How Did Mount Everest Form?

Mount Everest (8,848.86 m / 29,031.7 ft) was formed by the ongoing collision of the Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates:

1. ~50–55 Ma: Indian Plate (drifting north at ~15 cm/yr) collides with Eurasian Plate.
2. Subduction & Crustal Thickening: Buoyant Indian continental crust resists subduction; instead, it thrusts beneath Tibet, doubling crustal thickness to 70+ km.
3. Himalayan Orogeny: Intense compression folds, faults, and uplifts sedimentary rocks (Tethys Ocean floor) into the Greater Himalaya. Everest's summit is marine limestone (Yellow Band) with fossil crinoids.
4. Continued Uplift: India still moves ~5 cm/yr into Eurasia; Everest rises ~4 mm/yr (offset by erosion).
5. Earthquakes: Thrust faulting (e.g., 2015 Gorkha quake) releases strain; can cause sudden height changes.

Everest is the highest expression of the planet's most dramatic active continental collision.