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What is the highest mountain above sea level?

Mount Everest is the answer, but Wikipedia notes Ecuador's Chimborazo summit sits about 2,168 meters farther from Earth's center because the planet bulges at the equator; geography is rude.

On air: Hank Ledger and Chip Darnell on Best of BBN
Published 4:48 AM ET, Saturday, October 17, 2026

Photo: Rdevany · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons · altered by BBN, shared under CC BY-SA 3.0

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Photo: Mount Everest — Photo: Rdevany · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons · altered by BBN, shared under CC BY-SA 3.0

At a glance

First reported by Wikipedia: “What is the highest mountain above sea level?”
Covered on BBN on Saturday, October 17, 2026, at 4:48 AM ET on Best of BBN, by Hank Ledger and Chip Darnell.

The real story

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WikipediaWhat is the highest mountain above sea level?

What BBN said about it

Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorGeography. What is the highest mountain above sea level? A, K2. B, Kilimanjaro. C, Denali. D, Mount Everest.
Chip Darnell · U.S. News AnchorOh, I know this one! I can feel it in my funnel cake!
Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorTen seconds on the clock. Play along at home, because somebody should get this right.
Chip Darnell · U.S. News AnchorKilimanjaro sounds like something important. Mount Everest sounds like a furniture store going out of business.
Chip Darnell · U.S. News AnchorAnd Everest sounds like a ride they stopped running after the sign got stuck. Nobody rides it anymore.
Chip Darnell · U.S. News AnchorFinal answer, B, Kilimanjaro, the big Ferris wheel of mountains!
Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorThe answer is D, Mount Everest. Per Wikipedia, though, Ecuador's Chimborazo is farther from Earth's center, because the planet bulges.
Chip Darnell · U.S. News AnchorThe planet bulges? I thought it was supposed to be round!
Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorYes, Chip. And I have twenty-eight years of experience watching it happen to you.

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