Image Credentials: Image Title: Today in History, May 29: Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay Reach the Summit of Mount Everest. Source: (chatgpt.com) Date: May 2026. Attribution: This image was created using AI-generated imagery (chatgpt.com) by Open Chronicle and does not depict a real-world scene.
By Open Chronicle with agencies
On May 29, 1953, mountaineers Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay achieved one of the greatest feats in exploration history when they became the first climbers confirmed to reach the summit of Mount Everest, the highest mountain on Earth.
Standing at 29,032 feet, or 8,849 metres above sea level, Mount Everest had long represented the ultimate challenge for explorers and climbers. Numerous expeditions during the early twentieth century had failed due to extreme weather, avalanches, technical difficulties, and the dangerous effects of high altitude.
The successful ascent came during a British expedition led by Colonel John Hunt. After weeks of preparation, difficult climbing, and several earlier attempts by other team members, Hillary and Tenzing made their final push toward the summit from a high camp on the southeastern ridge.
The climb tested the limits of human endurance. Oxygen levels near the summit are dramatically lower than at sea level, while temperatures can plunge far below freezing. The climbers faced steep ice slopes, exhaustion, and dangerous winds as they moved higher into what is often called the “death zone.”
One of the most famous sections of the ascent became known as the Hillary Step, a near-vertical rock face close to the summit that Hillary successfully climbed before the pair continued upward together.
At approximately 11:30 in the morning, the two men finally stood on the summit of the world’s tallest mountain. Tenzing Norgay reportedly buried sweets in the snow as an offering, while Hillary photographed his climbing partner at the peak. The historic achievement quickly became an international sensation.
News of the successful ascent reached the world on June 2, 1953, the same day as the coronation of Elizabeth II, further amplifying global attention on the expedition.
The accomplishment transformed both men into international icons. Edmund Hillary was later knighted, while Tenzing Norgay became one of the most celebrated Sherpa climbers in history.
More than seventy years later, the 1953 Everest expedition remains one of the defining moments in modern exploration and mountaineering history.