K2 is located at an altitude of 8,611 meters, which is only 237 meters less than the height of Mount Everest, the only higher peak on Earth.
The first ascent to the mountain peak K2, the second highest peak in the world, was made on July 31, 1954. It was accomplished by an Italian expedition led by Ardito Desia, an alpinist and explorer born in Palmanova. Desio was 57 years old at the time of that feat, and he personally did not make it to K2, but only led the expedition. The other two Italians, Lino Lacedelli and Achille Compagnoni, reached the top (Lacedelli was 28 and Compagnoni was 39 at the time).
The mountain peak K2, sometimes known as Mount Godwin-Austen, is located at an altitude of 8,611 meters, which is only 237 meters less than the height of Mount Everest. Despite being lower, K2 is much more challenging to climb than Mount Everest and to date it has managed to win many times less climbers. K2 is one of the most infamous peaks in the world due to the large number of climbers who died trying to conquer it (about 80 have been killed to date).
The top of K2 is also the highest point of the Karakorum mountain range, and is located in the border area between China, India and Pakistan. K2 rises above its immediate surroundings like a steep pyramid. The next successful ascent to that peak was achieved only in 1977, a full 23 years later.
