The Tibetan name, Qomolangma means "goddess." At an altitude of 29,035 feet, it is the highest mountain in the world. Sometimes people mention it together with the North and South poles, referring to it as "the Third Pole of the Earth."

Qomolangma is located in the midsection of the Himalayas, directly south of Tingri County in Shi-gatse. Originally this area was a vast ocean. It was not until the middle of the Miocene Epoch, when the Himalayan orogeny started, that the moun­tain gradually rose from the ocean bottom and fi­nally became the highest peak on earth. Today, this mountain formation is still at work, which means Mount Qomolangma will keep getting higher and higher.

The Qomolangma region is dotted with five mountains higher than 26,250 feet and 38 mountains higher than 23,000 feet. The moun-taintop is covered with ice and snow year-round, and in some places the ice can be more than 300 feet thick. Climate here is divided into the dry season and the wet season. During the dry season, the west-wind belt takes control and little or no precipitation can be expected on the north ridge of the mountain. But during the wet season, the southwest monsoon from the Indian Ocean brings a great deal of snow to this region.

As the apex of the world, Mount Qomolangma is also blessed with many natural wonders. When the sun shines on the moun­tain, the peak looks like a white pyramid miracu­lously transformed by the goddess. More often than not, the thick, freely mov­ing clouds and banks of fog, appearing like flags waving from their mast, shroud the peak. This peculiar phenomenon is known as "Flag Cloud." An additional natural wonder found here is the ice of bright glaciers, which forms itself into vari­ous shapes such as bridges and pagodas. You can also find miles of efflorescent rock formations here, for example, stalagmites, ste­lae, and stone swords and pagodas. The Sherpas and hikers refer to this high-altitude splendor as "the Largest Park on the High Mountain."

As one of the national nature reserves in China, the Qomolangma region is home to numerous spe­cies of animals and plants, among which the snow leopard and sandalwood are two of the most precious.

The magnificent landscape and natural wonders of the Qomolangma region have long attracted mountain climbers and trekkers, explorers, and scientists from all over the world. Since the beginning of the nineteenth century, climbers from around the world have planned to climb this mountain. How­ever, two weather conditions are required for climbing Qo­molangma: the wind speed should be less than 65.6 feet per second at an altitude of 26,247 to 29,528 feet, and there should be very little or no precipitation. Only three months in the whole year meet these require­ments: May (the best time for mountain climbing), September, and October.

At the foot of Mount Qo­molangma lies Rongbuk Monastery, the highest temple in the world at 16,404 feet. About 16 miles from Qomolangma, this is the best place from which to appreciate the mountain scenery. Rong­buk Glacier in this area is also the largest among all the glaciers here.