Activities carried out by the second Tibetan scientific expedition team in conjunction with the Tibetan mountaineering team
"Peak mission" Everest scientific research is the second joint expedition of Qinghai Tibet scientific research teamsTibetActivities carried out by the mountaineering team.
On May 4, 2022, the "Summit Mission 2022" Everest successfully reached 8848.86 meters[10]；Successfully built the world's highestautomatic weather station[11]。
Qinghai Tibet PlateauIt is the roof of the world, the water tower of Asia, and the third pole of the earth.Since the 1950s, China has carried out more than six scientific research activities on Mount Everest, including the first large-scale comprehensive scientific research on the Qinghai Tibet Plateau in the 1970s.
On August 19, 2017, China launched the second comprehensive scientific expedition on the Qinghai Tibet Plateau, involving ten major scientific missions.[22]
2022
On April 28, 2022, the "peak mission" of Everest scientific research was launched in an all-round way. A total of more than 270 members of 16 scientific research teams from 5 scientific research teams participated in the scientific research. This is the most comprehensive scientific research since the second Qinghai Tibet scientific research in 2017, which covers the widest range of disciplines, has the most members participating in scientific research, and uses the most advanced instruments and equipment,It is a great feat for human beings to carry out comprehensive scientific investigation and research at extremely high altitude in Mount Everest area.[1-2][7][9]
On May 1, 2022, the Everest atmospheric and human health scientific research team will explore the impact of altitude response on human body with their own bodies as experimental objects in the Everest mountaineering base camp at an altitude of 5200 meters.This is one of the important projects of the second scientific expedition to the Qinghai Tibet Plateau, the "Summit Mission - Comprehensive Scientific Expedition and Research in the Extremely High Altitude Region of Mount Everest".In order to obtain first-hand data, members of the scientific research team wore sensors to measure blood oxygen and ECG monitoring, and walked back and forth between the Everest mountaineering camp and Rongbu Glacier.Scientific research team members should collect their own blood samples, urine samples, saliva, feces and other samples, and also measure blood pressure, monitor pulse wave conduction velocity, to provide sample support for subsequent research.[2]
On May 3, 2022, 13 members of the scientific research team set out for the assault camp at an altitude of 8300 meters, and will launch an attack on the top of the world on the 4th.[3]
At about 19:00 on May 3, 2022, 13 scientific research members of the "Summit Mission" Everest scientific research team have arrived at the 8300m assault camp.[4]
On May 4, 2022, the "peak mission" of Everest scientific research will open the "peak moment".The 12 members of the scientific research team will work together with the headquarters in front of the Everest Base Camp at the summit to complete the most critical and challenging scientific research task at the summit.Including the erection of the world's highest automatic weather station at 8800 meters above sea level;It is the first time to use high-precision radar on the top of the earth to measure the thickness of ice and snow, collect ice and snow samples, and experiment the adaptation mechanism of human body at very high altitude.[6][11]
At 3:00 a.m. on May 4, 2022, due to frostbite on the hands of one scientific expedition climber, he stayed at 8300 meters above sea level. The other 12 scientific expedition climbers have set out from the 8300 meters above sea level raid camp. It is estimated that they will arrive at 8800 meters at about 9:00 a.m. to set up a weather station and carry out a series of scientific missions.The team members are in good health. They will also carry out comprehensive scientific research tasks such as radar measurement of ice thickness and collection of ice and snow samples at the peak.[5-6]
On May 4, 2022, the headquarters in front of the Everest Base Camp reported that five of the 13 scientific research team members had arrived at the Everest 8800 meters above sea level and were about to set up a weather station.[8]
At about 12:46 on May 4, 2022, a set of automatic weather observation stations was successfully erected at 8830 meters above sea level on the northern slope of Mount Everest, and real-time data was returned to normal.This is the highest automatic weather station in the world.[14]
At 12:52 on May 4, 2022 (updated), the "Summit Mission 2022" Everest scientific expedition successfully reached the summit of 8848.86 meters, and the scientific expedition climbers carried out a number of scientific missions on the summit.[10]
On May 5, 2022, the members of the scientific research team of Mount Everest safely withdrew to the base camp of Mount Everest at an altitude of 5200 meters. The members were in good health.[13]
At 20:30 on May 8, 2022, three ice and snow samples from the top of Mount Everest and six ice and snow samples from 7028 meters above sea level were successfully transported to Lhasa, and the collection of ice and snow samples from the top of Mount Everest was completed.[15]
On May 11, 2022, in the Everest base camp at an altitude of 5200 meters, the Everest Air and Human Health Scientific Research Team released the ozone sounding balloon independently developed by national scientific researchers for the first time, obtained the ozone concentration information from the ground to 10000 meters high, and accumulated the first batch of precious data to decrypt the major scientific problem of how the Qinghai Tibet Plateau affects the atmospheric self purification ability.[16]
At 1:26 a.m. on May 15, 2022, China's self-developed "Jimu No. 1" Type III airship successfully lifted off from the scientific research camp at an altitude of 4300 meters, rising at an average speed of 30 meters per minute. At 4:26 a.m., it lifted off more than 9000 meters, and at 4:40 a.m., it reached 9032 meters, exceeding the height of 8848.86 meters on Mount Everest, creating a world record for scientific observation of aerostat atmosphere.[17]
In May 2022, China's self-developed "Jimu No. 1" Type III airship has successfully completed 10 scientific atmospheric observations, with the highest altitude of 9050 meters, surpassing Mount Everest, creating a world record for the highest altitude of scientific atmospheric observation in situ by an airship.[18]
Since the end of April, 170 scientific research team members from 13 scientific research teams of 5 scientific research teams have focused on water, ecology and human activities to carry out a number of scientific research in Mount Everest and its surrounding areas.[24]
At 3:03 a.m. on May 23, 2023, the 2023 "Summit Mission" Everest scientific research team headed by 11 people set out from the 8300 meter high scientific research assault camp to reach the summit.They will complete the core tasks of upgrading the automatic weather station technology and collecting snow and ice samples on the top of Mount Everest.[20]
On the morning of May 23, 2023, the 2023 "Peak Mission" Everest scientific expedition climbers successfully climbed the summit, paying tribute to the 70th anniversary of the first human climb to Everest[23]。At 11:54, the world's highest automatic weather station at 8830 meters above sea level successfully upgraded its technology, and at 12:20, the data was successfully transmitted to the Everest base camp at 5200 meters above sea level through the weather station.[21]At about 12:30, all the scientific research team members successfully climbed to the top of Mount Everest, 8848.86 meters above sea level, and collected snow and ice samples for observation and research of atmospheric pollutants, especially new pollutants.[24]
On May 23, the top climbers of the 2023 Everest scientific expedition were rushing to the top
Yao Tandong, leader of the second Qinghai Tibet Plateau Comprehensive Scientific Investigation Team, on-site commander in chief and academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences[9]
More than 270 scientific research members from 16 scientific research teams of 5 scientific research teams, including westerly monsoon synergy, Asian water tower change, ecosystem and biodiversity, human activity change, and geodynamic survey, participated in the scientific research[1]。
The scientific examination was led by strategic scientists in relevant fields, and more than 170 members from 13 scientific research teams of 5 scientific research teams participated in the scientific examination.[21]
This scientific expedition on Mount Everest will, for the first time, apply advanced technologies, methods and means, and focus on major scientific issues such as westerly monsoon synergy, changes in the Asian water tower, ecosystems and biodiversity, and human activities, to jointly investigate and study the vertical change characteristics and interaction mechanism of the six major circles in the Mount Everest area, and reveal the law of environmental change in the extremely high altitude area of Mount Everest under the background of climate warmingThe change characteristics of greenhouse gas concentration, the carbon sink function of the ecosystem, and the adaptation characteristics of human beings to extreme environments have realized a new breakthrough in the scientific research of the earth system, and put forward an innovative scientific plan for the natural protection of Mount Everest.[1]
The scientific research team will also track the people who are active at the altitude of 5200 meters, 5800 meters, 6350 meters and 8848 meters, and carry out scientific research on human health effects of high-altitude hypoxia.In addition, the Everest Air and Human Health Research Team led by Zhu Tong will also conduct in-depth research on the vertical exchange process of pollutants such as nitrogen oxide flux and ozone on the ice and snow surface.[2]
The summit was a part of the whole scientific research activity on Mount Everest, and the team members successfully completed the relevant scientific research tasks.In addition to setting up a high-altitude gradient meteorological observation station, the scientific research team also used high-precision radar to measure the ice and snow thickness at the peak and collect ice and snow samples and atmospheric samples at the "top of the earth" for the first time.The team members also used their high-precision ground penetrating radar to measure the whole Rongbu Glacier on Mount Everest.[14]
"In addition to measuring the thickness of ice and snow on the top of Mount Everest, snow samples on the top of the peak will also be collected. We also want to know what ingredients are in the snow at the highest altitude," Wu Guangjian, a researcher at the Qinghai Tibet Plateau Research Institute of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, told the media.[14]
Important mission
Erect the highest automatic weather station in the world
An important mission of this round of scientific research on Mount Everest is to build eight weather stations from 5200 meters to 8800 meters above sea level, four of which are above 7000 meters above sea level.After the 8800 meter meteorological station is successfully erected, it will be the highest automatic meteorological station in the world.
The eight automatic weather stations with different gradients mainly monitor the changes of temperature, relative humidity, wind direction, wind speed, pressure, radiation and other parameters in the Everest region, and can realize real-time remote transmission of data.
On April 20, 2022, 14 scientific expedition mountaineers overcame the difficulties of force 8 gales and extreme hypoxia, and set up an extremely high altitude automatic weather station at 7790 meters above sea level, setting a record for the highest altitude of automatic weather stations in China.Six hours later, 14 members of the scientific research team successfully set up the same type of automatic weather station at 8300 meters, which again broke the altitude record of automatic weather stations in China.[12]
Difficulties in scientific examination
As we all know, climbing Mount Everest is a very challenging behavior.Climbers have to face a series of difficult problems such as high cold and lack of oxygen.So, how do these automatic weather stations get there?
"Some equipment and instruments are fragile, so they must be carefully protected and carried by the team members themselves. Some are not fragile, but are carried by yaks to 6500 meters, and then transported manually from 6500 meters up." Zhaxi Pingcuo, deputy leader of the "Summit Mission" Everest scientific research team, told the media.
Although the total weight of automatic weather stations at 8300 meters and 8830 meters above sea level is 50 kg, 20 kg lighter than that of conventional weather stations at low altitude, it is not easy to transport these weather station equipment to 8300 meters.
Starting from Qianjin camp at an altitude of 6500 meters to Bei'ao camp at an altitude of 7028 meters, it will take nearly 7 hours for the team members, while it will take more time and physical strength to load to an altitude of 8830 meters.Zhao Huabiao, a researcher at the Qinghai Tibet Plateau Research Institute of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, said that the entire equipment was split and handed over to the mountaineers, who would each bear a weight of no more than 7 kilograms.[14]
Meteorological support
In order to ensure the smooth completion of various scientific research tasks on Mount Everest and the safe ascent of the team members, the Everest scientific research has launched a meteorological guarantee mechanism, which is jointly carried out by the Qinghai Tibet Plateau Research Institute of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the Chinese Academy of Meteorological Sciences, the Tibet Autonomous Region Meteorological Bureau and other units.Erect high altitude detection equipment, debug instruments, inflate balloons, release balloons, collect high altitude data, produce and release special service reports... After arriving at the Everest Base Camp, the meteorological support service team will follow the support service plan of "listening to the wind and observing the sky".
For example, the choice of climbing time depends on the weather conditions in the extremely high altitude area of Mount Everest in most cases.If the wind is particularly strong, danger is likely to occur.According to Ma Weiqiang, the head of the Everest Station of the Qinghai Tibet Plateau Research Institute of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the recent temperature on the top of Mount Everest is about - 25 ℃, and the wind speed is equivalent to about Grade VII."Through comprehensive research, it is judged that the atmospheric circulation in Mount Everest is relatively stable in the near future, and the wind and temperature on the top of Mount Everest are suitable for climbing."[14]
research findings
Announce
edit
On July 12, 2022, the Summit Mission - Everest Scientific Research Academic Exchange Conference was held. In April 2022, the country launched the "Summit Mission 2022 - Everest High Altitude Area Comprehensive Scientific Investigation and Research", focusing on the environmental changes in the Everest area, and conducting an all-round investigation from the atmosphere, water, ecology, surface processes and other aspects. The scientific research activity has achieved seven research results.
The seven major research achievements of the investigation team include: monitoring and discovering the vertical distribution of wind speed in the Everest region in terms of revealing the westerly monsoon synergy and impact in the Everest region;In terms of the intense temperature rise at the peak altitude, the monitoring found the temperature change law and characteristics at the altitude of 4000~8000 meters in the Everest area;In terms of ice and snow melting at the peak altitude, the survey team used the profile measurement method to start measuring along the exposed bedrock and gradually measure to the top of Mount Everest's ice and snow. This method obtained high-quality ice and snow thickness gradient profiles. Compared with the previous single point measurement method at the top, the data is easier to interpret;In terms of scientific research on water vapor and greenhouse gases in the Everest region, the team used various high-tech platforms such as the "Jimu No.1" III floating boat observation platform to achieve simultaneous real-time observation of stable isotopes of water vapor, black carbon, dust, methane, carbon dioxide and wind temperature and humidity from the surface to 9050 meters above sea level, and obtained preliminary results of methane concentration observation in Lhasa Everest region;The investigation team discovered the strong atmospheric oxidation process in the Mount Everest area, and used various advanced technologies to obtain a large number of atmospheric ozone concentration data for the first time, which confirmed the high ozone concentration in the Mount Everest area. Further analysis is expected to reveal that the vertical transport of high ozone concentration from the stratosphere in the Qinghai Tibet Plateau, or the horizontal transport of the westerly belt, plays a decisive role in the atmospheric oxidation of the plateau;In the research of human physiological adaptation to high mountains, the team observed the special physiological responses of human beings in Mount Everest area: after rushing into the plateau, there will be an increase in heart rate and a decrease in heart rate variability;In terms of land cover change in Mount Everest area under climate change, the team observed the ecological process of greening in Mount Everest area, and the vegetation coverage index of the whole area increased.[19]
In July 2023, it was learned from the second Qinghai Tibet scientific research team that the snow thickness on the top of Mount Everest was 9.5 (± 1.2) meters measured by the team using the radar profile measurement method.This measurement result will provide data support for the study of the extremely high altitude cryosphere and the dynamic changes of the lithosphere at the top of Mount Everest. Relevant achievements have been published in the international academic journal Cryosphere[25]。
