Facts about Everest

Age of Everest:Everest was formed about 60 million years ago

Elevation:29,035 (8850m)-found to be 6' higher in 1999

Name in Nepal:Sagarmatha (means: goddess of the sky)

In Tibet:Chomolungma: (means: mother goddess of the universe)

Named after:Sir George Everest in 1865 ,the British surveyor-general of India. Once known as Peak 15

Location:Latitude 27° 59' N.....Longitude 86° 56' E It's summit ridge seperates Nepal and Tibet

First Ascent:May 29,1953 by Sir Edmund Hillary, NZ and Tenzing Norgay, NP, via the South Col Route

First Solo Ascent:Aug. 20,1980, Reinhold Messner, IT, via the NE Ridge to North Face

First winter Ascent:Feb. 17,1980 -L.Cichy and K. Wielicki, POL

First Ascent by an American:May 1,1963, James Whittaker, via the South-Col

Mt. Everest rises a few milimeters each year due to geological forces

Everest Name:Sir George Everest was the first person to record the height and location of Mt. Everest, this is where Mt."Everest" got its name from(In american language)

First Ascent by a Woman:May 16,1975, Junko Tabei, JAP, via the South-Col

First Ascent by an American Woman:Sep.29,1988, Stacey Allison, Portland, OR via the South-East Ridge

First Oxygenless Ascent:May 8, 1978- Reinhold Messner, IT, and Peter Habeler, AUT, via the South-East Ridge

First woman to reach the summit of Mount Everest from both north & south sides:Cathy O'Dowd (S.A.) South May 25,1996/North '99

Fastest Ascent from South:Babu Chhiri Sherpa 34, NP-16 hours and 56 minutes (5-21-2000)

Fastest Ascent (north side):Hans Kammerlander (IT) May,24,1996, via the standard North Col Ridge Route, 16 hours 45 minutes from base camp

Youngest person:Temba Tsheri (NP) 15 on May,22,2001

Oldest Person: 71-year-old Japanese mountain climber, Katsusuke Yanagisawa

First Legally Blind Person:Erik Weihenmeyer May,25,2001

Most Ascents:Eleven, 24th May 2000 Appa Sherpa became the first person to climb Everest 11 times-Ten, Ang Rita Sherpa, Babu Chiri Sherpa all ascents were oxygen-less.

Best and Worst Years on Everest:1993, 129 summitted and eight died (a ratio of 16:1); in 1996, 98 summitted and 15 died (a ratio of 6½:1)

Highest cause cause of death:Avalanches-about a (2:1) ratio over falls

Country with most deaths on mountain:Nepal-46

Most dangerous area on mountain:Khumbu Ice Fall-19 deaths

First ski descent:Davo Karnicar (Slovenia) 10-7-2000

Last year without ascent:1974

Last year without ascent:1977

Corpses remaining on Everest:about 120

Longest stay on top:Babu Chiri Sherpa stayed at the summit full 21 hours and a half

Largest team:In 1975, China tackled Everest with a 410-member team.

Fastest descent:In 1988, Jean-Marc Boivin of France descended from the top in just 11 minutes, paragliding.

Only climber to climb all 4 sides of Everest:Kushang Sherpa, now an instructor with Himlayan Mountaineering Institute

First person to hike from sea level to summit, no oxygen.:11th May 1990,Tim Macartney-Snape, Australian

Largest number to reach the top in one day:40, on May 10, 1993

First person to summit Everest twice:Nawang Gombu-Nepal(once with Whitaker in '63,and again two years later in '65)Gombu now works for the Himalayan mountaineering institute

The oldest woman to summit