Elevation Change: Mount Everest Summit to Dead Sea Shore

The vertical distance between Earth's highest and lowest land points is staggering.

The Numbers

Perspective

• That's **9.3 km** of vertical relief—greater than the cruising altitude of many small aircraft.
• Equivalent to stacking **3.3 Burj Khalifas** (world's tallest building) or **10.5 Empire State Buildings**.
• The Dead Sea is in the Jordan Rift Valley (tectonic divergence); Everest is in the Himalayas (tectonic convergence).

This extreme gradient drives unique atmospheric, hydrological, and biological phenomena at both extremes.