Mt. Everest to be remeasured

China has conducted six major surveys of the mountain, known in China as Qomolangma, since 1949.

Beijing: A Chinese survey team on Wednesday became the first and perhaps only group to climb Mt. Everest this year, part of a project to remeasure the exact height of the world’s tallest mountain.

The ascent, reported by Chinese state media, comes after both China and Nepal canceled the spring climbing season on the mountain that straddles their border in a bid to prevent the new coronavirus from spreading among expedition teams that typically live for weeks in tightly packed camps with little access to emergency medical help.

That could make the Chinese survey team the only people this year to reach the peak of A 53-member team from China’s Ministry of National Resources has been conducting scientific work on Everest since early March. A network of Beidou satellites is being used in the survey to determine the mountain’s current height and natural resources.

China has conducted six major surveys of the mountain, known in China as Qomolangma, since 1949. It’s height was registered at 8,848.13 meters (29,029 feet) in 1975 and 8,844.43 meters (29,017 feet) in 2005.