A screenshot shows researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences using drones equipped with atmospheric sampling devices near Qomolangma in May 2023. CHINA CENTRAL TELEVISION
For 22-year-old guide Lakpa Ringi Sherpa, this spring climbing season on Qomolangma, known as Mount Everest in the West, felt different.
The fear was still there. The dangerous Khumbu Icefall section remained as unpredictable as ever, with yawning crevasses beneath his feet and massive, unstable blocks of ice called seracs looming overhead. But unlike previous years, he did not have to make the dangerous journey through the icefall carrying heavy loads over and over again.
Instead of the usual eight to ten supply trips between Base Camp (5,364 meters) and Camp II (6,400 meters), Lakpa Ringi made only four.
The reason was not a safer route or calmer weather. It was a drone.
