Though the height of Mount Everest has been established as 8,848 meters, Nepal and China are calculating the peak of the tallest mountain in the world, again.
The current figures of 8,848 meters of the renowned Mount Everest were measured by the Survey of India and have been in use since 1956.
As per Indian Express, the height of Mountain Everest has a high possibility of changing over such a long period. The case could be because of tectonic activities, such as an earthquake.
Almost a year has passed since the two countries announced that they would measure the height again, the official number is expected to arrive soon.
The current height of Mount Everest s just 200 meters more than the peak of the second-highest mountain in the world, K2, located in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.
Why is the height being measured again?
Apart from the fact that the current number of the tallest mountain is pretty old and also considering the chances of its height has drastically changed since 1956 due to calamities like the Nepal earthquake in 2015, there are also other factors to consider.
One factor is the debate regarding whether the height should be measured based on the highest rock point or the highest snow point. The protracted dispute was resolved when China accepted Nepal’s measurement of snow height of 8,848 meters and Nepal taking China’s measurement of rock height of 8,844.43 meters.
Reports further find the reason behind measuring the height of Mount Everest again is that the previous figures are either Indian, American, or European. Furthermore, it is of great pride for both countries to measure the tallest mountain the world again, which resides partially in both of its borders.
The story of the first survey of The Everest
The mountain is named after Sir George Everest, a colonial-era Geographer who served as the Surveyor-General of Colonial India.
The first mission to measure Everest’s height was taken in 1847.
Back then, Andrew Waugh and his team measured the Everest at 29,000 ft., which converts to about 8,839m. Trigonometric calculations did the survey; hence, it is known as the Great Trigonometric Survey of India.
There is a belief that Andrew’s team reported the height to be 29,002 ft to convert to 8,840 meters, making it a more impressive number.
For the time being, Nepal has completed the calculations and is waiting for China’s results so that a joint announcement could be made. The joint statement has been pushed back due to the COVID-19 global pandemic.
Image courtesy of Vixit/Shutterstock