The highest mountain top of the world – Everest - for many years attracted to itself the climbers dreaming to become her first conquerors. Only in the middle of the 20th century two people whose names became known around the world managed it.
The highest top
The highest point of Everest (or Chomolungma) is located in 8848 meters above sea level. Researches of this mountain top located in the Himalayas began in the 1850th years when the English surveyors working in India were engaged in creation of cards. By the way, the name "Everest" is appropriated to top in honor of the British geographer George Everest directing one of the first expeditions in that area. During the same period it was established that Chomolungma is the highest mountain on the planet though concrete data on its height constantly were exposed to adjustment, being in an interval from 8839 meters to 8872.5 meters.
Representatives of nationality of sherp are the most frequent guests of Everest as conductors of expeditions. They possess almost all records of ascension. For example, Appa Tenzing was at top of the world of 21 times.
It is natural that such top could not but draw to itself attention of climbers from around the world. However ways of persons interested to subdue Everest were followed by a set of obstacles, including will lock from the majority of the countries in which there are ways of climbing Chomolungma, on visit by their foreigners.
Besides, the considerable difficulty was presented by a breath problem at the big height as air is strongly rarefied there and does not oxygenate lungs in the required quantities. However in 1922 the British Finch and Bruce decided to take an oxygen reserve that allowed them to reach height of 8320 meters. In total about 50 attempts of ascension were made, however any of them was not crowned with success.
The first conqueror of Everest
In 1953 the New Zealand climber Edmund of Hillary participated in the expedition organized by the British Himalaya committee. In those days the government of Nepal resolved only one expedition a year therefore Hillary agreed with pleasure, understanding that it is very rare opportunity. In total more than four hundred people were a part of an expedition, of them the majority was made by porters and conductors of local nationality of sherp.
By the present moment Everest was subdued by more than four thousand people, at the same time on its slopes about two hundred climbers died.
The base camp was set up at the height of 7800 meters in March, but on conquest of top the climbers moved forward only in May, having spent two months for acclimatization to mountain conditions. As a result Edmund Hillary and the climber sherpas Tenzing Norgay was sent at way on May 28. In one day they reached height of eight and a half kilometers where put a tent. Next day at 11 hours 20 minutes the highest peak of the planet was conquered. Heroes of an expedition were expected by world recognition: the queen of Britain Elizabeth II granted Hillary and the chief of an expedition John Hunt a knightly rank, and in 1992 New Zealand issued the five-dollar banknote with Hillary's portrait. Tenzing got Saint Georgy's medal from the government of Britain. Edmund of Hillary died of heart failure in 2008 at the age of 88 years.