What is the tallest mountain in the world?
What is the tallest mountain in the world? Just at the tip of every tongue, you have Everest. Mount Everest is the tallest mountain in the world. However, measurements do not lie, if you say it is the highest mountain in the world it is unarguable because Everest stands at the highest peak on earth above sea level, however, one mountain that is reportedly the tallest of them all.
So, what is the tallest mountain in the world? Is it Mount Everest or Mount Mauna Kea. Mauna Kea is not a very famous mountain to the regular man because above sea level her height is not competitive, but if you could look beyond the water, you will be wowed. The dormant volcano on the island of Hawaii has a height of 4,207m above sea level, with most of the mountain being under water.
When measured from the base, Mauna Kea stands tall at over 10,000m, over a thousand metres taller than Everest. “Ancient Hawaiians living on the slopes of Mauna Kea relied on its extensive forests for food, and quarried the dense volcano-glacial basalts on its flanks for tool production.”
Highest Mountain in the World
Mount Everest
Mount Everest is the highest mountain in the world and the most popular mountain on the planet. it is important to take note that it is the highest mountain in the world above sea level. Located in the Mahanlagur Himal subrange of the Himalayas between Nepal and China, Mount Everest stands at a height of 8,848 m (29,029 ft) respectively.
The mountain got the name Everest in 1865, given by the Royal Geographical Society on the recommendation of Andrew Waugh, a British Surveyor. The mountain was named after his predecessor, Sir George Everest. In 1953 Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay climbed the great Everest successfully, making them the first humans to ever reach the peak of the mountain.
Mount K2
Mount K2 is the second highest peak on earth. Also known as Chhogori or Mount Godwin-Austen, K2 stands at a phenomenal 8,611m above sea level. Located on the Pakistan – China border, Mount K2 is an amazing sight to behold and a height to climb. Its difficulty to be ascended has earned it the name ‘Savage Mountain’ recording 300 successful climes and 77 fatalities. This makes it the mountain with the second highest fatality rate among all eight mountains peaking above 8,000m.
The mountain is usually climbed from the Pakistani side because China’s end is more difficult. Also, the mountain has never been climbed during the winter, the warmest time of the year, July and August recorded the most summits of the mountain.
Mount Kangchenjunga
Among the tallest mountains in the world is Mount Kangchenjunga. The 8,586m high mountain lies between Nepal and Sikkim, India. In 1952 the mountain was considered the highest peak on earth. Further calculations and measurements were made and in 1956, Everest was declared the highest mountain in the world. The first ascent of Mount Kangchenjunga was recorded in 1955. It was ascended by Joe Brown and George Band on the 25th of May.
Mount Lhotse
Ranking as the 4th highest mountain in the world, Mount Lhotse stands a whopping at 8,516 m (27,940 ft). Mount Lhotse is part of the Mount Everest massif, connected to the latter peak via the South Col. Lhotse which means “South Peak” in Tibetan, is a wonderous structure.
The mountain also comprises the smaller peaks which are and Lhotse Shar at 8,383 m and Lhotse Middle (East) at 8,414m. The peak of Mount Lhotse is on the border between Tibet, China and Khumbu, Nepal. In 1956, the first successful climb of Lhotse summit was achieved by the Swiss team of Ernst Reiss and Fritz Luchsinger. After which, Lhotse Shar was ascended by Sepp Mayerl and Rolf Walter of Austria in 1970.
For a long time, Lhoste Middle was the highest unclimbed named peak on Earth until May 2001, when the first ascent was achieved by Sergei Timofeev, Eugeny Vinogradsky, Petr Kuznetsov, and Alexei Bolotov of a Russian expedition.
Mount Makalu
Makalu stands as the fifth highest mountain in the world at 8,485 metres (27,838 ft). Asia has a thing for mountains as this beast is located in the Mahalangur Himalayas 19 km (12 mi) southeast of Mount Everest, not too far away from Lhotse either and of course, it rests on the border between Nepal and Tibet, China. The difference between Makalu and its counterparts is that it is an isolated peak with a unique shape described to by a four-sided pyramid.
The mountain also has two prominent subsidiary peaks namely Makalu II and Kangchungtse. The first attempt to climb this beauty was made in 1954 but the team turned back at 7,100m. Also, in 1954 Makalu’s subsidiary peaks were climbed. The first ever summit of Mount Makalu was achieved in May 1955 by Lionel Terray and Jean Couzy of a French expedition led by Jean Franco.
Mount Cho Oyu
One of the tallest mountains in the world is Cho Oyu. Number six on the list this mountain stands at 8,188 metres (26,864 ft) above sea level. In Tibetan Cho Oyu means “Turquoise Goddess” and it is the westernmost major peak of the Khumbu sub-section of the Mahalangur Himalaya 20 km west of Everest. The mountain is in no other place but Asia and rests on the China-Nepal border.
Mount Cho Oyu is considered to be the easiest 8,000-metre peak to climb. The first attempt to climb Cho Oyu was in 1952 and the first successful climb was achieved on October 19th, 1954. Up until 1978, Mount Cho Oyu was the highest peak climbed without supplementary oxygen.
Mount Dhaulagiri I
Mount Dhaulagiri I is the 7th tallest mountain in the world. Is located in west-central Nepal, south of Asia. The natural sky piercer stands at 8,167m above sea level. The mountain gets its name of this from the combination of two Sanskrit words “Dhawala” (means dazzling, beautiful, white) and “Giri” (means Mountain), to mean ‘the beautiful mountain’. Climbing Dhaulagiri, I is very difficult, therefore only seasons mountain climbers can achieve it. The first expedition took place in 1960 and since then 360 people have climbed this summit.
