Mount Everest is getting taller every year – and now scientists know why

Mount Everest is getting taller every year – and now scientists think they know why

 

에베레스트 산은 매년 높아지고 있습니다 –

그리고 이제 과학자들은 그들이 그 이유를 알고 있다고 생각합니다

비슈왐 산카란(Vishwam Sankaran)의 이야기

 

The Independent

Story by Vishwam Sankaran

 • 15h •  25/ 11/ 2024  3 min read

 

Scientists may finally have an explanation for why Mount Everest is so much taller than the other great Himalayan peaks – and still growing.

 

Everest is known to be growing by about 2mm a year, and the official figure for its height was last revised upwards by almost a metre in 2020 to 8,848.86m.

 

The mountain’s growth was previously put down to the shifting of tectonic plates, though this theory did not explain why Everest’s peak is abnormally high compared to others in the range, towering about 250m above the next-tallest peak in the Himalayas. The next three of the world’s tallest peaks – K2, Kangchenjunga, and Lhotse – only differ from each other in height by about 120 metres.

 

Now researchers from University College London (UCL) have found that erosion from a river network about 75km (47 miles) away from the world’s highest mountain may be contributing to Everest’s growth, as the river carves away a substantial gorge.

 

This erosion is creating a seemingly paradoxical phenomenon called uplift, which happens when a section of the Earth’s crust loses mass and then “floats” upwards due to intense pressure from the hot liquid mantle below.

 

과학주의자들은 마침내 에베레스트 산이 다른 히말라야 산봉우리들보다 훨씬 더 높고, 여전히 성장하고 있는지에 대한 설명을 할 수 있을지도 모른다.

에베레스트는 매년 약 2mm씩 성장하는 것으로 알려져 있으며, 그 높이에 대한 공식 수치는 2020년에 거의 1m 상향 조정된 8,848.86m로 마지막으로 수정되었습니다.

 

에베레스트의 성장은 이전에 지각판의 이동으로 여겨졌지만, 이 이론은 에베레스트의 정상이 히말라야에서 다음으로 높은 봉우리보다 약 250m 위로 우뚝 솟은 범위의 다른 봉우리에 비해 비정상적으로 높은 이유를 설명하지 못했습니다. 세계에서 가장 높은 봉우리 중 다음 세 곳인 K2, 캉첸중가, 로체는 높이가 약 120m 정도밖에 차이가 나지 않습니다.

유니버시티 칼리지 런던(UCL)의 연구원들은 세계에서 가장 높은 산에서 약 75km(47마일) 떨어진 강에서 발생한 침식이 에베레스트의 성장에 기여할 수 있다는 것을 발견했습니다.

 

이 침식은 융기(uplift)라고 불리는 겉보기에 역설적인 현상을 일으키고 있는데, 이는 지각의 한 부분이 질량을 잃고 아래의 뜨거운 액체 맨틀로부터의 강렬한 압력으로 인해 위쪽으로 "떠오를 때" 발생합니다.

Mount Everest and the Arun River (Jiaqi Sun and Jingen Dai)

 

The process is not fast, with scientists estimating that Everest has grown by between 15 and 50 metres in the past 89,000 years. But it is still measurable with modern technology, according to the study published on Monday in the journal Nature Geoscience.

 

“We can see them growing by about 2mm a year using GPS instruments, and now we have a better understanding of what’s driving it,” said Matthew Fox, a co-author of the study from UCL.

North side of Mount Everest (John Semple)

 

While this gradual process leads to only a few millimetres of growth each year, over geological timeframes it can make a significant difference.

 

In Everest’s case, this process appears to have sped up over the last 89,000 years since the nearby Arun River merged with the adjacent Kosi.

 

The merging of the two rivers led to more water funnelling through the Kosi River and increasing its erosive power, scientists say. As more land started getting washed away, it gradually triggered an increased rate of uplift for Everest, pushing the mountain’s peaks further up.

 

“Our research shows that as the nearby river system cuts deeper, the loss of material is causing the mountain to spring further upwards,” study co-author Adam Smith from UCL said.

The catchment area of the nearby Bhote Koshi River in the region between Nepal and China (Luc Illien/GFZ)

 

The Arun River currently runs to the east of Mount Everest, and merges downstream with the larger Kosi river system. Over thousands of years, it has carved out a gorge that has washed away billions of tonnes of earth and sediment.

 

“The upstream Arun River flows east at high altitude with a flat valley. It then abruptly turns south, dropping in elevation and becoming steeper,” Jin-Gen Dai, another author of the study, said.

 

“This unique topography, indicative of an unsteady state, likely relates to Everest’s extreme height,” Dr Dai said.

The phenomenon is also affecting the neighbouring peaks of Lhotse and Makalu – the world’s fourth- and fifth-highest peaks – scientists say.

 

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Dam struggles to withstand pressure from swollen river in Nepal

 

A dam struggled to withstand pressure from a swollen river in Nepal.Heavy rainfall has caused the river to be in spate due to the increased water level of the Kosi Dam near Birpur in the Saptari District.The district administrations of Supaul, Saharsa, Madhepura, Madhubani, Darbhanga, Khagaria, Bhagalpur, Katihar, and Navagachia in India have issued high alerts urging residents to stay away from the dam.

 

Authorities reported that the discharge from the Koshi Barrage reached 661,295 cubic feet per second. at 5 am on September 29, the highest level since 1968.The rain began late Thursday, ravaging much of the country, particularly in the eastern and central regions.Data from the Armed Police Force (APF) and Nepal Police report 129 deaths due to downpours and landslides over the past 24 hours.Additionally, 62 people are missing, and at least 100 others have sustained injuries. Nepal has also closed its schools for three days.

 

Authorities reported significant damage to university and school buildings, necessitating repairs.Local media reported that 10,000 police officers, volunteers, and army members had been mobilised for search and rescue efforts.The weather improved on Sunday following three days of devastating rains, and rescue and clean-up efforts were underway.Nepal experiences floods and landslides every year during the monsoon season. However, scientists say that rainfall events are becoming more intense due to climate change.