The officially recognized elevation of K2, the world’s second-highest mountain, is 8,611 metres.
K2 stands in the Karakoram range on the Pakistan–China border. It is lower only than Mount Everest, whose modern surveyed elevation is 8,848.86 metres. K2’s isolated, steep pyramid and severe weather have made it one of the most difficult major mountains to climb.
The mountain is also known as Mount Godwin-Austen, after the British surveyor Henry Haversham Godwin-Austen. The designation K2 came from the 1856 Great Trigonometrical Survey of India, which labeled it the second peak measured in the Karakoram series. Local names include Chhogori, although usage varies.
K2 was first climbed successfully on 31 July 1954 by the Italian expedition members Lino Lacedelli and Achille Compagnoni. Its climbing reputation is distinct from its height: the Bottleneck and the Abruzzi Spur are especially well-known technical sections.