The great Mount Everest, in all of it’s glory, is an amazing phenomenon, with tons to learn and debate. On the other hand, it has recently been in a distress with tourism and climate  change melting and littering the peak into a rather unpleasant state. With all of this, we can also look to the past when the peak, not degraded by decades of pollution, was a challenge to overcome. Reaching the peak was a near-impossible task, never being pulled off in history. The great Sir Edmund Hillary was the first of many great people to ever reach the peak, allowing us not only to know what is up there, but to know exactly what humanity can do. All of these things combined is what makes Mount Everest the interesting and breathtaking topic it is. Mount Everest is the highest mountain in the world (when measured above sea level). Technically there is a taller mountain then Mt. Everest when you measure the entire mountain above and below sea level known as Mount Mauna Kea, Mt. Everest is actually still getting higher, growing 4 millimeters every year! With such a slow growth rate, it is not that surprising that it took 60 million years to get where it is today. With such a tall mountain, one would wonder how it came to be. Well, we already know that. Mount Everest was formed when the Indian continental plate pushed against the Asian plate.

            Fast forward a few million years. The year is 1953. Mount Everest is an enigma (or mysterious), a challenge yet to be beaten, with the scarce attempts barely even coming close to reaching the summit. The journey required a formidable crew, supply of gear, and understanding of the mountain. Sir Edmund Hillary, climber and explorer from New Zealand, who was part of a team of explorers conquered the peak in that year. He accomplished a feat very few have even dreamed of  doing. His interest in mountains began with a school trip to Mount Ruapehu. He was

fascinated by the mystical, white snow which, he had never seen prior. While he was there, he

discovered that, while he was not an athlete by any means, his frame was strong and very

durable, this would help him with his climbing. 

     Today, 62 years later, the possibility of climbing the tallest mountain in the world attracts unmanageable amounts of tourist attraction to the area. While the tourism obviously brings good revenue to Nepal along with other things, the huge amount of tourists climbing to the peak  brings humongous amounts of pollution as the tourists leave trash and discarded oxygen tanks, debris and corpses all over, along with human excrement.12,000 pounds of human garbage each year is left on Mt. Everest. As much as 13 tons of human excrement is left on the mountain each year (Bright Hub, 2016). The material has polluted the rivers and turned the once pure and pristine mountain into a more, well, messy place. The worst part is that, with the lack of transportation systems or recycling facilities up there, cleaning the mess is near impossible, or at least a rather difficult and harsh task. Climate change is a big problem as well, with more heat coming to the icy rock, the amount of snow has scarified, becoming less icy, and incidentally, easier for the tourist horde to get the peak and destroy it. Large amounts of people die on Mount Everest, with as many as 15 people dying on some climbs. Tons of vehicle pollution was and still is going on due to the increase in tourism.

            In conclusion, Mt. Everest is the tallest mountain (above sea level) in the world. Mt. Everest is one of the harshest mountains to climb and many people who have tried have failed and ended up dead. On May 29, 1953, Edmund Hillary became the first successful climber to reach the summit of Mount Everest. Climbers have polluted Mt. Everest by leaving Mt. Everest with littered oxygen tanks, debris and the bodies of failed climbers. Mount Everest is one of the most interesting mountains in the world and it is the tallest mountain above sea level. Now you know everything you need to about Mt. Everest.