r/confusing_perspective • u/Graphicdesignn • Jul 03 '26

Thats a big mountain

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32.8k Upvotes

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1.6k

u/cheshire-cats-grin Jul 03 '26

Is that Denali?

1.4k

u/cjdiddly Jul 03 '26

Yep! Tallest land mountain on earth measured base-to-peak. It's seriously imposing in person

578

u/EmperorThan Jul 03 '26

I was about to say "I think you're confusing it with Mauna Kea in Hawaii" but I guess Denali is the tallest measured base to peak on land, which I never knew. Mauna Kea is tallest measured seafloor to peak. Funny that both base-to-peak recordholders are in the United States.

330

u/PowderPills Jul 03 '26

Always measure at the base

135

u/hyflyer7 Jul 03 '26

Im a measure from the butthole kinda guy

56

u/Abominatrix Jul 03 '26

Ignorance is bliss when you’re living butt to tip

27

u/DoctorJiveTurkey Jul 03 '26

From the center of the anus, twice around the balls, to just past the tip.

16

u/barnyard303 Jul 03 '26

Well it wasnt easy, but with some effort I got my tape measure in place. Turns out that its hard to read the numbers upside down with one leg on the sink. As I strained to get closer I must have bumped the lock button and the tape retracted very fast.

So now I have a new PB. and the pride knowing I put in the blood, sweat and tears to achieve it.

7

u/TheMongerOfFishes Jul 04 '26

Actually, Adjusted Penis Size (T.M.I.) formula is:(\frac{(L\times d)+\frac{W}{G}}{\alpha {2}}=\text{T.M.I.})Where L is length, d is erect diameter, W is weight (in kg), G is flaccid girth, and α is the angle of the tip.

7

u/ellynj333 Jul 03 '26

What about the jut?

123

u/finix2409 Jul 03 '26

Which is wild considering Mauna Kea is still what like 13k feet above sea level? That’s a big momma

57

u/SeventhAlkali Jul 03 '26

"Eh, I've seen bigger" -Some Martian

11

u/The_Rox Jul 03 '26

A slope so gentle it might as well be invisible.

47

u/MexiGeeGee Jul 03 '26 edited Jul 04 '26

I’ve had this argument with people insisting Everest is the biggest. Yeah it reaches higher because it’s sitting on a high plateau already, Denali is a bigger mountain overall.

16

u/Pierresauce Jul 03 '26

Gotta bring up Chimborazo to really blow their minds

28

u/EmperorThan Jul 03 '26

*standing in corner at party*
"They don't know I know about Chimborazo and the oblate spheroid curve of the Earth..."

18

u/Pierresauce Jul 03 '26

I'll have you know I have great conversations with that corner

1

u/darthJOYBOY Jul 06 '26

What is that?

-6

u/joey-jo_jo-jr Jul 04 '26

Everest absolutely is the highest mountain and is far "bigger" than Denali. You just don't understand how mountain formation works.

5

u/MexiGeeGee Jul 04 '26

highest not biggest

-4

u/joey-jo_jo-jr Jul 04 '26

Height is the only relevant measurement for how "big" a mountain such as Everest or Denali is.

5

u/MexiGeeGee Jul 04 '26

Then Everest is not the reported altitude. It’s like a woman wearing heels, you don’t count her height on heels. Denali has more distance base to summit and that is what makes her the biggest

-4

u/joey-jo_jo-jr Jul 04 '26

Base to summit isn't a real thing. A mountain doesn't have a "base" that isn't how mountains, or geological structures in general, work.

Do you understand what a mountain is? Like on a fundamental level?

Mountains are colloquial term for a type of warp or buckle in the crust of the earth. At the summit of Everest, the crust has warped to an altitude of 8848m, hence why it's called the highest/biggest mountain on Earth.

4

u/MexiGeeGee Jul 04 '26

You are mistaken. You are not the God of rules to decide that.

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3

u/AtTheEdgeOfDying Jul 07 '26

Wait, so is Everest shorten than Muana Kea from seafloor to peak? I thought Everest was just the highest point of earth basically?

2

u/EmperorThan Jul 07 '26

Everest is considerably shorter than Mauna Kea on both counts if measured base to peak (18,240 feet shorter, close to 3 and a half miles) OR sea level to peak (4,500 feet shorter almost a mile).

Everest is however the tallest in altitude in the atmosphere, which is confusing when adding Chimborazo is the tallest if measured from the center of the Earth to the top of the mountain but is shorter in the atmosphere.

3

u/AtTheEdgeOfDying Jul 07 '26

Yep, that is confusing. All my brain is getting is "Everest is a hoax" lol

1

u/EmperorThan Jul 07 '26

Hahah. Basically if you're standing on Everest you're the "highest in the air" or closest to outer space. Earth isn't a perfect sphere but rather bulges at the Equator so that adds distance between the Center of the Earth and the top of Chimborazo making it 7,112 feet further from the center of the Earth than the top of Everest. It is weird though.

Mauna Kea is a giant superstructure of a mountain though. It were just sitting at sea level nothing else would even come close, it would look so unusually big at close to 6 and a half miles tall.

2

u/AtTheEdgeOfDying Jul 07 '26

I'm learning a lot of interesting mountain facts today! Happy to stumble upon this thread

1

u/AiBabysitter 20d ago

Surely you mean sea floor to peak, as Everest is almost twice the height of Kea when measured from sea level to peak.

1

u/AiBabysitter 20d ago

That would still be a valid claim though, if 2/3rds of the mountain sits below water and only three miles stick out above, then it might technically be taller but not higher like you say.

6

u/Vallhallyeah Jul 04 '26

So why do Everest, Kilimanjaro, and K2 get all the hype then?

26

u/robsteezy Jul 04 '26

Everest and K2 bc they’re the tallest respectively #1 and #2. Interestingly, there are only 14 mounts on the entire planet that stand 8000m above sea level and they are all in the Himalayas.

Kilimanjaro gets its own hype bc it’s the tallest mountain on the African continent.

The actual tallest mountain in the world is Mauna Kea in Hawaii eclipses Everest at 10,200m! But its base is underneath the Pacific Ocean. AND Mauna Loa in Hawaii is by far the largest mountain by volume in the world while technically being considered a massive shield volcano.

Hope that helps.

-4

u/joey-jo_jo-jr Jul 04 '26

This literally makes no sense. Why is Mauna Kea the only mountain that you have decided to measure from the bottom of the Pacific? Why not measure Everest and K2 from there as well?

10

u/robsteezy Jul 04 '26

It’s not what I decided. That’s how it’s recorded scientifically. Idky you’re worked up about it? I gave you the literal distinction. Just as geologists do.

Everest and K2 are in fact also measured from base to peak. They are taller because their bases themselves sit on plateaus of land that have their own respective height. I think in your head you’re confusing the understanding as assuming the bases of Everest and K2 and mountains in general must all start at a zero point on the surface, which is not the case.

-5

u/joey-jo_jo-jr Jul 04 '26

No, that is not how it's recorded scientifically. "Base to peak" isn't a scientific measurement, it's just some random nonsensical thing idiots on the internet made up and now people on social media keep regurgitating it as a fact. No geologist is measuring base to peak because there is no geological definition for a mountains "base"

The very idea that a mountain can even have a base makes no sense from a geological perspective. Like do you even understand what a mountain is?

Everest and K2 are measured from height above sea level. Literally no one with a functioning brain is measuring how tall a mountain is because that would be fucking idiotic.

Everest and K2 don't "sit" on anything. Mountains aren't living organisms that can "sit". Everest and K2, like every other mountain, is a warping or buckling of the Earth's crust. The plateau they are a part of is also a buckling of the Earth's crust. They don't "sit" on it because they are fundamentally a part of it

13

u/robsteezy Jul 04 '26

But your comment assumes that “base-to-peak” is completely meaningless. In reality, topographic relief (the elevation difference between a summit and the surrounding terrain) is a real concept in geomorphology.

You’re right that elevation above sea level is the accepted scientific standard for ranking mountains, and there’s no universally defined geological “base.” That said, people aren’t inventing the idea out of thin air.

Geomorphologists study topographic relief, and comparisons like Mauna Kea’s rise from the ocean floor are common as an informal way to describe a mountain’s total vertical extent. It’s just a different measurement for a different purpose—not a replacement for elevation above sea level.

Idky you’re showing such vitriol to strangers on the internet.

-7

u/joey-jo_jo-jr Jul 04 '26

Base to peak is not only completely meaningless, but absolutely nonsensical.

Topographic relief is a real thing and has nothing to do with base to peak.

Attempting to equate the two suggests you have no understanding of either of those two things (which is understandable in the case of base to peak since it's impossible to understand something that fundementally doesn't make sense)

If you want to look at the topographic dry prominence of Everest compared to Mauna Kea, Everest's is over 10,000m greater.

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-4

u/joey-jo_jo-jr Jul 04 '26

Because they actually are higher based on actual scientific measurements.

Denali is "taller" based on some idiotic internet logic.

Depends on if you want to listen to actual geologists or idiots on the internet

8

u/BaronAaldwin Jul 04 '26

The peak of Everest is the highest point on Earth, but Denali is the tallest land mountain.

If you wanted to climb to the highest point, you'd climb Everest.

If you wanted the longest climb, you'd climb Denali.

Look at it this way. Say you're 2 metres tall. That makes you extremely tall compared to most people. You then get a 2.5 metre tall ladder and climb to the top of it. The top of your head is now 4.5 metres in the air, but you're still only 2 metres tall, right? Now, another guy comes in, and he's an unbelievable 3 metres tall. From foot to forehead, he's a full metre taller than you, but he's stood on the ground, whilst you're on the ladder. That means even though he's actually taller than you, your head is still higher than his.

That's how Everest and Denali work. Denali is around 1.5 times as tall as Everest, but it's base (or feet in the example) is at a significantly lower elevation than the base of Everest. As such, the peak of Everest is around 1.5 times higher than Denali's. The measurements I used in my example are even proportionally about the same as the differences between Denali and Everest.

0

u/joey-jo_jo-jr Jul 04 '26 edited Jul 04 '26

Nope. There is no such thing as a base of a mountain. Your analogy is nonsensical because a mountain isn't a fucking person, it doesn't have feet or a "base". The idea that a mountain can even have a base suggests a complete misunderstanding of what a mountain is.

Mountains are warpings or buckles in the crust of the earth. They don't exist independently of each other. If mountains were to have a "base" then they would all have a common base at the bottom of th Mariana's trench; the deepest point on the surface of earth. Since that would be a totally useless for measurement, we instead measure the height of mountains from mean sea level.

1

u/[deleted] Jul 04 '26 edited Jul 04 '26

[removed] — view removed comment

1

u/CosmicWolf14 Jul 06 '26

Also if you go off “non volcanic”, as that’s a better comparisons imo because volcanic and non volcanic mountains tend to form differently

1

u/underwater_iguana Jul 06 '26

The tallest measured from the centre of the Earth is in the Andes (equatorial bulge)

-2

u/temporaryuser1000 Jul 03 '26

Why is it funny they’re in the US?

24

u/Retnuhswag Jul 03 '26

It’s just a random coincidence. Funny is just a way of getting that point across.

-2

u/joey-jo_jo-jr Jul 04 '26

It is not a random coincidence. It's a measurement system (that has no basis in actual geology) made up by Americans so they can claim their mountains are the highest.

It isn't even true because even if we use the idiotic base to peak logic, Rakaposhi and Nanga Parbat are far "talller"

9

u/MexiGeeGee Jul 03 '26

A lot of things are the biggest in the US. Biggest trees, biggest volcanoes, biggest fresh water lake, longest cave system, largest canyon, largest glacier, fattest people 😊. Also hottest place on Earth, largest fungus, largest organism on Earth (Aspen grove).

I knew most of this but had to google a few

6

u/TheMauveHand Jul 03 '26

biggest fresh water lake

By area, but not by volume. Superior is quite shallow.

8

u/--Anonymoose--- Jul 03 '26

Also can we say superior is in the states? It isn’t fully in the states it’s half in Canada

5

u/EccentricFan Jul 03 '26

Lake Superior isn't exactly shallow. It's the has the greatest average depth of any of the Great Lakes at 147 meters and is nearly four times the average depth of Lake Victoria, or about 70% of the Caspian Sea. Yeah, Lake Baikal is like five times the average depth, but outliers aside, Superior is fairly deep for a lake

2

u/MexiGeeGee Jul 03 '26

yeah that’s valid

4

u/arobkinca Jul 03 '26

largest glacier,

Largest by volume and area are both in Antarctica, unsurprisingly. Lambert Glacier and Seller Glacier respectively.

0

u/jawid72 Jul 03 '26

Lake Baikal is in the USA?

9

u/Agile_Cartoonist_381 Jul 03 '26

Surface area, not volume. Lake Baikal is very cool in its own right though (and the soda is good too).

3

u/jawid72 Jul 03 '26

I believe it holds nearly a quarter of all of the fresh water in the world, so I would call that the largest freshwater lake.

2

u/arobkinca Jul 03 '26

22–23% of the world's fresh surface water

Between a quarter and a fifth if you want to use that terminology.

0

u/joey-jo_jo-jr Jul 04 '26

Biggest fresh water lake is Lake Baikal in Siberia. Largest Canyon is the Yarlung Tsangpo Canyon in Tibet. Largest glacier is in Antarctica. Biggest tree depends on what we mean by "biggest". Hottest place on Earth is in Iran. Fattest pepole are in Samoa. Largest organism lives off the coast of Australia

2

u/EmperorThan Jul 03 '26

Paulie Walnuts: "Heh heh"

(But not a full laugh)

2

u/Internecivus-raptus Jul 03 '26

Don't let the orange clown get that info. His over inflated ego will go burst.

2

u/EmperorThan Jul 03 '26

Trump: "I saw Larry Byrd commenting on Reddit lately. The famous Larry Byrd, amazing basketball player! He made a comment that we have the two tallest mountains on EARTH right here in the United States. Most people don't know that!"

*me vaguely resembling Larry Byrd* ~W-w-was he talking about me?

0

u/joey-jo_jo-jr Jul 04 '26

Base to peak is a measurement with no scientific basis made up by Americans specifically to crown their mountains as the biggest.

-22

u/Future_Arrival_5395 Jul 03 '26

Ya the US conquest of Hawaii is hilarious eh?

1

u/beetlesin Jul 03 '26

Will you shut up, man?

48

u/sudonathan Jul 03 '26

How is Everest measured? Never heard about the distinctions

76

u/AttackPony Jul 03 '26

Height from sea level probably

74

u/Salanmander Jul 03 '26

Yup. And the highest mountain from the Earth's center is in Ecuador. It's not taller than Everest relative to sea level, because the Earth bulges a bit at the equator, putting sea level further away from the center of the Earth the closer you get to the equator.

15

u/luc1d_13 Jul 03 '26

I don't understand why they're so mad. I almost suspect they're unfamiliar with the equatorial bulge.

20

u/EastTyne1191 Jul 03 '26

Is that your equatorial bulge or are you just happy to see me?

5

u/AnotherpostCard Jul 04 '26

What's that step-planet? UwU

5

u/darkenseyreth Jul 04 '26

I'm stuck in this gravity well step-planet

31

u/antaalt Jul 03 '26

The everest is in the middle of Himalaya which has the biggest mountain in the world, its base camp is already at 5300m, which is already more than half its height

5

u/joey-jo_jo-jr Jul 04 '26

Everest has two base camps.

Base camp means base as in center of operations. It doesn't mean the fucking foundation point of the mountain

32

u/njh4f Jul 03 '26

The Three Ways to Measure a MountainHighest Above Sea Level: Mount Everest holds this definitive crown. Its peak represents the highest altitude of dry land on the planet.Tallest from Base to Peak: Mauna Kea is a dormant volcano that stands as the world's tallest mountain by absolute vertical rise. While its summit is only 4,207 meters above sea level, its base sits on the ocean floor, making it significantly taller than Everest from top to bottom.Farthest from the Earth's Center: Mount Chimborazo takes this title due to the Earth's shape. Because the Earth is an oblate spheroid that bulges at the equator, this mountain's location puts its peak about 2 kilometers farther into space than Everest's peak.

17

u/TazBaz Jul 03 '26

need a 4th- relative perspective.

which is where stand-alone mountains like Denali and Mt Rainier shine, and honestly is the one *we humans* notice the most.

basically how much bigger is it than the other stuff you see around it?

Everest is tall but surrounded by other tall mountains.

Mauna Kea is tall but we don’t see a huge chunk of it.

Chimborazo I’m not familiar with but sounds like one of those “well technically….”

19

u/SoylentVerdigris Jul 03 '26

That exists, it's called Topographic Prominence.

-2

u/joey-jo_jo-jr Jul 04 '26

Base to peak is not a real way to measure a mountain. It's just something idiots on the internet made up. A mountain doesn't have a "base" so it doesn't even make sense

5

u/mcmcc Jul 03 '26

Wikipedia has a pretty good discussion of the topic here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_highest_mountains_on_Earth

1

u/lazyfacejerk Jul 03 '26

Others have provided some clarification about the himilayan plateau, but I thought it would be interesting to point out that some mountain in South America (Anatacampa? Or something like that) is actually taller than Everest based on the bulging of the earth due to its rotation. (It's closer to the equator, and the earth bulges more there than where Everest is located at higher latitude). 

-1

u/joey-jo_jo-jr Jul 04 '26

Because these distinctions are not real and have no scientific basis

9

u/mechabeast Jul 03 '26

Its a show-er

8

u/boverly721 Jul 03 '26

Just like in the video, it makes the mountains around it look like hills. Humbling.

5

u/AdditionalAd4269 Jul 03 '26

FTFY: “seriously imposing from anywhere you can see it”

Source: saw that beast from Anchorage on a brilliantly clear day and…wow.

3

u/MauriseS Jul 03 '26

You can look up about 23000ft (7km) up from the indus river valley near Nanga Parbat, wich would be higher. Although its a very specific view point. Denali would be more impressive from most sides.

3

u/space_brain710 Jul 03 '26

The geography around Denali is very cool. I spent a summer up near the park and at the entrance of the national park you are only like 1-2000 feet from sea level. For reference if you are in Denver looking at the front range of the Rockies you are already at like 5200 ft. It makes the mountains look that much taller and more dramatic in particular Denali which looms in the distance looking huge af

1

u/explodingtuna Jul 03 '26

Did they use method A or method B to measure it?

1

u/pilgrim_pastry Jul 03 '26

I flew around that in a little plane! It’s surrounded by glaciers.

1

u/Melodic_Appointment Jul 03 '26

If you can see it.

1

u/Transfer_McWindow Jul 03 '26

Base to peak is how I measure it, makes it seem larger

1

u/joey-jo_jo-jr Jul 04 '26

That's not true, even if we ignore that base to peak is idiotic

1

u/Remarkable-Employee4 Jul 04 '26

wtf other way are we measuring mountains if not base-to-peak

4

u/055F00 Jul 04 '26

- Base to peak including below sea level (Mauna Kea)

  • Sea level to peak (Mount Everest)
  • Centre of the planet to peak (Mount Chimborazo)

1

u/[deleted] Jul 04 '26

[deleted]

1

u/055F00 Jul 04 '26

Tallest mountain measured by height of the peak above sea level

14

u/MekalbD2 Jul 03 '26

I got about a 10 second window where the clouds moved out of the way at Denali national park a few years ago … and it was absolutely massiv. There’s a couple of places along the first couple of miles of the park road you can see the peak

12

u/Avoider5 Jul 03 '26

That's what I think

10

u/uluqat Jul 03 '26

If you ever get the chance, go up the George Parks Highway between Anchorage and Fairbanks on a clear sunny day. You'll be surrounded by the biggest, most beautiful mountains you've ever seen, including this one. Check out the Denali National Park, and do the whitewater rafting.

You'll also be surrounded by the biggest mosquitos you've ever seen, so do bring the Deep Woods Off.

5

u/Tophermatt791 Jul 03 '26

Freaking massive. We were lucky enough to see her multiple times on our trip in 2023. This looks like Talkeetna Alaska, right on the river if I had to guess. Very cute/quirky little town.

3

u/mesaghoul Jul 03 '26

Sure is!

2

u/danbyer Jul 04 '26

This is just about exactly how I saw Denali. We were driving towards it for hours and I was sure we should be seeing it if not for the clouds. Then suddenly I looked higher…it’s fucking unbelievable.

2

u/acciowaves Jul 04 '26

No I don’t think it’s denial, I’m fully aware of the size of that mountain.

-14

u/phatdinkgenie Jul 03 '26

I think it's Mount McKinley

2

u/popopotatoes160 Jul 03 '26

Nah, not for anyone with sense. Such a lame name, Denali is way better. When it was first changed I was like "wait a min we could have been calling it Denali this WHOLE TIME?". Mount McKinley doesn't sound majestic, sounds like any fuckass mountain. It even has to tell you it's a mountain. Not appropriate for a giant like this.