Sibylle Hechtel :

method to measure the peak of Mount Everest have changed over metre , from childlike geometry in the past , to GPS more latterly . AstoryinThe New York Times , “ How Tall Is Mount Everest ? For Nepal , It ’s a Touchy Question . ” talk about the tilt over different results for the top of Everest , and a planned expedition to measure it from the height .

estimate of the tallness of Everest variegate . According toThe New York Timesarticle :

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“ Today , Everest ’s pinnacle is widely recognize as 29,029 feet . But teams from around the creation , include China , Denmark , Italy , India and the United States , have come up with other calculations , which have sometimes vagabond a trivial bit mellow , or a little bit lower , than that figure . Italy , in 1992 , lopped seven feet off the standard height , measure it at 29,022 feet . In 1999 , a measurement by American scientist pushed the peak a little higher , tell the mountain reach out 29,035 feet . ”

And the meridian can exchange . Again , according toThe New York Times :

" Roger Bilham , a geologist at the University of Colorado Boulder , said Everest ’s location in the zone of compression between southern Tibet and India means it sink during earthquakes and rises in the period between them . Amajor earthquakein 1934 lowered the tidy sum by 63 centimeters , or about two human foot , according to data provide by Mr. Bilham .

In the 19th century , the height of Everest was count on by measure out the Angle between the top of the mountain and points on the ground whose positions proportional to the modal height of the sea were already known .

Now , surveyors point a global positioning system receiver on the summit ice for an hour , and mathematically estimate the stature of the sea from satellites and measurements of gravity at the basis .

To prepare for the body politic ’s own expeditiousness , Nepali surveyor will collect measurement this month along the country ’s southern plains , where they plan to calculate ocean level . A squad of Sherpas are also being trained to bestow a GPS receiver to the summit . The toll to measure the mountain is estimated at $ 250,000 . ”

This military post earlier appeared on Quora . Clickhereto position .