Mount McKinley Is Now 83 Feet Shorter


Mount McKinley is now 83 feet shorter.

But no, the mountain isn’t shrinking. Researchers just have better technology now and can get a more accurate read on North America’s tallest mountain.

According to the new report, Mount McKinley is about 83 feet shorter than previously thought.

CNN reports that the mountain was previously pegged at 20,320 feet but new data says that the mountain is only 20,237 feet tall.

Lt. Gov. Mead Treadwell said: “That’s 83 feet shorter than we thought.”

UPI reports that geologists measured Mount McKinley at 20,320 feet tall back in 1952 with the use of photogrammetry. The U.S. Geological Survey revised the height to 20,237 feet tall with the help of a statewide digital mapping initiative and a new radar system.

Mount McKinley may be 83 feet shorter now but that doesn’t matter much to climbers.

Climber Nick Parker told the Anchorage Daily News: “It’s still high, it’s still hard, it’s still cold. As long as it’s higher than Texas, I don’t care.”

It’s unclear if Mount McKinley’s new height will stick in the climbing community. The mountain’s height was actually updated in 1989, when it dropped 14 feet, but many people still cite the number from 1952 as the mountain’s actual height.

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