Highest point on the map. Highest mountain in the world: where is the peak
Wherever this question is asked, the answer will always be Mount Everest. However, few people think about the meaning of this issue. Most people on the planet will not try to think twice and will immediately answer it the same way. Everest. Therefore, it is not for nothing that when we compare the highest mountains on other planets in our solar system (for example, Mount Olympus on Mars), then we definitely put Everest in comparison. The truth is, Everest is not the highest point on the planet.
The peculiarity of our planet is such that instead of an ideal sphere, the Earth is a flattened spheroid. Therefore, those places that are near the equator, as a rule, are much farther from the center of the planet than those that are at its poles. Given this fact, then Everest, like all the Himalayas, can hardly be called the highest point on the planet.
Earth as a sphere
The understanding that the Earth is a spherical body came to people as early as the 6th century BC. The ancient Greeks were the first to know about this. And although this theory is attributed to Pythagoras, it is likely that it could equally have appeared by itself as a result of travel between Greek settlements. The fact is that sailors began to notice changes in the position and visibility of stars, depending on the chosen geographical latitude.
Planet Earth. View from space to the western hemisphere
By the 3rd century BC, the theory of a spherical earth began to acquire quite scientific significance. By measuring the angle of falling shadows in various geographical locations, Eratosthenes (276 BC - 194 BC) - the Greek astronomer from Cyrene (the territory of modern Libya) - was able to calculate the circumference of the Earth with an error of 5-15 percent ... With the rise of the Roman Empire and the adoption of Hellenistic astronomy, the theory of a spherical earth spread throughout Mediterranean Sea and Europe.
This knowledge was preserved thanks to its transmission from generation to generation by monks, as well as thanks to the scholasticism of the Middle Ages. By the era of the Renaissance and the revolution in science (mid-16th - late 18th century), geological and heliocentric views were established in science. With the advent of modern astronomy, more accurate measurement methods and the ability to look at the Earth from space, mankind was still able to see the true shape and size of our planet.
Modern Earth Models
Let's clarify the situation a little: the Earth is not an ideal sphere, but it is not flat either. In the first case, I want to ask for forgiveness from Galileo, in the second - from the flat Earth society. As mentioned above, the Earth has the shape of a flattened spheroid, which, in turn, is a consequence of the peculiarity of rotation. At the poles, it seems to be flattened, and in the equatorial part, it is elongated. Many space objects in the solar system have the same shape (take at least Jupiter or Saturn). Even rapidly rotating stars, such as one of the brightest, Altair, have the same shape.
Data from the 2014 Global Earth Model, where brighter colors indicate points farthest from the center of the Earth
Based on some recent measurements, it was found that the polar radius of the Earth (that is, the distance from the center of the planet to one pole or another) is 6356.8 kilometers, while the equatorial radius (from the center to the equator) is 6378.1 kilometers. In other words, objects located along the equator are 22 kilometers farther from the center of the Earth (geocenter) than objects located at the poles.
Naturally, it is worth considering some topographic changes in certain areas, where some objects located near the equator are closer to the center, while others are farther from the center of the Earth, in comparison with other objects in a particular region. The most notable exceptions are the Mariana Trench (the most deep place on Earth, depth 10,911 meters) and Mount Everest, whose height above sea level is 8,848 meters. However, these two geological features represent very little difference when considering the general shape of the Earth. The difference in this case is only 0.17 percent and 0.14 percent, respectively.
Highest point on earth
In fairness, we note that Everest is indeed one of the highest points on our planet. The height at its peak is 8848 meters above sea level. However, due to its location in the Himalayan range (27 degrees 59 minutes north of the equator), it is actually lower than the mountains located in Ecuador.
Mount Chimborazo
It is here, where the Andes mountain range is located, that the highest point on planet Earth is located. The height of Chimborazo Mountain is 6263.47 meters above sea level. However, due to its location (1 degree 28 minutes south of the equator) in the highest bulging part of the planet, its total height from the geocenter is about 21 kilometers.
View of Mount Everest from the top of Kala Pathar
If we consider the issue in terms of the distance to the geocenter, Everest is located at a distance of 6382 kilometers from the center of the Earth, while Chimborazo is located at 6384 kilometers. The rounding difference is only about 3.2 kilometers, which at first glance may seem quite insignificant. However, when it comes to the ranks of the "best", you need to be precise.
Of course, even after such explanations, there will be people who will confidently say that Mount Everest is still the highest point on the planet, if we consider its height from the foot (base) to the peak. Unfortunately, they are wrong here too. Because in this case, the title of the highest mountain goes to Mount Mauna Kea, a shield volcano located on the island of Hawaii. The height of the mountain from the base to the very top at Mauna Kea is 10,206 meters. This is the highest mountain on our planet. However, most of the mountain goes several thousand meters deep into the ocean, and therefore we can only see its peak at 4207 meters.
However, those who consider Everest itself high mountain according to its height above sea level, they will be right. If we consider its height as the height above sea level, then Everest is indeed the highest mountain in the world.
From the darkest depths of the ocean to some of the highest peaks on Earth, below are the twenty-five largest, highest, deepest and tiniest places in the world!
25. The deepest lake - Lake Baikal
This Siberian rift lake is not only the most deep lake on Earth, but it also has the largest volume and contains about 20 percent of the fresh water of the entire Earth's surface.
24. Highest mountain - Everest
As you may have suspected, Everest is officially recognized as the tallest mountain in the world. But that's only if we start our measurement at sea level ...
23. Highest mountain from base to summit - Mauna Kea
Mauna Kea, a volcano on big island Hawaii is more than twice the height of Mount Everest, from the base of the mountain on the seabed to its peak.
22. The point farthest from the center of the Earth is Mount Chimborazo
Due to the bulge of the Earth at the equator, the peak of Mount Everest is also not the farthest point from the center of the Earth. This honor belongs to the summit of Mount Chimborazo in Ecuador.
21. The lowest point on Earth - Challenger Deep
This depression, located almost 11 kilometers below the surface of the ocean, is the deepest point in the already deep Mariana Trench. In fact, Everest would sit comfortably below the surface here.
20. Highest Falls - Angel Falls
This waterfall in Venezuela is so high that water sometimes evaporates before reaching the ground.
19. Driest place - Atacama Desert
In the middle of the Chilean Atacama Desert, there is a point where it never rains. Scientists call this region "an absolute desert".
18. Highest human settlement - La Rinconada
This mining town located in Peru is located in the highest inhabited region of the globe. At an altitude that exceeds the location of La Rinconada, a person simply cannot adapt.
17.Highest temperature - Death Valley
With a recorded temperature of almost 57 degrees Celsius, Death Valley in California has once again become the hottest place on Earth in recent years.
16. The most remote inhabited place on Earth - Tristan da Cunha (Tristan da Cunha)
This small archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, located thousands of kilometers from both South Africa and from South America, has a population of 271 people. Mail only reaches here a few times a year.
15. The deepest cave - Krubera-Voronya Cave
This cave, located in Abkhazia, is the only known cave in the world with a depth of over 2,000 meters.
14. The biggest difference in elevation is Mount Tor
Mount Thor, located in Canada, has a height of 1250 meters and despite its very remote location in the frozen tundra of the northern provinces of Canada, it is popular place for rock climbing.
13. Hottest inhabited place - Dallol, Ethiopia
The hottest permanently inhabited region in the world is in Ethiopia. Although today Dallol has become even less populated and some even say that it has become a ghost town. However, it is also worth noting that there has been no official census in this region for a long time, so the research is based on previously obtained data.
12. The northernmost point of land on Earth - Kaffeklubben Island
This island, which belongs to Greenland, is officially considered the northernmost point of land on Earth. However, there are several slowly moving gravel streaks that lie further north.
11. Lowest temperature - Vostok Station, Antarctica 
-89.2 ° C - This temperature was recorded in East Antarctica and, in addition to some new satellite measurements, is still considered the lowest terrestrial temperature on record.
10. Deepest Ice - Bentley Subglacial Trench
This place is also located in Antarctica, and the depth of the ice here exceeds 2.5 kilometers. In fact, the land on which he rests is well below sea level and is the lowest point on Earth not covered by an ocean.
9. The deepest point, measured from the ground level - Kola superdeep well
Although it was artificially created, this Russian science project tried to get as deep as possible into the earth's crust. The drill has reached a depth of over 12 kilometers.
8. Deepest point made by man - TauTona Mine
This South African mine is the deepest point under the Earth's surface that a person could fit. Its depth is almost 4 kilometers.
7. The coldest locality- Oymyakon, Russia
Sometimes the temperature drops below freezing in mid-September and remains there until May. The average temperature in January is -46 ° C. The population of the village is less than 500 people.
6. The highest road is the Aucanquilcha mining road
This mining road was once used for trucks that climbed this Chilean volcano to an altitude of over 6,000 meters.
5. Highest Mountain pass- Marsimik La, India 
Although the volcanic mountain road we saw in the previous point is technically the highest road in the world, it is a dead end and is no longer in use. In contrast, the Marsimik-La Pass, located at an altitude of 5,582 meters in northern India, is often considered the highest functional road in the world.
4. The highest lake is Lake Titicaca
This lake is located on the border of Peru and Bolivia in the Andes at an altitude of 3,812 meters. There are several unnamed crater lakes in the world that may be located slightly higher.
3. The most remote island - Bouvet Island
This small, uninhabited Norwegian island in the South Atlantic Ocean lies between Antarctica and Tristan da Cunha (a place that, as you remember, is quite remote in itself).
2. The longest river - Nile
Despite the difficulties in accurately calculating the sources and directions of various rivers, the Nile is generally considered the longest river in the world. Its length is 6,650 kilometers. In ancient times, when water was still flowing from Lake Tanganyika, the Nile was 1,500 kilometers longer.
1. The most remote point from the ocean - Xinjiang, China
This region in China is the Asian pole of inaccessibility. Basically, this means that it is the farthest point on the continent from any ocean.
The tallest mountains in the world are some of the most majestic and beautiful things that can be blessed enough to witness in your life. All of them are located in Asia, and each will reach an altitude of over 8000 meters above sea level.
Here is a list of the top 10 tallest mountains in the world.
The highest peak of mother earth is Everest... Its peak rose above the sea line to an altitude of 8.848 km. This mountain belongs to the Himalayan range and is in contact with China, Nepal, Tibet and Sagarmatha.
The top of the mountain has long been chosen by climbers, and even paved completely safe ascent paths, accessible even to novice mountain climbers.
2nd place 
Pakistani Karakoruma K2 , from the peak of which you can see Tajikistan, Pakistan, China, far from safe for climbing, not all were able to conquer its 8.611 km peak, many generally stayed there forever.
3rd place 
The peak of the five treasures of God, consisting of precious stones, gold, silver, holy books and grain, is named the third highest peak Kanchenjunga ... The five peaks of the mountains, which are part of the great Himalayas, are visible from India and Nepal.
4th place 
Lhotse The southern peak of the Tibetan mountains from Everest rises above the sea line at an altitude of 8.516 km - the main peak, and two adjacent ones rise at heights of 8.414 km and 8.383 km, respectively. This majestic mountain range is located between Nepal and Tibet.
5th place 
Makalu , the fifth of the most high peaks, 8,481 meters (27,825 ft) and is located southeast of Peak Everest on the border between two countries, China and Nepal. One of the eight-thousanders, Makalu is an isolated peak, its shape is a four-sided pyramid.
6th place 
Cho-Oyu , 8201 meters high above the sea line, named "Turquoise Goddess" in translation from Tibetan. The mountain is the main western peak of the Khumbu subdivision of the Himalayas, located east of Mount Everest, between Tibet and Nepal.
Dhaulagiri is the seventh tallest mountain in the world, reaching a peak of 8.167 m. It is located north of central Nepal. Its name means "White Mountain". This mountain, along with Annapurna, is more dramatic than most other mountains in terms of injury and death. It is an amazing sight when several peaks visually converge together, and one of the main reasons why, for thirty years, it was believed that Dhaulagiri is the highest mountain in the world.
8th place 
Manaslu Is the eighth highest mountain in the world, and is located in Mansiri-Himalaya, in the west-central part of Nepal. "Mountain of the spirit", the name comes from the word Manas, meaning "intellect" or "soul", it is called by the locals. This peak was officially conquered in May 1956 by the Japanese Toshio Imanishi and Galsen Norbu.
9th place 
Nanga Parbat , whose peak is located at an altitude of 8126 m, is translated as "Naked Mountain", better known as "Killer Mountain". This title was given to the summit because of the difficulty and danger of the climb. This mountain is a majestic peak that towers over the surrounding area of Pakistan.
The majestic series of peaks of the Himalayas in north-central Nepal called Annapurna, the highest of which is called Annapurna I, is the tenth highest mountain in the world. It is located in the central part of Nepal and rushes up to 8091 meters. Its peaks are among the most dangerous even for professional climbers. The mortality rate here is about 40%.
There are many high mountains in the world that climbers managed to conquer. but the highest mountain in the world long time remained unconquered.
The highest mountain in the world
The highest mountain in the world is Chomolungma (Everest). Its height is 8,848 m above sea level.
In this case, it is worth paying attention to the clarification "above sea level", because if you measure the height of the mountain from the core, then the record will belong to the extinct Chimborazo, which in.
Everyone knows that our planet has the shape of an ellipse. It follows from this that the mountains located near the equator are higher than in other areas of the Earth.
Height from center of earth In this regard, Chimborazo is located closer to the convex center of the Earth than any other mountains, including Everest.
The hardest mountain for climbers
Considering all these facts, the question involuntarily arises: why is Everest the most popular mountain in the world, while the Ecuadorian Chimborazo (6384 m) remains in the shadows?
This is largely due to the difficulties in climbing Chomolungma.
Let's imagine that we want to conquer both of these peaks.
Climbing Chomolungma
In order to climb Everest, you initially have to walk to the base camp.
This part of the journey will take you about 10 days. After that, it will take another month and a half for just one acclimatization!
View of Everest from the plane Then you will have to climb directly to the very top for about 9 more days. And this is the most difficult part of the path.
Climbing Chimborazo
Now let's imagine how long it will take to conquer Chimborazo.
When climbing, acclimatization will take you no more than 2 weeks, and the way to the top will not exceed 2 days.
Chimborazo From all that has been said, we can conclude that after Everest, the ascent to the Ecuadorian summit will seem to you an evening walk.
"Above" and "below" sea level
So, Everest is the highest point on the planet above sea level.
However, speaking of the very high mountain in the world, and considering some other factors, it is appropriate to recall another grief.
If you measure the absolute height from the base to the top, in this case, the highest mountain will be Mauna Kea, located in the territory.
Mauna Kea It may be difficult for some to understand what this is about, so let's sort out this confusion in order.
Unlike Everest, most Mauna Kea mountains is under the surface of the water.
Thus, if we measure the height from the base (under water) to the top, it will be 10203 m, which is 1355 m higher than Chomolungma.
Everest and Mauna Kea Mauna Kea is an extinct volcano that last erupted approximately 4,600 years ago. An interesting fact is that there are 13 telescopes on the top of this mountain.
This is because there is a very low level of humidity and clear skies. Thanks to this, astronomers can track celestial objects while studying outer space.
Highest mountains on every continent
- Europe - (5 642 m)
- - Kilimanjaro (5895 m)
- Asia - Everest (8 848 m)
- - Aconcagua (6,962 m)
- North America - McKinley (6,190 m)
- - Vinson Massif (4 892 m)
- - Kostsyushko (2,228 m)
And now let's go back to the highest mountain in the world - Chomolungma, and get to know not only it geographic features, but also the way the person conquered her.
Chomolungma is located on the Mahalangur-Himal ridge. It occupies such a large area that its base is located on the territory of the Tibet Autonomous Region.
Over the centuries, the mountain has attracted the attention of many people who wanted to be on its top. As a result, hundreds of climbers died trying to conquer Chomolungma.
Attempts to conquer Chomolungma
It is officially believed that Briton George Mallory was the first climber to attempt to climb the mountain. However, he and his partner never succeeded in achieving their goal.
They died on one of the slopes of Chomolungma back in 1924. Interestingly, their bodies were discovered only in 1999. According to experts, they were only 200 m away from the summit.
After this expedition, many more daredevils tried to get to the peak of Everest, but all of them either died or returned back, not daring to set foot on the most dangerous sections of the path.
As mentioned earlier, climbing Mount Chomolungma is accompanied by many different difficulties:
- High rarefaction of the atmosphere (lack of oxygen);
- Low temperature (below -50 ° C);
- Hurricane winds, as a result of which the human body feels frosts down to -120 ° C;
- Sunny ;
- Frequent avalanches, steep slopes, falling into crevices.
First ascent of the highest mountain in the world
When did the first successful ascent to the highest mountain on earth take place?
And it happened a little more than half a century ago.
On May 29, 1953, New Zealander Edmund Hillary, together with Sherpa Tenzing Norgay, were able to conquer Everest, as a result of which they became the first people to find themselves on its top.
It is worth noting that before embarking on an expedition, they carefully prepared for it.
The climbers took oxygen equipment with them and chose the most convenient route. Having reached an altitude of 8500 m, they set up a tent for spending the night.
The climbers woke up in the morning and found their boots covered in ice.
It took them about 2 hours to unfreeze their shoes and make the last dash to conquer Everest.
In a few hours they were already at the summit, on which they spent about 15 minutes. During this time, the climbers took several photographs and planted a flag.
Having descended to earth, they immediately became real heroes. The entire world press wrote about their feat, wanting to know all the details of the expedition.
In subsequent years, Chomolungma was conquered by climbers from different countries... The first woman to reach the top was the Japanese Junko Tabei (1976).
Despite the fact that today hundreds of people continue to die on Everest, this mountain is still of the greatest interest to fans of extreme sports.
It is curious that Chomolungma was conquered in a variety of ways. They climbed it without oxygen masks, descended from its summit on skis and snowboard, and also competed in the time spent on its ascent.
View of the northern wall of Chomolungma from the trail leading to the base camp An interesting fact is that the youngest person who has visited the highest mountain in the world is a 13-year-old Indian girl Purna Malavath, and the oldest person is 72-year-old American Bill Berg.
According to official data, more than 260 people died on the slopes of the mountain, and about 8,300 climbers have already conquered the summit of Chomolungma.
Who knows what other records will be set in the future, but it can be said with certainty that Everest will forever remain the most popular mountain in the world.
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What do nature lovers, hikers and adventure seekers have in common? They all know how to appreciate the natural beauty of the world, and for good reason. You don't need to be an ardent naturalist to appreciate all the natural resources of our planet. In the end, this is the only way we can thank her for her interesting and mysterious world... We offer you a list of the ten most outstanding geographic sites our planet.
As you might have guessed, now we will talk about Everest - the highest point in the world. The height of Everest is 8844 meters above sea level. This summit is on the list of places to conquer for every decent adventurer. First discovered in the 1850s, the mountain was named after Inspector General George Everest, who, ironically, never saw this peak. Despite all the romance of the idea of conquering this peak, climbing Everest is a rather dangerous activity, which has already managed to take the lives of several people.
9. The lowest point in the world
The lowest point in the world is the Dead Sea, which is 434 meters below sea level. Moreover, over the past 40 years, it has dropped even lower (almost 25 meters). One of the most interesting phenomena of the Dead Sea is the bloom of red algae, due to which it changes color at one moment. This happened in 1980 and 1992.
8. The northernmost point of the planet
No, this is not the North Pole. From the point of view of the entire globe, it would be the North Pole, but not from the point of view of land - this is Kaffeklubben Island (Greenland), located in the Arctic Ocean. This island is located 443.3 kilometers from the North Pole and was first discovered by Robert Peary (explorer of the American part of the Arctic) in 1900. The name was invented by the Danish explorer Lauge Koch in 1921. No matter how strange it may sound, but Kaffeklubben translated from Danish means "Coffee Club", today very few people can explain what exactly Lauge was guided by, coming up with such a name.
7. The southernmost point of the planet
This time it is indeed the South Pole, located in Antarctica. This place rises only 100 meters above sea level, although the ice cover here reaches a thickness of 2,700 meters. Interesting fact: At the South Pole, you can witness the sunrise and sunset only once a year, in September and March, respectively.
6. The most remote island on the planet
Bouvet Island is one of the loneliest islands in the world. It is located in the South Atlantic Ocean and is part of Norway. It is completely volcanic island, and its central part is entirely covered with an ice crust. In fact, it is a huge extinct volcano. was first discovered by Jean-Baptiste Charles Bouvet de Lozier on January 1, 1739, and a little later was named after its discoverer. The island is uninhabited, its area is 59 square kilometers, and the height above sea level is 935 meters.
5. The most large island
The largest island in the world is Greenland. Its surface area is 2,166,086 square kilometers. Initially, the island was under the control of Denmark, but from 1979 to the present day it separate state with their government and parliament. Due to the unfavorable living conditions, the population of Greenland is only 57,000 people. Most of the island is covered with ice, which in some places reaches a thickness of 4 kilometers. And although fish resources are already quite depleted here, the melting of glaciers came to the rescue of local residents, exposing easily accessible mineral resources and providing them with a new source of livelihood.
4. The deepest river
The richest river in the world is the Congo, located in west-central Africa and flowing into Atlantic Ocean... Its depth in some places reaches 220 meters. It is the second longest river in the world, following the Amazon. It was previously known as Zaire. The total length of the river is 4,700 kilometers, making it the 9th longest river in the world.
3. The youngest island
Niijima Island is a small volcanic island located in the Philippine Sea. It appeared as a result of a volcanic eruption in late November 2013, 163 miles south of Tokyo. This proves once again that the surface of the Earth is constantly changing, but despite the fact that everyone expected that Niijima would soon disappear, he, contrary to public opinion, remained in his place.
2. Longest cave network
The Mamontov Cave System - Flint Ridge is located in the US state of Kentucky. It is the longest network of caves in the world, with an area of approximately 52,830 hectares, twice the size of the second largest network of underwater