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China, Nepal say Everest a bit higher than past measurements

Posted December 08, 2020 6:00 am

The Associated Press

BEIJING (AP) - China and Nepal have jointly announced a new height for Mount Everest, ending a discrepancy between the two nations.

The new official height is 8,848.86 meters (29,032 feet), China's official Xinhua News Agency said Tuesday, slightly more than Nepal's previous measurement and about four meters (13 feet) higher than China's.

The new height was agreed on after the two counties sent surveyors from their respective sides of the mountain in 2019 and 2020.

There had been debate over the actual height of the peak and concern that it might have shrunk after a major earthquake in 2015.

Nepal previously measured Everest's height as 8,848 meters, while China put it at 8,844.43, because it did not include the snow cap.

Chinese leader Xi Jinping said the two sides were committed to jointly protecting the environment around Everest and cooperating in scientific research, Xinhua said.

FILE - In this May 27, 2020, file photo released by Xinhua News Agency, a member of a Chinese surveying team sets up a survey equipment on the summit of Mount Everest also known locally as Mt. Qomolangma. China and Nepal have jointly announced on Tuesday, Dec. 8, 2020, a new height for Mount Everest, ending a discrepancy between the two nations. (Tashi Tsering/Xinhua via AP, File) The Associated Press

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