K2
2nd-highest mountain on Earth / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Dear Wikiwand AI, let's keep it short by simply answering these key questions:
Can you list the top facts and stats about K2?
Summarize this article for a 10 year old
K2, at 8,611 metres (28,251 ft) above sea level, is the second-highest mountain on Earth, after Mount Everest at 8,849 metres (29,032 ft).[3] It lies in the Karakoram range, partially in the Gilgit-Baltistan region of Pakistan-administered Kashmir and partially in the China-administered Trans-Karakoram Tract in the Taxkorgan Tajik Autonomous County of Xinjiang.[4][5][6][lower-alpha 1]
K2 | |
---|---|
Highest point | |
Elevation | 8,611 m (28,251 ft) Ranked 2nd |
Prominence | 4,020 m (13,190 ft) [1] Ranked 22nd |
Isolation | 1,316 km (818 mi) |
Listing | Eight-thousander Seven Second Summits Ultra |
Coordinates | 35°52′57″N 76°30′48″E[2] |
Geography | |
Countries |
|
Parent range | Karakoram |
Climbing | |
First ascent | 31 July 1954; 69 years ago (1954-07-31) Achille Compagnoni & Lino Lacedelli |
Easiest route | Abruzzi Spur |
K2 also became popularly known as the Savage Mountain after George Bell—a climber on the 1953 American expedition—told reporters, "It's a savage mountain that tries to kill you."[7] Of the five highest mountains in the world, K2 is the deadliest; approximately one person dies on the mountain for every four who reach the summit.[7][8] Also occasionally known as Mount Godwin-Austen,[9] other nicknames for K2 are The King of Mountains and The Mountaineers' Mountain,[10] as well as The Mountain of Mountains after prominent Italian climber Reinhold Messner titled his book about K2 the same.[11]
Although the summit of Everest is at a higher altitude, K2 is a more difficult and dangerous climb, due in part to its more northern location, where inclement weather is more common.[12] The summit was reached for the first time by the Italian climbers Lino Lacedelli and Achille Compagnoni, on the 1954 Italian expedition led by Ardito Desio. As of February 2021[update], 377 people have summited K2.[13] There have been 91 deaths during attempted climbs.
Most ascents are made during July and August, typically the warmest times of the year.[14] But in January 2021, K2 became the final eight-thousander to be summited in the winter; the mountaineering feat was accomplished by a team of Nepalese climbers, led by Nirmal Purja and Mingma Gyalje Sherpa.[15][16]
K2 has now been climbed by almost all of its ridges, but unlike other eight-thousanders, never from its eastern face.[17]