Chomolungma is the highest mountain. Which mountain is higher - Mauna Kea or Everest? Where is Everest

Address: China
First ascent: May 29, 1953
Height: 8848 m
Coordinates: 27°59"08.8"N 86°55"32.0"E

Content:

Nepal is known throughout the world as the birthplace of Buddha and as a mountaineering Mecca, on whose territory 8 of the 14 highest peaks in the world (“eight-thousanders”) are located in whole or in part.

View of Everest from the east

But the geographer himself was against this and called the mountain exclusively by the Tibetan name - Chomolungma. Before the mountain received its European name, it was also called Chomo-Kankar (Tib. “queen of snow whiteness”). The nature of Everest is beautiful and harsh. In the world of rocks, snow and eternal ice Frosts down to minus 60 °C prevail, and at the top of the mountain strong winds blow at speeds of up to 200 km/h. Ice avalanches and snow avalanches- a common occurrence here. At an altitude of 7925 meters, the so-called “death zone” begins, where only 30% of the amount of oxygen that is present at sea level is concentrated.

Everest - the mountain of death, or to success through corpses

Conquering Everest is comparable only to flying to the moon. It only takes a few minutes to stand on the top of the mountain to go down in history. In order to look at the world from the heights of Chomolungma, people are ready to sacrifice their health and risk their lives.

View of Everest

When storming Everest, the climber knows that he has a chance of not returning. Death can be caused by lack of oxygen, heart failure, frostbite, and injury. Fatal accidents (a frozen oxygen cylinder valve, etc.) and the vain indifference of neighbors lead to death. So, in 1996, a group of Japanese climbers, while climbing a mountain, met three Indian colleagues who were in a semi-fainting state. The Japanese passed by, the Indians died. As one of the participants in the Russian Himalayan expedition, Alexander Abramov, said: “At an altitude of more than 8,000 meters, you cannot afford the luxury of morality. Above 8,000 meters you are completely occupied with yourself, and in such extreme conditions you do not have extra strength to help your comrade.” The tragedy that happened on Everest in May 2006 shocked the whole world: 42 climbers passed by the slowly freezing Englishman David Sharp indifferently, but no one helped him.

One of them were television crews from the Discovery Channel, who tried to interview the dying man and, after photographing him, left him alone.

Everest climbing records

In total, about 4,000 people have conquered Everest to date. The glory of the first ascent belongs to the members of the English expedition - on May 29, 1953, Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay reached the top of Everest for the first time in human history. Here, at the high-altitude pole of the planet, the climbers spent only 15 minutes. After shaking hands, they buried chocolates in the snow as offerings to the gods and hoisted the flags of Great Britain, Nepal and India, and on top of them the UN flag. The news of the successful expedition reached Elizabeth II on the day of her coronation, and therefore a legend arose that the conquest of Everest was being prepared as a gift to the Queen of England.

View of Everest from the west

In 1978 it was recorded new record- Italian R. Messner and German P. Habeler reached the summit without the use of oxygen cylinders.

“Top of the World” attracts climbers of all ages: the oldest person to make the ascent was 76-year-old Nepalese Min Bahadur Sherkhan, and the youngest was 13-year-old American Jordan Romero. But Mark Inglis deserves special admiration: in 2006, for the first time in history, a person with two amputated legs was able to reach the top of Everest! Inglis lost his legs (both below the knee) after suffering severe frostbite while climbing Cook's Peak (3,754m), New Zealand's highest peak.

While climbing Everest, Inglis used prosthetics. According to him, he even had advantages over other climbers: “I definitely won’t freeze my toes.”

View of snow-capped Everest

And here is another example of the greatest strength of spirit: in 2001, blind American Eric Weihenmayer climbed to the top of Everest, who by that time had already conquered the highest mountains on all 7 continents. In his interview with reporters, Weihenmayer said: “By climbing the 7 highest peaks of 7 continents, I wanted to show people that unattainable goals are actually achievable.” In addition, to realize his dream, the blind disabled man had to earn a lot of money, since the cost of a commercial climb is up to 65 thousand US dollars, and the license alone, issued by the Nepalese authorities and giving the right to climb Everest, costs 10 thousand dollars. And taking into account the cost of equipment, provisions, accommodation in the camp and guide services, everyone who wants to conquer Everest spends at least 25 thousand dollars.

View of the summit of Everest

A typical expedition reaches the summit of Chomolungma in 2 months: it takes two weeks to climb to the base camp at an altitude of 5360 meters, acclimatization takes a month, and only after a person adapts to difficult mountain conditions can the ascent begin. But climbing a mountain 8848 meters high is not the finish line; what follows is an equally difficult descent.

Mount Everest (Nepal) - detailed description, location, reviews, photos and videos.

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The highest peak on the planet, Everest, calmly looks at the world from a height of 8848 meters. Conquering Everest or, as the locals call it, Chomolungma (“mistress of the winds”) is an honor for any climber, a dream that in most cases remains unfulfilled. However, in our age of commerce and any tourist routes the impossible is becoming less and less: a minimum of 35,000 USD and two months of free time in reserve (plus excellent health) - and you are soaring above the clouds, standing on a 20-meter platform at the top of the world. And if you do not have such impressive reserves in your current account, but still want to join the beauty, you can limit the route to a stop at the Base or Advanced Base Camps of Everest. Prices on the page are for October 2018.

A little history and geography

Everest is the highest point on the planet, height - 8848 meters. The mountain is part of the Himalaya mountain system and lies exactly on the border between China (northern slope) and Nepal (southern slope), thanks to which you can climb from two countries at once, to choose from.

The appearance of Everest is a triangular pyramid with two passes - the North and South Cols and two daughter peaks - Lhotse (South) and Changtse (North). On the eastern side of the pyramid there is a wall that is inaccessible for climbing. From a height of 5 kilometers to the very top, Everest is covered with glaciers.

In English, the mountain is called Everest in honor of the head of the survey service of British India in the mid-19th century, Sir George Everest. Well, the first person to ascend to the “throne of God” was New Zealander Edmund Hillary - this happened on May 29, 1953.

To date, more than 4,000 climbers have climbed the world’s highest peak, the lion’s share of which has occurred in the recent years of the development of Everest mountaineering and the commercialization of ascents. Every year more than 500 people storm the summit, but not all reach it.

Climbing Everest

Climbing Everest takes place in spring and autumn; During the rest of the year, monsoons are raging here, in winter the temperature drops to −50 °C, and strong winds blow. Several agencies, including Russian ones, are involved in organizing tours. The main requirements for a potential Everest conqueror: firstly, a round sum in reserve (at least 35,000 USD; the optimal package is 55,000 USD), secondly, two months of free time (necessary for acclimatization, gradual ascent, training trips, etc. .), thirdly, good health, allowing you to successfully acclimatize at an altitude of almost 9 km.

The ascent program is structured as follows. Arrival in Kathmandu, further flight to Lhasa, two transfers to villages closer to Everest, a day of acclimatization and transfer to Everest Base Camp at an altitude of 5300 meters. From the Base Camp - a cycle of training ascents and transition to the Advanced Base Camp (6400 m). The actual ascent (you will stand at the top for no more than 20 minutes) and the return descent, then the route in reverse order.

The main problem facing Everest conquerors is the inability to acclimatize. The rest of the route is designed for well-to-do tourists who have already been everywhere and have not the most outstanding level of physical fitness.

If you are not ready to part with such an impressive amount, you can limit yourself to climbing to Everest Base Camp and spending one to one and a half months here. The cost will decrease significantly - to 6000-8000 USD.

Everest is the highest peak in the world, the second name is Chomolungma. Its popularity among climbers is great, especially among those who are eager to conquer this height. Without a doubt, traveling to the peak of the mountain is a dangerous adventure, because many people have lost their lives on the way to the goal. But the hero who managed to conquer Everest can fully enjoy this unearthly beauty and sense of freedom. There is something special hidden in her that attracts and attracts people, even at the cost of their lives...

Where is Mount Everest and what is its height?

The height of Everest is 8848 meters. It was only in 1853 that the world learned about the highest point on earth, when the first ascent of the mountain took place. Before the opening of the peak, the championship was occupied by Mount Kanchenjunga, 8586 meters high.

Everest is located in Himalayan mountains in the southern part of Asia. The exact location cannot be formulated, since the length of the mountain covers the territory of two bordering countries: China and Nepal.

The peak, which is located on the north side, is located in China. The second peak, slightly less than 8760 meters high, is located on the demarcation line between Tibet and Nepal.

Air temperature at the top and at the bottom

Climate and temperature regime Everest is harsh and unpredictable, and at times even extreme. Temperature values at the foot and at the top differ sharply from each other. At the foot, as a rule, the temperature is above zero, which decreases by 6.5 degrees with every thousand meters.

The temperature depends on seasonality, but is never above 0 degrees. The most favorable climatic conditions are in the summer months of the year; the average temperature in July is minus 19 degrees. IN winter period The temperature decreases, so the average temperature in January-February is -36 degrees, and at night it can reach up to 55-60 degrees below zero.

In the winter and spring periods of the year, westerly winds “walk”, and in winter – southwestern winds, the speed of which can reach 280 kilometers per hour. During the summer and autumn months, monsoons blow Indian Ocean, with the arrival of which a large amount of precipitation falls.

Sudden temperature changes on Everest are not uncommon. Even during the most favorable period for conquest (from May to October), sudden storms and snowfalls are also common. But in each season there are 3-4 days of stable weather, they are called “windows”, which climbers use to conquer mountain peaks.

Atmosphere pressure

Every 10-12 meters, atmospheric pressure decreases by 1 millimeter of mercury. Using a simple mathematical calculation, the estimated height at the top of Everest is about 23 millimeters of mercury, while the norm, as at the foot of the mountain, is 760 millimeters. The actual atmospheric pressure at the summit is considered to be 3 times lower than normal.

IT IS IMPORTANT TO KNOW! A drop in atmospheric pressure is directly related to the occurrence of mountain sickness (oxygen deficiency) in climbers. As a result, hypoxia, pulmonary edema and heart failure may develop. Therefore, when the first signs of a decrease in the partial pressure of oxygen occur, it is necessary to reset the altitude as quickly as possible and go down.

Flora and fauna

Vegetation and animal world Everest is not very diverse. At the foot you can find some varieties of low-growing shrubs, individual tufts of grass, some conifers, mosses and lichens. But with every kilometer up, this meager flora disappears. On the slopes of Chomolungma you can find a shrub called snow rhododendron. This is the only plant whose life is possible at altitudes above 5000 meters at constant sub-zero temperatures.

Among the living creatures you can find Himalayan jumping spiders and some species of grasshoppers. The top of the mountain is home to mountain ducks, alpine jackdaws and some other species of birds that can live at high altitudes.

INTERESTING! There is a legend about the appearance on the slopes of the famous Bigfoot - Yeti. But so far only huge footprints in the snow have been found, as they say local residents, belonging to this unique creature. But the fact of its existence has not yet been proven, although many scientists and climbers are searching for this miracle.

Video information

How and who conquered Everest

The first to achieve the feat and conquer the world's highest peak, 8848 meters high, were climber Edmund Hillary and Nepalese Sherpa Tenzing Norgay. Almost 65 years have passed since then (1953). And during this period of time, hundreds of thousands of brave people tried to conquer this mountain.
The second ascent of Chomolungma was 3 years later in 1956 by a Swiss expedition group led by Ernst Reiss and Fritz Luxinger.
In 1963, the first American expedition to Everest was organized, and Jim Whittaker became the conqueror. The American was accompanied by Sherpa Nawang Gombu, who later in 1965 climbed the peak for the second time as part of an Indian expedition and became the first person lucky enough to conquer the peak twice.
In 1975, the first conqueror of Everest, among the fair half of humanity, was the Japanese woman Junko Tabei.
In 1982, the first Soviet expedition took place to reach the top of the world. It consisted of 25 people, the leaders of the group were Vladimir Balyberdin and Eduard Myslovsky.

Since then, many ascents of Everest have been made by humanity, including people of different generations and nationalities. At the end of 2017, the total number of people peaked at 8,306.

Video story

Useful information and interesting facts

The highest peak in the world was named after the scientist George Everest, who was the first to determine the location and height of the mountain range. The second name “Chomolungma” was given by local residents, which means “Mother Goddess of the Earth”.
The height of Everest increases by about 4 millimeters every year.
The ascent takes approximately 2 months, taking into account the time for adaptation and acclimatization.
In 2004, a couple from Nepal became husband and wife on the summit of Everest.
Climbing is an expensive pleasure, the price is at least 50-60 thousand dollars.
Due to big amount garbage that climbers leave on the slopes, the Nepalese government obliges each person on the expedition to collect at least 8 kg of garbage or pay 4 thousand dollars.
The oldest conqueror of Everest is 80-year-old Japanese Yuichiro Miura.
The youngest is Jordan Romero, he was 13 years old.
Statistics say that for every 10 successful ascents there is 1 death.
The frozen bodies of climbers are not evacuated from the slopes of Everest. Moreover, human corpses serve as identification marks of a certain place or height.

No matter how attractive Everest is, there is a downside, sometimes scary and cruel. Every step with every hundred meters is given with great difficulty. And no one is immune from altitude sickness and death from hypoxia, pulmonary edema or frostbite, even the most trained athletes. But there are still extreme sports enthusiasts who put their lives on the line to conquer Everest and, feeling euphoric, enjoy the beauty of the world from its highest point.

We all know from school that the highest point of our planet is Mount Everest, or Chomolungma, and that above it there are only clouds, and not all of them =) I suggest you remember what this mountain looks like and admire the exceptional beauty of the landscapes surrounding it mountain ranges!

The highest mountain on our planet rises among the eternal snows of the Himalayas to a height of 8848 meters. Sometimes it is even called the high-altitude pole of the earth) is located on the border of Nepal and China, but the peak itself lies on the territory of China. Everest Peak crowns the Main Himalayan Range

Translated from Tibetan, “Chomolungma” means “Divine (jamma) Mother (ma) of Life (lung - wind or life force)”, the mountain is named after the Bon goddess Sherab Jamma. The Nepali name of Chomolungma is “Sagarmatha” - meaning “Mother of the Gods”. The English name “Everest” was proposed in 1856 by Andrew Waugh, the successor of the head of the geodetic survey of British India, Sir George Everest. The reason for this was the publication of the results of measurements of the height of “Peak XV”, according to which the mountain was recognized as the highest in the region and, probably, throughout the world

Every year there are fewer and fewer places on Earth that are not spoiled by civilization, and the Everest region is one of these pleasant exceptions) The route to Everest is one of the most beautiful and exciting not only in Nepal, but throughout the world. The peculiarity of this region is that on the Nepalese side, Everest is obscured by two high mountains - Nuptse (7879 m) and Lhotse (8516 m), so in order to see the highest peak of the world well enough, you need to walk a relatively long distance and climb Mount Kala Patthar (5545 m) or Gokyo Ri (5483 m), from the top of which opens good view to the top of the world

Everest has the shape of a pyramid, only its southern slope is steeper. Glaciers flow from the massif in all directions, ending at an altitude of about 5 thousand m. On the southern slope and edges of the pyramid, snow and ice are not retained, as a result of which they are exposed. Mount Everest is the main attraction of Nepal, for which hundreds of thousands of tourists come here.

For several decades, people tried to conquer Everest - and only on May 29, 1953, members of the British Himalayan expedition Edmund Hillary and Norgay Tensing managed to climb the mountain. highest point Earth. Since then, Everest has been climbed several times, but not every expedition achieved success - there were casualties, and there were retreats. This is due to oxygen starvation, very low air temperatures and gusty frosty winds that literally knock off the already tired and frostbitten extreme sports enthusiasts - after all, in order to get to the top, you need to make several stops, and many, especially unprepared people, even after the first halt they refuse to go further. But of course, the most offensive thing is to retreat a couple of hundred meters to the very top

I would like to note that the first ascent of Soviet climbers to the highest peak on Earth took place in May 1982. In total, from May 4 to May 9, 11 Soviet athletes climbed to the top of the world, one of them without an oxygen mask at all, and two more at night (this was the first night ascent to). Soviet climbers walked to the top along a very difficult, previously unclimbed route along the southwestern face

View of Everest Peak from an airplane

Chomolungma invariably attracts thousands of mountain lovers, climbers and ordinary travelers seeking to walk along the most beautiful routes of the Solo Khumbu Valley and Sagarmatha National Park

Over 50 years, more than 2,500 climbers from all over the world have climbed Everest. More than 200 people died from lack of oxygen during ascents and descents, in avalanches, from frostbite and heart failure. Unfortunately, even the most expensive and modern equipment cannot guarantee complete safety, and, of course, cannot exclude sudden snow storms that sweep away everything in its path...

He knows many tragedies, but he keeps his secrets tightly...

Trying to answer the question: where is Everest located and in which country will you need to say a lot. Everest is located in the Himalayas, everyone knows this. But not many people know what they are.

And with Everest itself, not everything is simple, since the immediate peak of Everest is located on the territory of the People's Republic of China, but it can be reached not only from China. After all, the base of the mountain is located on the territory of two countries - Nepal and China. Accordingly, the routes of conquest come from different directions.

Everest location

In the southern part of central Asia, north of the Bay of Bengal, separating the Hindustan and Indochina peninsulas, there is a huge mountain range being the highest on the entire planet.

This is the Himalayas, where 10 of the 14 highest mountains in the world are located, exceeding eight thousand meters in height. The four remaining eight-thousanders are located in the Karakoram system, which adjoins Tibet on the western side. Both the Himalayas and Karakoram mountain systems include several mountain ranges that are simultaneously in different countries ah and are the boundaries of their territories. In the Himalayas these are the Mahalangur Himal, Kanchenjunga, Dhaulagiri, Manaslu, Nangaparbat, Annapurna and Langtang ranges. On different sides of insurmountable ridges lived people not only of different nationalities, but also of different ways of life, different faiths and speaking different languages. different languages. And naturally they called “their” mountains in their own way, without even thinking that the people living on the other side gave them “their” names.

This happened with the largest mountain range, the Mahalangur Himal, on one side of which Nepalese lived, and on the other, Tibetans. Moreover, both Nepalese and Tibetans, without even knowing that between them there is the highest mountain range and the most high mountain in the world, deified this peak. The Tibetans called her Chomolungma, which translated means “Holy Mother” or “Goddess - Mother of the Earth”, this name was given to her by the name of Sherab Zhamma, the goddess of the national religion of the Tibetans. The Nepalese called the mountain “Jomo Kang Kar”, which means “Lady of the White Snows”.

Where is Mount Everest?

Everest is nothing more than the highest part of the Mahalangur Himal range, a mountain range called the Khumbu Himal. And these are several peaks, the two highest of which are the main ones.

Oddly enough, but to understand where Everest is, even being almost in close proximity from him, it’s quite difficult. This is due to the fact that Everest is surrounded the highest peaks. The main northern peak of Everest itself has the shape of a triangular pyramid. Its southern slope is steeper, so freshly fallen snow and even last year’s blackened snow, called firn, does not linger on the slope itself and its edges, so this side is usually bare. The height of the North-Eastern ridge is 8393 meters.

WITH south side Everest, across the South Col pass with a height of 7906 m, there is Lhotse Peak - 8516 meters, which is sometimes mistakenly called the South Peak.
To the north, beyond the steep North Col with a height of 7020 m, there is Changze Peak - 7543 meters.
In the east of the massif there is a completely impassable steep cliff wall Kangshung - this is 3350 meters of almost vertical rock.

The height of Everest itself from the base to the top is exactly the same - 3550 meters. Glaciers descend from the massif in all directions, ending at an altitude of about 5 km. Part of Chomolungma located on the territory of Nepal is part of the Nepalese Sagarmatha National Park.

Name of the highest mountain in the world

It is noteworthy that the name of the highest mountain in the world, Chomolungma, was first recorded in writing on a map in 1717. This map was made by French Jesuit missionaries who visited Tibet at that time. However, the map was a sketchy map, it did not have elevation marks and did not receive wide publicity, and the name Chomolungma did not attract the attention of geographers of that time.

The European name of the mountain, Everest, appeared much later. At the beginning of the 19th century in India, which was then a British colony, the Royal Geographical Society began to conduct thorough geodetic surveys. George Everest served in the British East India Company that carried out this survey. Serving for over 37 years from 1806 to 1843 as Chief Surveyor of India, George Everest created Indian geodesy and cartography almost from scratch. For which in 1827 he became a member of the Royal Geographical Society. Having risen to the rank of colonel, George Everest returned to his homeland in 1843 and continued to work at the Royal Geographical Society. For special services in 1861 he was awarded a knighthood. And from 1862 to 1865 he was vice-president of the Royal Geographical Society.

After himself in India, George Everest left a worthy successor, Andrew Waugh, who continued his work. Before this, maps of almost all of India were created. The mountainous regions located to the north were of great interest; the highest peaks of the mountain range were located there. However, since the territory of Nepal was then closed to foreigners, surveyors carried out measurements from a distance. The geodetic instruments at their disposal even then made it possible to do this.

Andrew Waugh recruited to this work the gifted Bengali mathematician Radhanath Sikdar, who was educated at the College in Calcutta and on the recommendation of college teacher John Tytler, at the age of 19, who was accepted by George Everest into the expedition as a “computer” with a meager salary of 30 rupees per month. In a very short time, Sikdar established himself as a specialist with high level geodetic skill. Moreover, it was he who created new techniques for studying heights at a distance. By the way, among his achievements was a formula for converting barometer readings taken at different temperatures to 32 degrees Fahrenheit, which is still used today.

In 1852, Andrew Waugh commissioned Sikdar to measure the snowy peaks in the Darjeeling region where the British built a hill station and near which is the Kanchenjunga peak (8598 m), then considered the highest in the entire Himalayan mountain system. After six measurements from different positions, Sikdar came to the conclusion that the height indicated on the map as Peak XV, located almost 200 kilometers from Darjeeling, is higher than Kanchenjunga Peak by as much as 250 meters. It turned out that the height of Peak XV is 8848 meters above sea level and this peak is the highest on earth. He reported this to his supervisor. However, this information was published only a few years later, after repeated verification and reconciliation with other sources.

According to the rules established by George Everest, this mountain had to be given a local name. However, neither Andrew Waugh nor his employees knew what it was called, and therefore, paying tribute to his former boss, Andrew proposed to name this peak after George Everest. With this name, the last created map was sent to Britain, to the Royal Geographical Society. And Peak XV was officially given the name Everest.

This name was not accepted in the Soviet Union for quite a long time, and on maps published in the USSR this peak was listed as Chomolungma almost until 1985. Likewise, the government of Nepal did not recognize the Chinese name Qomolangma and in 1965 the Nepalese gave it their own name “Sagarmatha” meaning “Heavenly Peak”. This confusion existed until recently, until a compromise was found in the cartographic world. Now on modern maps this entire mountain range is called Chomolungma, and the peak, 8848 m high, is designated Everest (Sagarmatha). The area adjacent to the peak north of Kathmandu, with an area of 1,148 square kilometers, has been declared Sagarmatha National Park since 1976.

History of conquest

It is believed that mountaineering as a sport dates back to the first ascent of Mont Blanc by Michel-Gabriel Packard and Jacques Balmat on August 8, 1786. Since then, August 8 has been celebrated around the world as International Climber Day. And although the height of Mont Blanc is only 4810 meters, at that time it was a feat. And at the same time, it was a start to conquering higher peaks. Very quickly, many followers of Michel and Jacques were found, who, despite mortal dangers, lack of experience and the necessary equipment, began to climb famous peaks, rising higher and higher. So in 1799 A. Humboldt climbed the Chimborazo peak at a height of 5800 meters in South America. In 1829, the guide of the expedition of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Killar Khashirov, alone climbed Elbrus at a height of 5642 meters. In 1907, T. Longstaff and X. Broquereli conquered the seven-thousander Trisul 7123 m.

So, one after another, all the European peaks were conquered, and then all the famous peaks of America, Africa, and New Zealand. But the desperate daredevils did not stop there. A dream arose to climb the “Roof of the World,” as climbers dubbed the Himalayas, including the highest mountain on our planet - Everest Peak. There have been many attempts to climb the peaks of the Himalayas and Karakoram. Moreover, teams from different countries “mastered” different picks. So the Germans tried to conquer Kanchenjunga and Nanga Parbat, the Americans and Italians stormed Chogori, and the British stubbornly tried to take Everest.

The British Geographical Society specifically created the Everest Committee, whose task was to organize expeditions to Everest. The British developed a plan to climb the highest mountain in the world back in 1893, but the first attempt to climb Everest was only in 1921. At that time, Nepal was ruled by Maharaja Chandra Shamshera from the Rana family and any mountaineering by foreigners was prohibited. The Tibetans also did not immediately agree to allow the British into their territory, and only at the insistence of the Viceroy of India, the Dalai Lama agreed to allow the English expedition to Chomolungma. Therefore, it was decided to storm Everest not from the Nepalese side, but from the north, from Tibet. The point where the expedition was equipped was the city of Darjeeling, in West Bengal. From Darjeeling, the route ran first to the northeast, in order to go around Nepal from the east, and then through the territory of Tibet to the west along the Nepalese border. In total, the expedition covered almost 500 km from Darjeeling to the foot of Everest.

The first expedition was led in 1921 by Colonel Howard Bury. In addition to the climbers, the expedition included a geologist and two topographers. This expedition turned out to be a reconnaissance expedition, which determined the route along which it was possible to get to the foot of Chomolungma and then climb to the peak. In addition, due to the peculiarities of the climate, the most convenient time of year was established to avoid winds and monsoons, as well as the condition of the snow allowing ascent. According to their calculations, the ascent should be made only during a period of relatively stable meteorological conditions, that is, in May - June (before the monsoons) and in September - November (after the monsoons). Here they are, Participants of the 1921 expedition. From left to right stand: A.F.R. Wollaston, Charles Howard-Bury, Alexander Heron, Harold Raeburn seated: George Mallory, Oliver Wheeler, Guy Bullock, Henry T. Morshead.

The second expedition was organized in 1922. They set off at the end of May. The expedition was led by General Bruce. Along the route planned in 1921, from Darjeeling to the start of the ascent, everything needed was delivered on pack yaks, and then to the lower camp at the foot of Everest, Tibetan porters carried all the property on themselves. Then the role of porters was played by Nepalese from the Sherpa tribe, who live in the mountains and are accustomed to thin air. The Sherpa tribe subsequently began to provide all Himalayan expeditions with guides and porters, which became their profession.

The ascent route was determined along the Rongbuk glacier, then along the slope to the North Col, where an intermediate camp was established, and then along the northern ridge and northern slope. During the first attempt, we rose to a height of 8138 m. During the second attempt, we reached 8321 m. There was still another 519 m to climb to the top, which was only 1 km horizontally. But a strong wind arose, and the main climbers Bruce and Finch, despite oxygen equipment, developed altitude sickness and had to descend to the lower camp.

On June 6, the last attempt was made to climb from the lower camp to the North Col. 3 climbers and 14 Sherpa porters went on the assault. They walked in four groups. The upper two ligaments were not damaged, but 7 Sherpas died in the lower ones. This tragedy once again confirmed the correctness of Howard Bury's assumption that the ascent along avalanche slopes It is very dangerous after the monsoon starts.

The next attempt to climb the highest mountain in the world was made in 1924. The expedition was again led by General Bruce. However, on the way he fell ill with malaria and Norton led the ascent group. Like the last time, Sherpa porters lifted all the necessary equipment to the Northern ridge to a height of 8170 m. They set up an upper camp there and began the ascent from there. Two men, Norton and Sommervell, went on the assault. We walked without oxygen equipment. At an altitude of 8540 m, Sommerwell stopped unable to go further. Norton climbed alone to a height of 8573 m and also abandoned further ascent. The climbers, severely frostbitten, with great difficulty descended to the upper camp, and then with the help of Sherpas down.

In the same year, the Englishmen Mallory and Irwin tried once again to make the ascent. We walked with oxygen devices. But they also failed. Having reached approximately an altitude of 8500 meters, they died, most likely falling off the cliffs. During an expedition in 1933, an ice ax belonging to one of them was found at this height. The expedition turned out to be extremely unsuccessful, because another Englishman and one of the Tibetan porters died. After Everest took the lives of the best English climbers, for a long time no one dared to repeat their attempts. Here are these brave pioneers: Irwin and Mallory are standing on the left, Somervell is sitting third from the left.

After everything that happened, the Dalai Lama forbade these attempts, and only in 1933 did the Everest Committee succeed in resuming the expedition to Everest.

The participants of the first expeditions were no longer able to participate in this due to their age; the expedition was led by Ruttledge, and almost the entire team was new. The ascent was carried out along the same route through the North Col. The Sherpas lifted the entire load to a height of 8350 m, from where the ascent began once again. As a result of two attempts, a height of 8565 m was reached. Then, due to strong winds, it was decided to stop the assault.

In the same 1933, the British organized an expedition over Everest by plane; before that, no airplane had ever attempted this. Two Westland biplanes took part. The first P.V.3 (G-ACAZ) was flown by Marcus Douglas, with Lieutenant Colonel Steward Blaker flying as observer. The second, Westland P.V.6 Wallace (G-ACBR), was piloted by David McIntyre, with photographer Sydney Bonnet flying in the rear cockpit. The planes had aerial cameras for mapping. The crews had oxygen apparatus. Warm clothes protected them from the cold. During the second flight, aerial photographs were taken.

In 1934, an attempt to climb Everest was made by 34-year-old Englishman Maurice Wilson, whom many considered not entirely normal. He imagined that it was possible to climb Everest only after a three-week fast, during which a person would cleanse himself of earthly filth and strengthen his body and spirit. At first, he wanted to fly to Everest by plane, land on its slope, and then climb to the top on foot. But in India, the British authorities detained his plane.

Then he and three Sherpa guides, dressed in Tibetan clothes, reached Everest on foot. He managed to climb to the third base camp of the early expeditions, from where he made several ascent attempts. But since he had no mountaineering experience at all, his mind couldn’t do it. Seeing this, the Sherpas left. Left alone and eating the remnants of food from the previous expedition, he continued his attempts, which were in vain. As a result, he froze in this third base camp. His remains and diary were found by members of the next expedition in 1935.

Such attempts to enter Tibet and climb Everest without permission from the authorities were made twice after that. So in 1947, the Canadian Denman and his porters reached the third camp, but could not even climb the North Col. The same fate befell the Dane Larsen in 1951. By the way, Denman’s guide was Sherpa Tenzing Norgay, who later in 1953 took part in the victorious ascent and was the first to climb the peak.

In 1935, another British expedition was organized under the command of Shipton. The purpose of this expedition was not the climb to the top itself, but to find out the conditions on the slopes during the monsoon, is the snow compacted on the slopes? In July, they climbed the North Col, but when they saw that part of the slope had been demolished by an avalanche, they abandoned further attempts. But they did not waste time and in two months they successfully climbed 26 peaks located around Everest, including five of which exceeded 7000 m.

In 1936, Ruttledge and Shipton and their team again attempted to climb Everest from the north. The ascent took place in the spring. They climbed safely along their previous route to the North Col, but unusually early, on April 22, the monsoon blew, and when attempting to climb the col, Shipton miraculously escaped an avalanche. The ascent had to be stopped.

1938, a new English expedition led by Tilman again goes to storm Everest. The preparations were carried out especially carefully. Six camps were set up along the route. Sherpa porters lifted the entire load to the upper sixth camp at an altitude of 8290 m. However, it snowed heavily and a deep, loose snow cover formed, which filled all the ice crevices and depressions, and severe frost hit, so the climb to the top had to be cancelled.

Then the Second began World War and there was no time for getting up. And after the war, the Tibetan government did not give permission for the expedition for a long time. And only in 1950, under pressure from the British government, Nepal allowed expeditions to be carried out on their territory. Beginning in 1950, the British and French equipped expeditions to study eastern Nepal. And in the same year, the Frenchmen Mauriceau Herzog and Louis Lachenal conquered the first eight-thousander Annapurna, 8075 meters high.

In 1950, the Americans joined the research. In the fall of 1950, an American expedition, in which the Englishman Tillman participated, approached Everest from the south and carefully examined its southern slopes. The approach from the south to the base of Everest was much more difficult than the northern one, but the section above 7000 meters, on the contrary, was easier and, according to the conclusion of the expedition, the assault on the peak from the south side could be successful.

The following year, 1951, the Everest Committee equipped an expedition under the command of Shipton to study the possibility of climbing Everest from the south. As a result of a long, difficult search, a route was chosen through the left branch of the Khumbu glacier, to the South Col and then to the top along the South-East ridge. However, this expedition itself did not make the ascent due to the fact that the search for a convenient place for the ascent took too much time and winter was already approaching.

In 1952, a Swiss expedition led by Wyss-Dunant followed this route. In addition to the climbers, the expedition included a geologist, a botanist and an ethnographer. They safely climbed the South Col and walked along the Southeast Ridge. At 8405 meters, an upper camp was set up, in which the Swiss Lambert and Sherpa Tenzing Norgay rested and went up the next day. However, they were only able to climb to a height of 8600 m, because their oxygen devices failed and they had to stop climbing. In the autumn of the same year, the Swiss repeated their attempt to climb, but frost of more than 40° and strong winds on the South-East ridge did not make it possible to continue the ascent. In addition, one Sherpa died during the descent.

The first conquerors of Everest

At that time, there was a concept according to which climbing the highest mountains in the world was proof of the advantage and priority of a certain nation. Therefore, each country separately equipped its expeditions to the highest peak. But considering that the government of Nepal allowed foreigners to conduct only one expedition per year, and teams from different countries had their own climbing experience, it was decided to create an international expedition. The British Everest Committee invited the most famous climbers from other countries at that time to take part in the expedition, including New Zealander Edmund Hillary and Sherpa Tenzing Norgay, who last year climbed with Lambert to a height of 8600 m.

John Hunt was appointed head of the expedition. In total, the expedition included about 400 people, including 20 Sherpa guides and 362 porters, because the weight of equipment that had to be carried to the summit site was more than 10,000 pounds. Tensing led the porters, and was also a porter and a member of the ascent group.

The ascent began in the spring. Already in March, the base camp was established, and a little later, at an altitude of 7890 meters, the final camp. John Hunt appointed two groups of main climbers: the first group - Tom Bourdillon and Charles Evans, the second group - Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay. Edmund Hillary did not want to go with Tenzing, but together with his friend George Lowe, and only after much persuasion did he agree.

On May 26, Bourdillon and Evans were the first to go on the assault, but on the way Evans’ oxygen apparatus failed, and a stormy wind blew and snow began to fall, they were forced to return. For two days the weather prevented us from starting a new attempt. And only on May 28, Hillary and Tenzing, with three accompanying people, set off on their journey. A tent was set up at 8500 meters. This was the eighth assault camp. The accompanying people returned downstairs, and Hillary and Tenzing stayed overnight in a tent.

In the morning it turned out that Hillary, who took off his boots at night and put them under his head, they were completely frozen and it took them two hours to defrost them over the flame of the primus and knead them. When Hillary was able to put on his shoes, it was already six thirty minutes in the morning, it was time to hit the road. This is how Tenzing described it in his memoirs: “It was May 29, half past seven in the morning. The air is clear, there is silence all around. We pulled three pairs of gloves onto our hands: first silk, then wool, and canvas on top of them. They put crampons on their legs and oxygen devices weighing sixteen kilograms on their backs. I tightly wrapped four flags around the ice ax: Nepal, India, the United Nations and Great Britain. In my jacket pocket there was a small, chewed piece of my daughter’s colored pencil.”

They walked along the route alternately, with first one and then the other walking ahead. The climb to the South Peak was a continuous snow wall of loose snow that was constantly crumbling. My feet kept slipping, every minute I could slide down, this was the most difficult part of the path. By nine o'clock we climbed to the South Peak. There was only 300 feet to go along a narrow ridge, to the left and right of which there were chasms more than 8,000 feet deep, and between them a narrow ridge. Slowly, supporting each other, we walked along the ridge. The last obstacle was a huge rock on the ridge. We climbed the rock with difficulty and rested for a while. After which, having overcome several snow drifts, we found ourselves on the last snowdrift behind which there was nothing but the blue sky. This was the top. The clock showed 11:30 am.

They stayed at the top for only 15 minutes. During this time they planted the flags, Hillary photographed Tenzing. There is no photo of Hillary at the top. Whether Tenzing could not use the camera, or Hillary himself did not want to be photographed is not clear. Well, Tenzing also put his daughter Nima’s pencil and a bag of sweets in the snow as an offering to the gods. Having already gone downstairs, Hillary and Tensing took a photo together. Here is a photo that has spread all over the world

The heroes of this expedition received worldwide recognition. Queen Elizabeth II received this news on the day of her coronation and granted knighthood to Edmund Hillary and John Hunt. Tenzing Norgay was awarded the St. George's Medal. They said that Elizabeth II wanted to make him a knight, but since he belonged to the lower Sherpa caste, Jawaharlal Nehru, who was the Prime Minister of India at that time, forbade Tenzing to receive a knighthood.

But the King of Nepal, Gribuban, awarded Tenzing the highest order of Nepal - the Nepal Star and put his personal plane at his disposal, on which Tenzing and his family flew to New Delhi. And then Tenzing and his wife were in London at a reception with the Queen. After this, a school of high-mountain mountaineering was founded in Darjeeling, and Tenzing Norgay became its director.

The fate of the heroes turned out differently. Tenzing Norgay did not take part in any more climbs. The mountaineering school was transformed into the Himalayan Mountaineering Institute and Tenzing served as its director until 1976. In 1976 he retired. He also visited the Soviet Union.

Sir Edmund Hillary, after conquering the third pole of the Earth, began polar exploration. He led the New Zealand expedition to Antarctica. In 1958 he led the first expedition to the South Pole. In 1960, he organized the creation of the New Zealand Scott Base in Antarctica. Returning to Nepal in 1960, he worked on issues of social welfare for Nepalese residents. Helped build schools and hospitals. Organized the construction of two airfields, which contributed to the development tourism business in Nepal. Using great authority from the Nepalese government, he organized the creation in the foothills of Everest national park, for which he was later awarded the title of “Honorary Citizen of Nepal.” Until the end of his life, Edmund Hillary was involved in problems of environmental protection and organizing humanitarian assistance to the population of Nepal.

A team of Soviet climbers first climbed Everest in 1982, becoming the 25th expedition to reach the summit. 17 of the best athletes were selected for the USSR national team, which was to climb Everest.

The climbers for the ascent were divided into four teams:

Eduard Myslovsky, Nikolai Cherny, Vladimir Balyberdin, Vladimir Shopin;
Valentin Ivanov, Sergey Efimov, Mikhail Turkevich, Sergey Bershov;
Ervand Ilyinsky, Sergey Chepchev, Kazbek Valiev, Valery Khrishchaty;
Vyacheslav Onishchenko, Valery Khomutov, Vladimir Puchkov, Alexey Moskaltsov, Yuri Golodov.

The ascent was carried out along a more difficult route from the southwestern side, which no one had previously attempted to climb. The preparation time was almost a month and a half. On March 21, at an altitude of 5340 m, the main base camp was set up, from which the processing of routes and the preparation of high-altitude camps began. Only by May 3, routes were processed and six camps were equipped: on March 21, an intermediate camp at an altitude of 6100m; March 22 1st camp at an altitude of 6500m; March 31, 2nd camp at an altitude of 7350m; April 12, 3rd camp at an altitude of 7850m; March 18 4th camp at an altitude of 8250m and May 3rd assault camp at an altitude of 8500m. When everything was carefully prepared, the teams went to storm the peak.

We walked with a time gap, so two groups climbed to the peak at night. Several climbers were injured. In total, 11 people climbed the peak.

On the most high mountain the Soviet flag was installed in the world, and the government of the USSR was informed that the ascent of a group of Soviet climbers to Everest was dedicated to the 60th anniversary of the USSR.

All expedition participants received the title of Honored Masters of Sports. No other expedition went along this route.

Russian climbers have visited the most high peak peace. So in 1990, as part of the “Peace Expedition” organized by the American Jim Whittaker, the Russian woman Ekaterina Ivanova climbed Mount Everest. In 1992, a team of Lada Everest climbers from Tolyatti, consisting of 32 people, climbed to the top and planted the flag of Russia and AvtoVAZ there.

In 1995, a team of Russians dedicated their ascent to Everest in honor of the 50th victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-45. They were the first to climb through the North Col. The flag of the USSR was raised on the peak, which was presented to the veterans of the Great Patriotic War upon their return home.

In the spring of 2004, a group of 20 Russian climbers from several cities: Moscow, Yekaterinburg, Sochi, Rostov-on-Don, Tolyatti, Krasnoyarsk, Novokuznetsk, Kirov, Podolsk climbed to the top along the center of the Northern Wall - this is the most difficult route among all climbs .

Since the first ascent of Everest, more than four thousand climbers have climbed. And although they say that the ascent to Everest Peak is now on stream, more than 500 people take part in the ascent every year, there is no guarantee that it will go well. More than two hundred climbers died on its slopes, in gorges and in snowy abysses. But, despite these sacrifices, the number of people who want to visit the third pole not only does not decrease, but increases every year. They face enormous difficulties involving the risk of their lives, but they strive to reach this peak so that they can look at the planet from the roof of the world for a few minutes.