Which year saw the first successful ascent of Mount Everest?

Mount Everest, also known in Nepal as Sagarmāthā and in Tibet as Chomolungma, is the highest mountain on our planet. It is located in the Mahalangur mountain range in Nepal and Tibet. Its peak is 8,848 metres (29,029 ft) above sea level. There are two main routes to climb Mount Everest: the north ridge (Tibet) and the south-east ridge (Nepal). Climbers also use more than 15 less known routes.

In 1953, a ninth British expedition, led by John Hunt, returned to Nepal. Hunt selected two climbing pairs to attempt to reach the summit. The first pair (Tom Bourdillon and Charles Evans) came within 100 m (330 ft) of the summit on 26 May 1953, but turned back after running into oxygen problems. As planned, their work in route finding and breaking trail and their caches of extra oxygen were of great aid to the following pair. Two days later, the expedition made its second and final assault on the summit with its second climbing pair, the New Zealander Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay, a Nepali sherpa climber from Darjeeling, India. They reached the summit at 11:30 am local time on 29 May 1953 via the South Col Route.

Here are some little-known facts about Mount Everest:

At least one person a year dies trying to reach the summit. The only exception is the year 1977;
The wind speed on the peak is more than 200mph;
At least 120 dead bodies that can't be safely removed still remain on the mountain;
Climbers use these corpses as landmarks;
Most deaths on Everest are caused by avalanches and subsequent falls.

More Info: en.wikipedia.org

Test your knowledge

What are your thoughts on this subject?

37 Comments

William Laughlin

To all those who missed the correct answer and use, as an excuse, the reasoning that they weren't even born yet: By that reasoning, it must also mean that you know nothing of WWII, the American Revolution, Napoleon, the discovery of the New World, the Maya, Inca, and the Aztec, the Renaissance, Marco Polo and ancient China, the Dark Ages, Alexander the Great, Cleopatra, King Tutankhamen, Ramesses I, II, and III, ancient Egypt, Rome, or Greece, or ANYTHING that predated your birth! Shame on you. The world did not wait for your birth for events to be worth your awareness. Do not boast of your ignorance and use chronology of events as an excuse!

Larry W. Jones

I always enjoy your narratives, William. It happened one year before my birth, but I still managed to answer correctly. The world is, and has been, indeed, a fascinating place.

William Laughlin

Bernd Rittersporn The usage of the word "saw" in the question is idiomatic and is correct. It is not to be taken literally, implying years have eyes. One definition is "to be the time or setting of (something)." It is proper to say something such as, "The 1970s saw the beginning of a technological revolution." Consult the Oxford English Dictionary if you need further verification.

William Laughlin

Larry W. Jones Thank you, Larry. The idea that only knowing things from your birth date onward, with a disregard for anything before that makes me crazy. People seem to wear their ignorance like a badge of honor. The world is, indeed, a fascinating place and everything we know of today is built upon prior knowledge. It happened before I was born, too, but I too am aware of it because I thirst for knowledge of the world I inhabit. The more one knows, the richer the life.

Albeck1994

I wasn't born for a decade, but I knew this but being British it's slightly easier as it was the same year Roger bannister ran the 4 minute mile and of course the Queens coronation.

William Laughlin

Daniel Halley Thanks, Dan. People need to stop broadcasting their ignorance as if it were something to be proud of. It's not. All it says about them is that they lack intellectual curiosity.

Ian Swindale

The success of Hillary and Tenzing was became known in the UK 1 day before HM The Queen's Coronation and there was real rejoicing at the news. I can't remember who wrote the book about that successful ascent of Everest but it certainly sold well - I read it a few times and as a 11 year old thought about emulating that feat - of course that never happened!!

Fred Keogh

The same year as Queen Elizabeth II Coronation.

Richard D. Boyle

William Laughlin, I agree with your comment and let me thank you for consistently adding posts of more interest and accuracy than anyone else here who comes to mind. I was a freshman in college in 1953 and was so impressed by this monumental accomplishment that I have remembered the names of Sir Edmund Hillary and his Sherpa Tenzing Norgay ever since.

catmom

al woltz, I was until the next yrar.

catmom

Lorna Shipton, I didn't think of that. Very good.

catmom

teresab, I love that idea.

catmom

Evelyn Forbes, I was just as bad, I picked 1953.

Gail Nemetz

Easy to remember. The year I was born.

teresab

On the 50th anniversary, my sister (much, much older) celebrated her 50th birthday and I made a Mt Everest cake with a ton of white chocolate as huge slices of ice on it for her. Good old Ed and Tenzing, heroes for NZ.

Sue Grayson

Maurice Twomey, Haven’t heard of any like that, but at the time (I was aged 10 so I remember it), there was some speculation they actually reached the summit earlier than announced but that the news was delayed, to be announced on coronation day, as if it had actually only just come through. Double celebration stuff. Possibly, but did it matter? They did it.