On smaller planets, such as Mars, mountains can reach heights twice as high as the highest point on our planet. The most adventurous consider it a must-visit location, even if the weather and other factors are not favourable. At 8,849 metres high, Everest is the highest mountain on planet Earth. At its summit, breathing becomes a real challenge, as does continuing to feel your limbs.
Although climbing the famous ‘eight-thousanders’ is a task that not everyone can accomplish, in fact, for the hypothetical inhabitants of other planets in the galaxy, it would be a fairly easy task. This is the case with our neighbour Mars, home to the highest mountain in the solar system. At over 22,000 metres high, Mount Olympus is about 2.5 times higher than Everest.
The highest mountain on a smaller planet?
A study conducted by Harvard University in the 1980s showed that although Everest is almost 9,000 metres high, it could reach 45,000 metres. On foot, this would be approximately the distance between the Madrid municipalities of Alcalá de Henares and Leganés. But why did the highest mountain on the planet only reach a fifth of its potential height? Haakon Fossen, professor of geology at the University of Bergen, explained to the Norwegian media that in mountains over 5,000 metres high, the pressure is so high that the rock can become plastic. As a result, they end up deforming and compressing very slowly.
‘High mountains form more easily during the first 15 to 20 million years after the collision (of tectonic plates),’ said Fossen. The expert pointed out in his statements that the effect of this settlement found its exceptions in both Everest and K2, which is why very few mountains are significantly higher than 5,000 metres.
