Finally, some good news
Posted: December 6, 2020 Filed under: mountains Leave a comment
Eric Bellman, Krishna Pokharal, Xiao Xiao and Yin Yijun report for the Wall Street Journal that China and Nepal have agreed on an official height for Chomolungma aka Mount Everest:
China’s official height for Chomolungma—its Tibetan name for Everest—was 29,017 feet, from a 2005 survey. China used “rock height,” estimating where the peak lay under the snow.
Nepal has used a “snow height” of 29,028 feet for the peak it calls Sagarmatha, from a 1954 survey India did. That’s where people stand, atop the snow, and the measure is standard practice in most countries.
Wade Davis in his Into The Silence has some great stuff about the early surveying expeditions in this region. Carrying drafting tables on their backs into the Himalayas to meticulously calculate and record measurements.
The official new height has not been declared. I’d speculate it will be between 29,017 feet and 29,028 feet, maybe somewhere around 29,021 or 29,022 feet or 8,845 meters.
But the 2015 earthquake means there could be a surprise here!
Helytimes 