Renowned Everest guide says using xenon speeds climb and makes it safer, better for environment

AP News ^ | Updated 6:55 AM CDT, May 26, 2025 | BINAJ GURUBACHARYA

[Toddsterpatriot]

Reduces altitude sickness. You spend less time climbing, finish quicker and leave less waste on the mountain.

[HartleyMBaldwin]

Why not install an escalator to the peak of Everest to make it even faster, safer and better for the environment?

And the world's longest zipline to get down. Or a form of water slide that runs glycerol or some liquid that wouldn't freeze.

[spel_grammer_an_punct_polise]

I assume that the xenon gas replaces the natural nitrogen in the air we normally breathe?

[Nervous Tick]

Hahaha! You weren't joking! Wonderhussy is really a "thing"! 🤣😂🤣

[E. Pluribus Unum]

That’s my guess too, but the article doesn’t mention it and I tried searching and came up with nothing other than you spend a few months in a hypobaric tent with oxygen levels that mimic the levels at 30,000 feet.

[sonova]

the article never explained what xenon gas does to make it easier to climb the mountain.

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It doesn’t. I looked it up. It’s complicated, and doubtful if it helps at all. I guess it does stimulate RBC production, again not proven solidly...
Further research, xenon is not inert as many of us were taught... Again, complicated.

[TexasGator]

“Further research, xenon is not inert as many of us were taught... “

8nert refers to res8stance to chemical reactions. None of the research says otherwise.

[pelican001]

“Unless I missed it, the article never explained what xenon gas does to make it easier to climb the mountain.”

I’m assuming it involves training with air diluted with inert xenon gas to simulate breathing at high altitude.

[BradyLS]

I used to write articles for the Tallahassee Democrat. The editor would take out critical parts usually saying something like, “People are just too stupid to understand that.” The editors were dismissive about the intelligence of their readers on many occasions…

Sounds like your editor made the effort to keep the readership “too stupid to understand that.”

[bigbob]

Screw Everest, build a nanofiber elevator to a Lagrange point like Arthur C. Clarke described years ago. 930,000 miles will take more than special breathing gas, but if we ever do build a space elevator I’m betting it will bear the SpaceX label.

[HartleyMBaldwin]

Xenon is not completely chemically inert. Quite a few xenon compounds have been discovered.

[sonova]

8nert refers to res8stance to chemical reactions. None of the research says otherwise.

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Hi, not clear here. Are you saying it is, or is not, inert?

[TexasGator]

“Hi, not clear here. Are you saying it is, or is not, inert?”

Is.

[sonova]

“Hi, not clear here. Are you saying it is, or is not, inert?”

Is.

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I thought so too, until a few hours ago. It’s easy to find that xenon does form compounds with other elements. Check it out.

[backpacker_c]

the xenon gas treatments are suppose to increase production of erythropoiten, which increaseses the production of red blood cells.

the hypoxia treatments also shift the oxygen affinity curves of hemoglobin

pretty expensive treatments - $154k from an article

https://www.climbing.com/news/the-first-xenon-everest-climb-is-coming-this-spring/

https://explorersweb.com/you-can-now-climb-everest-in-a-week-using-xenon-doping-the-implications/

[JohnnyP]

I’ve watched her on youtube...

[vetvetdoug]

After one of my High School Classmates had a wonderful experience on Everest (Beck Weathers) I have no desire to climb any mountain that I have to walk up.

[SuperLuminal]

She has already hiked up peaks that are 14,000 to 15,000 feet...