What's it look like at the summit of Mount Everest?

I found this super-cool panoramic view from the summit of Mount Everest (Chomolungma or Qomolangma in Tibetan meaning "Mother Goddess of the Universe", Sagarmatha in Nepalese meaning "Goddess of the Sky"). Click and drag to rotate the view. You can see the route up to the top by looking for the climbers in red gear and following the ridge (the Cornice traverse) back to the South Summit. Here's a picture from another expedition courtesy of Project Himalaya showing the summit.



Climbers usually spend less than half an hour at the summit, enough to take a picture or two, because of the need to descend to a lower camp before nightfall or before inclement weather sets in. People can only survive at these altitudes for two or three days. Click here to see a virtual ascent of Everest with video clips.

I first started getting interested in Everest when I read Jon Krakauer's amazing book Into Thin Air. Here's a picture of Mount Everest courtesy of the Sydney Morning Herald. Check out the plume of snow coming off the summit, Everest actually extends into the jet stream most of the year with gusts over 100 miles per hour.