Mount Everest and Hillary Reading Ielts Answers and Questions

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IELTS reading passage – Mount Everest and Hillary

Mount Everest and Hillary

The highest mountain on Earth above sea level, Mount Everest, also referred as Sagarmartha (Goddess of the Sky), is 8,348 meters high. Mount Everest, which lies between Tibet as well as Nepal and was formed roughly 60 million years ago, attracts climbers of all expertise levels. Each mountaineer pays a significant sum of money to a knowledgeable guide to assist them in completing a successful climb. On the advice of Andrew Waugh, the British Surveyor General of India at the time, the Royal Geographic Society officially named Everest in English in 1865.

Everest attracted interest from people all over the world when it was formally recognized as the highest mountain in the world in 1852, and the concept of ascending all the way to the summit was considered the pinnacle achievement. When the government first opened its borders to outsiders in 1920, no one was able to climb Everest, and between 1920 and 1952, seven significant expeditions failed to reach Mount Everest’s summit. The mountain has indeed experienced hardship and failure in the past. The death rates have decreased from 37% in 1990 to 4% in 2004 because of improvements in climbing equipment over the past ten years or so and more skilled guides. Yet, 1996 was the year when Mount Everest saw the most fatalities, with 19 people losing their lives close to the top.

The first two climbers to reach the summit of Mount Everest perished there in 1924. Two British climbers, George Mallory and Andrew Irvine, made an effort to reach the top. Before clouds engulfed Everest and the guys vanished, they were last seen ascending the summit. Mallory’s body wasn’t discovered until 75 years later, in May 1999, and Irvine’s body hasn’t been located yet either. Although disagreements continue, there is still no proof that these two climbers reached the summit. Those who claim they were the first to do so point to two distinct events. First of all, Mallory’s daughter has consistently claimed that her father carried a picture of his wife with him and intended to leave it on the summit when he arrived. When the body was found, this photograph was not there. Second, Mallory’s snow goggles were discovered in his pocket when his body was discovered, proving that he passed away at night. This suggests that he and Irvine made a late-day push for the peak and were now descending. It is improbable that they would still be out by dusk if they hadn’t reached the summit given their known departure time and movements.

Along with Tenzing Norgay, Sir Edmund Hillary made the first ascent of this enormous mountain’s actual peak in 1953. The two ascended this formidable peak on May 29 of that year, spending a meager 15 minutes at the top of the globe. They conducted a quick, futile search for relics of the 1924 Mallory expedition before burying a crucifix and some chocolates there while documenting the momentous occasion with a few photos. There are only photos of Norgay on top of the peak, as Hillary had never used a camera, and a few more photos looking down the mountain, providing proof of their conquest and demonstrating that the ascent was genuine.

Sir Edmund Hillary turned to Antarctic exploration and oversaw the New Zealand portion of the Trans-Antarctic expedition from 1955 to 1958 after learning on June 2 that Norgay, a subject of the King of Nepal, had been awarded the George Medal by the UK and that he had been knighted in the Order of the British Empire. He participated in a mechanized mission to the South Pole in 1958. While Hillary continued to plan mountaineering excursions, his concern for the condition of the Nepalese people grew as the years went by. He returned to Nepal in the 1960s to help with the social upliftment of the country by constructing clinics, hospitals, and schools. Sir Edmund Hillary spent the most of his life, following his ascent of Everest, working with the Himalayan Trust to provide aid to the Nepalese Sherpa people.

Sir Edmund Hillary visited Antarctica in January 2007 to mark the 50th anniversary of the establishment of Scott Base. On January 18, 2007, he took a plane to the station with a delegation that also included the prime minister. While visiting Kathmandu on April 22, 2007, he reportedly fell and injured himself. He didn’t immediately seek medical attention, and there was no comment on the nature of his sickness. He went back to New Zealand and was taken to the hospital. Tragically, Sir Edmund Hillary passed away on January 11, 2008, from a heart attack. Hillary’s life was characterized by admirable accomplishments, generosity, significant discoveries, and excitement. He was a modest guy, nevertheless, and did not acknowledge being the first person to ascend Everest until far after 1386, long after Tenzing Norgay, his climbing partner, had passed away.

The Nepali couple Mona Mulepati and Pema Dorje Sherpa set the most recent record for climbing Mount Everest on May 30, 2005. They were the first couple to get married on top of Mount Everest, and they also set the most recent record for conquering Mount Everest.

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Mount Everest and Hillary Reading Questions

Questions 1- 6

Do the following statements agree with the information given in the reading passage? In boxes 1-6 on your answer sheet, write

TRUE if the statement is true
FALSE if the statement is false
NOT GIVEN if the information is not given in the passage.

Since 1990, the number of deaths that have occurred on Everest has been steadily decreasing.
There was traces of the Mallory expedition that Hillary discovered.
As a means of providing evidence of Hillary/Norgay’s ascent, photographs were shot from the peak.
Britain bestowed honor and glory upon both Hillary and Norgay in honour of their achievements.
Hillary was the first person to travel to the South Pole with a machine of any kind.
An incident that took place in Kathmandu is being investigated as a possible cause of Hillary’s death.

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Questions 7-12

Answer the questions below using NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER from the passage for each answer.

Write your answers in boxes 7-12 on your answer sheet.

7. Who was the first person to suggest that the mountain be referred to by the name Everest?
8. Which nation did not allow any explorers to climb Everest until the year 1920?
9. What has not been found or recovered as of yet?
10. What evidence of Mallory possibly reaching the summit was not discovered on his body?
11. Who was seen in the photos taken at the mountain’s summit?12. What did Hillary’s charitable organization go by?

Questions 13 & 14

Choose the correct option A, B, C or D. Sir Edmund Hillary participated in a mechanized mission to the South Pole in _____

1946
1950
1958
1974

14. The most recent record for conquering Mount Everest was set by

An Indian Couple
A Nepali couple
A Chinese Couple
None of the above

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