Advance group to Mount Qomolangma sets off

Advance group to Mount Qomolangma sets off

A group of 29 researchers and mountaineers set off for the peak of Mount Qomolangma Saturday morning from Lhasa, capital city of the Tibet Autonomous Region.

They will make preparations for re-measuring the peak, the world's highest. Other members of the expedition are scheduled to leave Lhasa on March 25.

A Chinese measurement in 1975 showed that the snow-covered mountain was 8,841.13 meters in height.

With the change of climate and environment, it is believed that the mountain may grow 10 millimeters each year from the original height in 1975.

Kang Shichang, captain of the expedition, said in early March that the re-survey of the region will help understand the mountain's reaction to global climate change.

This year marks the 30th anniversary of the ascent by a joint expedition of Chinese and Japanese women mountaineers. Women mountaineers from the two countries will scale the mountain again to mark the anniversary.

The expedition is organized by the Chinese Academy of Sciences,the State Bureau of Surveying and Mapping, and the regional government of Tibet.