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 There
are many beautiful mountains in the world. We have many mountains
here in Korea, too. But what is the highest mountain in the world?
I’m sure many of you know the answer. Yes, it’s Mount Everest! This
week, let’s learn all about the amazing mountain!
Mount Everest is the highest mountain on Earth. It is 8,848 meters
high. Mount Everest is part of the Himalaya range. It is located
on the border between Nepal, Tibet,
and China. Mount Everest is covered in a layer of ice, topped with snow. The ice
and snow never melt ? not even in the summer!
This means there are lots of glaciers in the Himalayas.
The Tibetan name for Mount Everest
is Chomolungma or Qomolangma. It means “Mother of the Universe” or “Goddess Mother of the Earth.”
The mountain is called Sagarmatha in Nepal, which means “Goddess of
the Sky.”
The Himalayan Mountains are still growing higher at a rate of about 6.1 centimeters
per year. A growth rate of 6.1 centimeters
per year doesn’t sound like very much. But if you think about it,
that means the Himalayans have risen almost 1,609 meters in the last
26,000 years!
 So far, about 6,000 people
tried to conquer the summit of Everest. But only
2,249 have made it. Sir Edmund Hillary from New Zealand was the first
person to climb Mount Everest. He conquered
the mountain on May 29, 1953.
When people climb to the top of Everest, they wear oxygen tanks. Everest
is so high and there are much lower concentrations of oxygen than
at sea level. This means that
their bodies get less oxygen from each breath they breathe while climbing.
Try to imagine what it feels like to climb up a mountain with very
little oxygen in your body. You will feel dizzy and sleepy. And your
nose, fingers and feet will get numb. Also, every step you
take will be very slow.
So far, over 200 people have died on the mountain while climbing.
At least 120 bodies are still missing on the mountain! |
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