A team of Chinese scientists will travel to Mount Everest later this year to determine if global warming has caused the world's highest mountain peak to shrink.
Chinese state media say the team will conduct studies at Everest between March and June using radar and global positioning satellite (GPS) equipment.
Mount Everest, known in Chinese as Qomolangma Peak, officially stands at 8,850 meters. News reports say Everest's peak may have dropped by more than one meter because global warming is melting the glaciers.
The U.S. National Geographic Society set the 8,850 meter height for Everest in 1999 using GPS equipment. That was two meter taller than the previous official height. The Society says its measurements also show the mountain is moving northwest at six centimeters a year.
Some information for this report provided by AP and AFP.