K2

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{{Infobox Mountain | Name = K2 | Photo = K2-big.jpg | Caption =K2 in Summer | Elevation = 8,611 metres (28,251 feet)
Ranked 2nd (1st in Pakistan) | Location = Taxkorgan Tajik Autonomous County, Xinjiang, China/Northern Areas of Pakistan (part of Pakistan Occupied Kashmir according to Indian position) | Range = Karakoram | Prominence = 4,017 m Ranked 22nd | Coordinates = Template:Coor dm | First ascent = July 31 1954 by Lacedelli & Compagnoni | Easiest route = rock/snow/ice climb }}

For other uses, see K2 (disambiguation).

K2 is the second highest mountain on Earth, located in the Karakoram segment of the Himalayan range. Standing at 8,611 metres, K2 takes second place only to Mount Everest.

The summit of K2 forms part of the Taxkorgan Tajik Autonomous County of Xinjiang, China, and borders the Northern Areas of Pakistan (part of Pakistan Occupied Kashmir according to the Indian position).

The Chinese authorities officially refer to K2 as Qogir; Chinese: 乔戈里峰, Pinyin: Qiáogēlǐ Fēng; other names include Mount Godwin-Austen, Lambha Pahar, Chogori, Kechu and Dapsang.

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Location

The general area of K2 lies in the region of Gilgit-Baltistan in Pakistan.

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History

The mountain was first surveyed by a European survey team in 1856 headed by Henry Haversham Godwin-Austen. Thomas Montgomerie was the member of the team who designated it "K2" for the second peak of the Karakoram range. The other peaks were originally named K1, K3, K4 and K5, but were eventually renamed Masherbrum, Broad Peak, Gasherbrum II and Gasherbrum I respectively.

Although the summit of Everest is at a higher altitude, the summit of K2 is considered a more difficult climb, due in part to its comparatively greater height above surrounding terrain. As of June 2000, only 189 people have completed the ascent, compared with almost 1,900 individuals who have ascended the more popular target of Everest. 49 people have died attempting the climb; 13 climbers from several expeditions died in 1986 in the K2 Tragedy during a severe storm.

The first professional attempt to climb it was organized and undertaken in 1902 by Oscar Eckerstein and Aleister Crowley, but after five serious and costly attempts, no member of the team actually reached the summit, probably due to questionable physical training.

An Italian expedition finally succeeded in ascending to the summit of K2 on July 31, 1954. The expedition was led by Ardito Desio, although the two climbers who actually reached the top were Lino Lacedelli and Achille Compagnoni. The team included a Pakistani member, Colonel Muhammad Ata-ullah. He had been a part of an earlier 1953 American expedition which failed to make the summit because of a storm which killed a key climber, Art Gilkey.

In 1977, 23 years after the Italian expedition, Ichiro Yoshizaw led the second successful ascent to the top. The Japanese expedition ascended through the Abruzzi Spur route traced by the Italians, and used more than 1500 porters to achieve the goal.

Legend says that K2 "carries a curse" on women. The first woman to reach the summit was Wanda Rutkiewicz in 1986. The next five women to reach the summit are all deceased—three of them died on the way down. Rutkiewicz herself died on Kangchenjunga in 1992.

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Movies about K2

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Books about K2

Ascent of K2 Second Highest Peak in the World by Ardito Desio
K2: Triumph and Tragedy by Jim Curran, ISBN 0395485908
K2: The Story of the Savage Mountain by Jim Curran, ISBN 0898866839
K2: The Savage Mountain by Charles Houston, ISBN 1885283016
K2: Quest of the Gods by Ralph Ellis, ISBN 0932813992
The Last Step: The American Ascent of K2 by Rick Ridgeway, ISBN 0898866324
K2: One Woman's Quest for the Summit by Heidi Hawkins, ISBN 0792279964
The Endless Knot: K2, Mountain of Dreams and Destiny by Kurt Diemberger, ISBN 0898863007
K2 Kahani by Mustansar Hussain Tarrad, In Urdu

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External links

Template:Commons

How high is K2 really? -- Measurements in 1996 gave 8614.27±0.6 m a.m.s.l
K2climb.net
The Mountain Areas Conservancy Project
The climbing history of K2 from the first attempt in 1902 until the Italian success in 1954.
China Peak Exploration Team to challenge Mt. Qogir
Outside Online: The K2 Tragedy
Kelly Cheng's photos from K2

Eight-thousander series
Everest \| K2 \| Kanchenjunga \| Lhotse \| Makalu \| Cho Oyu \| Dhaulagiri \| Manaslu \| Nanga Parbat \| Annapurna \| Gasherbrum I \| Broad Peak \| Gasherbrum II \| Shishapangma