There are different ways to measure the height of mountains, leading to debates about which is the tallest. Mount Everest is the tallest when measured from sea level, but Mount McKinley has the highest vertical rise. Mauna Kea is the tallest when measured from its base, while Chimborazo is the tallest when measured from the center of the Earth.
Measuring mountains might not sound overly complicated, but there are actually several ways it can be done. Depending on the technique used, the title of world’s tallest mountain could be awarded to any of several mountains in various regions of the world. Some scientists even argue heatedly, arguing that their technique is the more accurate, conventional, or widely accepted method. The tallest mountain in the world differs depending on whether a mountain’s height is measured from sea level, vertical rise, base, or even the center of the Earth.
Measured from sea level
When most people think of the elevation of a mountain, they often visualize the elevation from sea level, which is also one of the more widely accepted measurement techniques used to determine the tallest mountain in the world. People are familiar with sea level measurements because elevation is classically expressed as a distance from sea level on road signs, maps, and textbooks. This is also a form of measurement that is easy to visualize. When measured from sea level, Everest is the uncontested tallest mountain in the world, with a peak that is 29,035 feet (8,850 m) above sea level.
Measured from the surrounding terrain
Mount Everest has an advantage because it is located on a plateau and the height of the plateau above sea level is included in the mountain height when measured by this method. For people who are more interested in the vertical rise from the surrounding terrain to the top of the mountain, Mount McKinley would be considered the tallest mountain. Although its maximum elevation above sea level is lower than that of Mount Everest, Mount McKinley’s vertical rise is approximately 18,000 feet (5,500 m), compared to Mount Everest’s rise of approximately 12,000 feet (3,700 m).
Measured from its base
Some people prefer to measure mountains from their base, whether or not the base is above sea level. Measuring from its base on the bottom of the Pacific Ocean, Mauna Kea likley is the tallest mountain in the world, with a distance from the ocean floor to the mountain top of 33,476 feet (10,203 m). This beats Mount Everest even though Mauna Kea’s height is only 13,796 feet (4,205m) at its peak.
Another contender using this method of measurement is Mount Lamlam, the base of which is deep in the Mariana Trench, which is located in the western Pacific Ocean. There are different reports of the measurement of Mount Lamlam from the base to the top. The most extreme claims state that it is 37,820 feet (11,527 m) tall, which would make Mount Lamlam taller than Mauna Kea and therefore the tallest mountain in the world using this method of measurement.
Measured from the center of the Earth
For people who prefer to measure from the center of the Earth, the tallest mountain in the world is Chimborazo, which is 3,968 miles (6,384 km) from the center of the Earth at its peak, although its elevation is only 20,565 feet (6,268 m) above sea level. It is located in Ecuador, near the Earth’s equator, which gives it an advantage using this measurement method, because the Earth bulges slightly in the middle. This means that the earth’s surface is farther from its center near the equator than in other places.
Protect your devices with Threat Protection by NordVPN
