Death on Everest

Climbing Mt. Everest is not a task to be undertaken lightly. People die attempting to reach the top of the world every year. However, 1996 was a particularly deadly year for climbing, and it was immortalized in several books and a made for TV movie.

The most famous of the books is probably Jon Krakauer's book
Into Thin Air . Krakauer is a climber as well as a writer of non-fiction books and outdoorsman magazine articles. He was commisioned by Outside magazine to chronicle his attempt to reach the peak. He happened to be there during the most deadly season in Everest climbing history, when 8 people, including 2 experienced climbers (who were paid guides) died in a sudden blizzard.




This was not the only book about this tragedy. Coincidently, an IMAX crew, lead by director David Breashears, was filiming the famous IMAX movie about the mountain. Not only were they involved in filming, but they were also instrumental in helping to organize the rescue efforts. Breashears wrote about the trip in his book Everest, Mountain Without Mercy.

Other guides who survived have a website that is interesting to read. I'm also reposting the NOVA website, because it has a lot of cool information on it, including information about what it is like to climb at high altitudes.

Part of the issue that year was the large number of relatively inexperienced climbers - hobby climbers who were wealthy enough to pay the $50, ooo to have an expert help get them to the "top of the world." When you shell out that kind of money, or take that kind of money to provide the service, disappointment is not always seen as an option.

Everest is someplace I would like to see - if someone paid for me to take a trip to the base camp I would go in a heartbeat. However, I doubt I would make an attempt for the summit - it's too dangerous, and even if I were to get in tip-top shape, I'm still not an experienced enough ice-climber.

What do you think? Would you pay that kind of money for a once in a lifetime trip? At what point would you head back? Is the adventure worth risking your life?

Puggles and Pandas - for real this time (also, Death on Everest)

OK, OK - enough with the hassling on updating the posts - I thought about updating yesterday, but only two people posted on my very long and multi-subjected post, so I figured there was still plenty for y'all to talk about!

First, puggles...

Well, I have a dog, Pippi, who is half black lab and half basset hound. She is a great dog, but she doesn't cuddle. I used to have a dog that cuddled (Pepper, half terrier, half daschund), but she died a couple years ago. So, we're looking for a new dog. I came across "puggles" which are a mixed breed (or cross breed or hybrid - pick your name) of beagles and pugs. They are completely adorable, and I want one!

Now, in the course of my searching, I also discovered that "puggle" is the term for a baby echnida, (but not platypus - it is a common and oft reported error).

Weird looking...




I wanted to repost the panda cam site because the panda is growing big and is still adorable. Don't forget to check out the www.ajc.com site as well - it has exclusive video and pictures that can opnly be seen there.

Puggles and Pandas (and more...oh, my!)

You're right, Hilda - it is time to update the blog...

First - addressing some comments and questions:

Loren wrote about the show on Discovery Channel about a "supervolcano" - it's been on before, but it replayed over the weekend. Basically, the show is about what would happen if the magma chamber beneath Yellowstone National Park erupted. It has erupted in the past, with three eruptions 2.1 million years ago, 1.3 millon years ago, and the most recent such eruption 640,000 years ago.

Read more about the show, and play with the interactive eruptions here.

Hilda asked about using carbon-14 dating to date the remains and ruins at Pompeii - well, they don't need to date them, because we know from historical records when the volcano erupted: August 24, 79 AD. However, because we know the date, we can test dating methods on those remains - for example, potassium-argon dating was found to be more reliable than previously thought be testing it on Pompeii remains (read more here).

Sarah - not a silly question, but it's Fiji Water, not Fuji. however, there is a water treatment company called Fuji, as Fujiyoshida Water, from a "naturally filtered volcanic spring" that is available in Japan.

Loren wrote that it would be weird to climb a mountain and possibly see the bodies of climbers who had died. Well, there is a very famous incident about this very thing. George Mallory was a very famous British climber who may have been the first to reach the peak of Mt. Everest (the tallest continental mountain, but not a volcano). We don't know if he made it, because he died - we don't know if he dies on the way up or the way down.

In 1999, an expedition climbed Everest following his path (on the North face - most routes today use the South face). Unexpectedly, they found his body. There was a great book, called The Ghosts of Everest written about the expedition, and an episode of NOVA. Check out NOVA's site here for some cool mountain climbing info.

Will, they can use different types of radioactive dating to date eruptions. Radioactive dating of rock only works on igneous rock, which is what lava and magma becaome when they cool. They take core samples, where they drill into the rock, and date the layers - so it's not too different from tree ring dating. Tree rings and other non-rock information can also provide clues about eruptions.

Tommy - congratulations on becoming a big brother!

Mt. Everest is the highest peak on the planet, 8,850 M or 29,035 feet and that's above sea level. However, if you measure the Big Island of Hawaii (Mauna Kea) from its base on the sea floor, to its peak, it's nearly 33,000 feet (estimates differ slightly). Everest was originally measured using triangulation methods and a lot of math. Now we can use satellites, which is how Mauna Kea was measured.

Even so, there is still a little debate and remeasuring as tools and techniques improve. As far as we can tell, Everest is rising - as the Indian plate continues crashing into the Asian plate, it moves upward. Mauna Kea is sinking - its weight is pulling it down.

Last, but not least - Gabriel and Hilda - I do use YouTube, but the Google search bar comes up automatically on my computer, and so I go there first out of habit (and laziness, ha ha). Since Google is buying YouTube, it'll all be the same soon, anyway!

Oh - I forgot about the puggles and pandas - I'll get to them tomorrow...

Big Island Hawaii - Volcano, Maui, Hawaii

Mauna Kea, a dormant volcano, when measured to its sea base, is the highest island mountains in the world. If Mauna Kea's height (13796') is measured from its base (18,000 feet below sea level), it surpasses even Mount Everest, and is the world's highest mountain (31,796). Geologic evidence suggests that the volcano last erupted around 1650. Legend says Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa were the domains of two opposing goddesses, Poliahu and Pele respectively. Earthquakes and volcanic eruptions were produced from their violent rivalry.

My Favorite Volcanoes - Some of Them, Anyway...(Part 1)

This is a picture of lava flowing from one of the two active volcanoes that make up the "Big Island" of Hawaii. Hawaii was formed at a "hot spot" on the Pacific seafloor, which formed when magam pushed through a weak spot in the crust and created the islands. As the seafloor moved over the hotspots, new islands were formed.
There is a new island forming now, called the Loihi Seamount.

It may not look like much, but it'll be paradise in a few thousand years!



This is a picture of beautiful Mt. Fuji - thought by many to be one of the most beautiful mountains in the world. It is located in Japan, and plays a big part in the art and culture of that country. Many people climb to the summit each year - one of the oldest was 70 years old!



Finally, my favorite volcano would probably be Mt. Vesuvius. Its violent history and the destruction of the cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum have always fascinated me.
These are the casts created when plaster was formed into the empty cavities left by Vesuvius' victime of the 79 A.D. eruption.

If you want to learn more, one of the best sites on the web is Volcano World.

Earthquake in Hawaii

The island state of Hawaii experienced an earthquake on Sunday. Usually the type of earthquake that occurs in Hawaii is different than the type that occurs in California. California's are tectonic - that means they happen due to shifts in the Earth's crustal, or tectonic, plates. Hawaii's are usually magmatic, or due to magma moving beneath the volcano. Sometimes the stress of a growing volcano can trigger bigger earthquakes that are tectonic like the one on Sunday. Read more and try out the interactive link here.

Volcanoes have played an important part in human history. many people find them fascinating, even if they are dangerous. One of my dreams is to visit the Volcanoes of Hawaii - have you ever been there or to another volcano? What was it like? If you could visit a volcano, would you? Which one would you go to, if you did? What is your favorite volcano?

Brainiac: Alkali Metals

What happens when alkali metals come into contact with water?