , the “Research Expedition Mallory and Irvine” found Mallory’s body at the point expected near the ancient Chinese base camp. From that time the dispute arose in the world of mountaineering on whether the two climbers were able to reach that peak in ascent, 29 years before Hillary and Tenzing reached in 1953 .
Mallory had made ​​a series of conferences in the United States the year before, in 1923 . It was then, after a reporter asked New York to why climb Everest, (question he had heard thousands of times) exasperatedly replied: “Because it’s there.” 16
In 1933 , Lady Houston, a millionaire British ex-dancer, sponsored the Houston Everest Flight of 1933 , by which a formation of airplanes led by Douglas Douglas-Hamilton, fourteenth Duke of Hamilton and the Marquis of Clydesdale, flew over the top in an effort to display the Union Jack on top.
The first expeditions ascended the mountain from Tibet to the north side, was cut off access to western expeditions in 1950 after the People’s Republic of China reaffirm control over Tibetan territory. However, a group of climbers led by Tilman Hill undertook an exploratory expedition through Nepal along the route is now the usual route from the south.
First ascent of Tenzing and Hillary
In 1953 , a nine-member British expedition led by John Hunt, Baron of Llanfair Waterdine, returned to Nepal. Hunt selected two pairs of climbers for the assault on the summit. The first pair, Tom Bourdillon and Charles Evans came within 100 meters of the summit on May 26 and returned to base camp. The next day the expedition made ​​its second and final attempt at the second pair of climbers. The New Zealander Edmund Hillary and Sherpa Tenzing Norgay of Nepal reached the summit at 11.30 am, local time on May 29th of 1953 , the South Col Route. At that time, both stated that it was a team effort of the whole expedition, but Tenzing revealed years later that Hillary was the first to set foot on the top. They stopped at the mountain to take pictures in the snow and buried some sweets and a cross before descending. The news of the success of the expedition soon reached London on the morning of the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II . Back in Kathmandu , Hillary and Tenzing found that they had been appointed knights British.
The disaster of 1996
During the climbing season of 1996 , fifteen people died on Everest this year becoming the deadliest in the history of Everest. Eight of them from three different expeditions, died on 10 May due to a storm that hit Everest. The following month another 4 people died of injuries sustained that day. The disaster was well known and aroused great controversy over the mass of Everest. Journalist Jon Krakauer , working for the magazine Outside , it was part of one of the affected groups and later published the book Into Thin Air (translated into Spanish under the name Altitude sickness ) recounting his experience. Anatoly Bukreyev , a guide who felt reported by Krakauer wrote a book in response called the Escalade . 17 The dispute sparked a long debate in the world of mountaineering. In May 2004 , the physician and surgeon Kent Moore John L. Semple, both researchers at the University of Toronto told the magazine New Scientist that an analysis of weather conditions that day indicate that a strange weather caused oxygen levels were reduced by 14%. 18 19 The impact of storm on the other side of the mountain, the North Ridge, where climbers also died, is told in first person, in the book “The Other Side of Everest” director and writer Matt Dickinson .
2003 to 50 th anniversary of the first ascent
In 2003 there was a mark of expeditions to Everest, coinciding with the 50th anniversary of first ascent.
2005 – Helicopter Landing
On 14 May 2005 , the pilot Frenchman Didier Delsalle landed a helicopter Eurocopter model AS 350 B3 at the top of Mount Everest 20 and stayed there for two minutes. The feel off the mark after takeoff helicopter from the highest point, a brand that obviously can not be overcome on the planet Earth . 21
2006 – Down with the North Face Ski
On May 16th of 2006 , the adventurous skier Tormod Granheim skied the ” Norton Couloir , “parallel to” Hornbein Couloir , “was a great feat.
2006 – David Sharp controversy
Double amputee Mark Inglis after an attempt to rise, said in an interview with the press on May 23 of 2006 that several groups of climbers had left a troubled climber, David Sharp, on May 15 while he was sheltered under a rock about 450 meters below the summit, without attempting to rescue him. The revelation began a debate on the ethics of climbing, especially in regard to Everest. The climbers did not pay support stated that rescue efforts had been futile and would only have caused more deaths given the number of people who would have been necessary to lower. That controversy was aired by the Discovery Channel in his documentary “Everest: Beyond the Limit”. A crucial decision affecting the fate of Sharp is shown in the documentary. When a climber who is returning from the climb Sharp and alerts the base camp that has found a climber in distress. You are unable to identify Sharp since it has chosen to ascend alone, without support of any kind and has not identified any other climber. The head of the base camp assumes that Sharp is part of a group, they have a responsibility to her rescue and tells the climber to continue his way without knowing that Sharp has no other support, ensuring personal experience that it is impossible to rescue someone at that altitude. According to Sharp conditions deteriorate during the day the chances of rescue are decreasing because their legs and feet are affected freezing preventing him from walking. Other climbers on their descent have lack of oxygen and can not offer help. Finally there is no time for some sherpas rescued him
Amid the debate, the May 26 Australian Lincoln Hall was found alive when it was given up for dead the day before. It was found by a group of 4 climbers who gave up their attempt to rise, stayed with Hall and descended with him and a group of Sherpas sent to their rescue. Subsequently, Hall recovered completely.
Statistics

Until May 2010, 3,431 persons have risen to the top in a total of 5,070 ascents. Of these 253 (at the end of 2009) were won by women. 216 people have died in the attempt (status: end of 2009). 22 The conditions of the mountain are so difficult that most of the bodies remain on the mountain. Many of them are visible from standard climbing routes.
The total number of attempts in the last 50 years exceeds 10,000.
Most expeditions use mask oxygen and tank 23 above 8,000 meters. This area is called the “death zone”. Everest can be climbed without supplementary oxygen, a challenge made ​​by 154 people until the end of 2009, but this increases the risk of the climber. It is difficult to think clearly without oxygen and the combination of low temperatures, harsh weather conditions remaining difficult and frequently requires quick decisions.
Climbers are a significant source of tourist revenue for Nepal. They range from experienced mountaineers to novice trust with hired guides that will take you to the top. The Government of Nepal requires payment of a climbing permit which costs 10,000 U.S. dollars per person. 24
On May 23, 2003 Sherpa Pemba Dorjie , a participant in a Belgian expedition, left the record time of ascent of Everest in 12 hours and 45 minutes. Pemba Dorjie left the base camp at 5,350 meters high on Thursday 22 and reached the summit of 8,850 meters on Friday 23. 25
Rise faster in the Way of the North Col from Camp III (ABC) to the summit without supplemental oxygen 16 hours and 42 minutes by Austrian Christian Stangl in 2007. Rise faster in the Way of the South Col without oxygen addicional: 22 hours 30 minutes by French Batard Barc in 1988. Sherpa Pemba Dorjie achieving the fastest rise with use of supplemental oxygen via the southern route with a time of 8 hours and 10 minutes in 2004.
On May 11, 2011, Apa Sherpa , climbing Nepal , reached the summit of Mount Everest for the twenty-first time, beating his own record
In 2003, Yuichiro Miura became the oldest man to reach the summit of Everest at age 70, the record was broken, but Miura regained the record on May 26, 2008 at 7:33 local time, had then with 75 years 7 months and 14 days old at the time of the feat. 26
Junko Tabei was the first woman who reached the summit of Everest on May 16, 1975. [ citation needed ]
Reinhold Messner achieved the first ascent of Everest solo and without oxygen in 1980. 27
The Death Zone

Although the terms of any area considered “death zone” can be applied to Mount Everest (altitude higher than 8,000 meters), the situation there is even more difficult for climbers. Temperatures can drop to very low levels which leads to the freezing of any part of the body minimally exposed to cold. With such a low temperature, the snow is completely frozen and slippery increasing the risk of slips and falls. The high wind speed is 135 km / h , also a potential danger to mountaineers. The air pressure on top of Everest is about one third of the pressure at sea level and hence the amount of oxygen is equally respirable third of normal. 28
Discussion about the use of oxygen

The use of bottled oxygen for climbing has always been controversial. The same George Mallory described it as unsportsmanlike, but concluded it would be impossible to reach the top without its use and therefore used it. When Tenzing and Edmund Hillary made ​​it to the top, used oxygen bottles. During the next 25 years the use of oxygen was considered normal for any attempt to climb. Reinhold Messner and Peter Habeler were in 1978 the first climbers to break the traditional use of oxygen. Both achieved the first ascent to the summit without using it. Messner has always denied accusations of having used oxygen, accusations that were silenced when he ascended Mount Everest without support or help and alone in 1980 by road northwest, technically more difficult. In the years after the climbs of Messner, the discussion on the use of oxygen continued.
The disaster of the year 1996 intensified the debate. In the book, Jon Krakauer , Altitude sickness ( 1997 ) expressed his personal criticism of the use of bottled oxygen. Krakauer wrote that the use of bottled oxygen allowed climbers to attempt the ascent of low-skilled, which carried with difficult situations and even more deaths. The disaster of May 10 of 1996 was partly caused by the large number of climbers (33 in one day) trying to climb, causing jams and delayed Hillary Step climbers, so many of them gained the top after 2 pm, curfew usually considered later. Krakauer proposed banning of oxygen except for emergency cases, arguing also that it would prevent pollution of the mountain-great number of bottles accumulate on the slopes, and they tried to avoid escalating the less skilled mountaineers.