The agreement puts an end to a long-running debate over the exact dimensions of a mountain called Sagarmatha in Nepal and Kumalongma in Tibet. Over the years, both countries – as well as other governments around the world – have presented various estimates of mountain climbing.
“This project was a matter of national pride for Nepal and a prestigious undertaking for the Government of Nepal. I am very proud that we were able to complete it successfully,” Sushil Dangol, Deputy Director General of the Survey Department of Nepal, told CNN. “Nepal and China jointly processed the survey data and came up with the result.”
Nepal’s Foreign Minister Pradeep Kumar Jwali and his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi were present at the virtual press conference.
In 2005, according to a Chinese survey of the mountain, it was about 8,844 meters (approximately 29,015 feet) above sea level.
However, the research was not authorized by Nepal, so the country did not recognize it as official. At the time, they were using a figure of 8,848 meters (29,029 feet) according to the findings of the 1955 Indian Survey.
Then in 2015, multiple scientific studies suggest that mountain elevations have changed after a magnitude 7.8 earthquake in Nepal. Two years later, the Nepalese government embarked on its long and arduous mission of re-measuring height for the first time.
During Chinese President Xi Jinping’s visit to Nepal last year, the two countries jointly agreed to declare a new height, calling the summit “an eternal symbol of friendship between Nepal and China.” After Xi’s visit, China began measuring from the Tibetan side of the mountain.
The new height was calculated using a combination of geographic data obtained from three mechanisms: leveling instrument, gravity meter and GPS. The team placed a signal receiver at each station, and measured how long it took to travel between the receiver and the satellites – then turned that measurement into height.
Sugam Pokhrel was reporting from Kathmandu. Rhea Mogul contributed from Hong Kong.
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