This Day, That Year

Item from May 18, 1985, in China Daily: A Chinese expedition comprised entirely of Tibetans has reached the summit of the world’s sixthhighest mountain — Cho Oyu on the China-Nepal border — from the northern side. On their return, the mountaineers were greeted by colleagues at their base camp.

This year, more than 300 mountaineers from 30 countries will try to conquer some of the world’s highest peaks in the China-Nepal border region.

It is home to the world’s highest mountain, Qomolangma — known as Mount Everest in the West — which stands at 8,848 meters. The surrounding range also includes Cho Oyu at 8,201 m and Shishapangma at 8,012 m.

The conditions at the Qomolangma base camp have improved since it was connected to the regional power grid in 2014. Previously, the camp was powered by generators.

Last year, 696 climbers visited Tibet, according to Tibet Commercial News.

In December, a mountaineering team from China University of Geosciences became the first to independently climb the highest mountains on seven continents, and hike the South and North Pole.

It took them only four years and seven months to finish all of the extreme challenges, a world record.

In 2012, the team successfully reached the summit of Mount Qomolangma. In 2013, the team climbed Mount Elbrus, the highest peak in Europe, and in 2014, they successfully climbed Africa’s highest peak, Mount Kilimanjaro.