Gasherbrum IV
Encyclopedia
Gasherbrum IV is the 17th highest mountain on Earth
and the 6th highest in Pakistan
. It is one of the peaks in the Gasherbrum
massif.
The Gasherbrum
s are a remote group of peaks
located at the northeastern end of the Baltoro Glacier
in the Karakoram
range of the Himalaya. The massif
contains three of the world's 8,000 metre peaks
(if one includes Broad Peak
). Gasherbrum is often claimed to mean "Shining Wall", presumably a reference to the highly visible west face of Gasherbrum IV; but in fact, it comes from "rgasha" (beautiful) and "brum" (mountain) in Balti, hence it actually means "beautiful mountain."
Earth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun, and the densest and fifth-largest of the eight planets in the Solar System. It is also the largest of the Solar System's four terrestrial planets...
and the 6th highest in Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
. It is one of the peaks in the Gasherbrum
Gasherbrum
Gasherbrum is a remote group of peaks located at the northeastern end of the Baltoro Glacier in the Karakoram range of the Himalaya on the border of the Chinese Shaksgam Valley and the Gilgit-Baltistan territory of Pakistan. The massif contains three of the world's 8,000 metre peaks...
massif.
The Gasherbrum
Gasherbrum
Gasherbrum is a remote group of peaks located at the northeastern end of the Baltoro Glacier in the Karakoram range of the Himalaya on the border of the Chinese Shaksgam Valley and the Gilgit-Baltistan territory of Pakistan. The massif contains three of the world's 8,000 metre peaks...
s are a remote group of peaks
Mountain
Image:Himalaya_annotated.jpg|thumb|right|The Himalayan mountain range with Mount Everestrect 58 14 160 49 Chomo Lonzorect 200 28 335 52 Makalurect 378 24 566 45 Mount Everestrect 188 581 920 656 Tibetan Plateaurect 250 406 340 427 Rong River...
located at the northeastern end of the Baltoro Glacier
Baltoro Glacier
The Baltoro Glacier, at 62 kilometers long, is one of the longest glaciers outside the polar regions. It is located in Baltistan, in the Gilgit-Baltistan region of Pakistan, and runs through part of the Karakoram mountain range. The Baltoro Muztagh lies to the north and east of the glacier, while...
in the Karakoram
Karakoram
The Karakoram, or Karakorum , is a large mountain range spanning the borders between Pakistan, India and China, located in the regions of Gilgit-Baltistan , Ladakh , and Xinjiang region,...
range of the Himalaya. The massif
Massif
In geology, a massif is a section of a planet's crust that is demarcated by faults or flexures. In the movement of the crust, a massif tends to retain its internal structure while being displaced as a whole...
contains three of the world's 8,000 metre peaks
Eight-thousander
The eight-thousanders are the fourteen independent mountains on Earth that are more than high above sea level. They are all located in the Himalayan and Karakoram mountain ranges in Asia....
(if one includes Broad Peak
Broad Peak
Broad Peak , is the 12th highest mountain on Earth, with an elevation of 8,051 meters . The literal translation of "Broad Peak" to Faichan Kangri is not accepted among the Balti people.- Geography :...
). Gasherbrum is often claimed to mean "Shining Wall", presumably a reference to the highly visible west face of Gasherbrum IV; but in fact, it comes from "rgasha" (beautiful) and "brum" (mountain) in Balti, hence it actually means "beautiful mountain."
Notable ascents and attempts
- 1958 First ascent by Walter BonattiWalter BonattiWalter Bonatti was an Italian mountain climber. He is noted for a solo climb of a new route on the south-west pillar of the Aiguille du Dru in August 1955 and the first solo winter ascent of the Matterhorn north face in 1965.-Life and career:Bonatti was born in Bergamo...
and Carlo MauriCarlo MauriCarlo Mauri was an Italian mountaineer and explorer.Mauri was born in Lecco. Among his early climbs in the Alps two stand out: the first winter ascent of the via Comici route on the northern face of Cima Grande di Lavaredo; and the first solitary ascent of the Poire of Mont Blanc.Numerous...
by the Northeast Ridge on an Italian expedition led by Riccardo CassinRiccardo CassinRiccardo Cassin was an Italian mountaineer, developer of mountaineering equipment and author.-Life:Born at San Vito al Tagliamento, Friuli, Cassin was one of the leading mountaineers of the inter-war period; in all, Cassin made a total of 2,500 ascents, of which over 100 were first ascents...
. - 1985 First ascent of the 10000 ft (3,048 m) high West face by Robert Schauer (Austria) and Wojciech KurtykaWojciech KurtykaWojciech Kurtyka is a Polish mountaineer and rock climber, one of the pioneers of the alpine style of climbing the biggest walls in the Greater Ranges....
(Poland). However, bad weather and extreme exhaustion forced them to stop at the north summit, missing the true summit. - 1986 First ascent of the Northwest ridge by Greg ChildGreg ChildGreg Child is an Australian-born rock climber, mountaineer, author and filmmaker.He is a writer for "Outside magazine" and has authored several books: "Thin Air: Encounters in the Himalayas", "Mixed Emotions: Mountaineering Writings of Greg Child", "Postcards from the Ledge", "Over the Edge" and...
, Tim Macartney-SnapeTim Macartney-SnapeTim Macartney-Snape is a mountaineer and author. On 3 October 1984 Macartney-Snape and Greg Mortimer were the first Australians to reach the summit of Mount Everest. They reached the summit, climbing without supplementary oxygen, via a new route on the North Face...
and Tom Hargis. This was the second ascent of Gasherbrum IV. - 1997 First ascent of the Central Spur of the west face by a Korean team (a different line). Bang Jung-ho, Kim Tong-kwan and Yoo Huk-jae reached the summit after a sieged ascent quoted as 5.10 A3.
- 1999 Second ascent of the Northwest ridge by Kang Yeon-ryong and Yun Chi-won, part of a 13-member Korean team.
- 2008 Third ascent of the Northwest Ridge by a Spanish team composed of Alberto Iñurrategi, Juan Vallejo, José Carlos Tamayo, Mikel Zabalza, and Ferran Latorre The team did not get to the main summit, but stopped at a minor peak a short distance from the true summit.