The Himalayan peak is growing faster than it should be, thanks to both erosion and pressure from below Earth’s surface.
Mount Everest has grown up to 164ft taller because of the combined forces of erosion and upward pressure from beneath Earth’s crust, researchers have said. Experts say that a nearby river is cutting into the landscape around the mountain, eroding away a large amount of rocks and soil.
This process is causes a section of Earth’s crust to float upwards because the intense pressure below is greater than the downward force of gravity.
Erosion from a river network about 46 miles from the mountain is carving away a substantial gorge, causing it to rise up by as much as two millimetres a year over the past 89,000 years.
Adam Smith, the study’s co-author and a PhD student at UCL Earth Sciences in London, said: “Mount Everest is a remarkable mountain of myth and legend and it’s still growing. Our research shows that as the nearby river system cuts deeper, the loss of material is causing the mountain to spring further upwards.”
Dr Xu Han, the lead author, from China University of Geosciences, said: “The changing height of Mount Everest really highlights the dynamic nature of the Earth’s surface. The interaction between the erosion of the Arun river and the upward pressure of the Earth’s mantle gives Mount Everest a boost, pushing it up higher than it would otherwise be.”
The tallest mountain on Earth, Mount Everest is 29,000ft high and towers about 820ft above the next tallest peak in the Himalayas.