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Britain has a new highest mountain that’s more than twice as tall as Ben Nevis

A view of Mount Hope, which is much bigger than expected (Pi..

jasper hamill

Britain has a new highest mountain that's more than twice as tall as Ben Nevis
A view of Mount Hope, which is much bigger than expected (Picture: Alan Vaughan, Wikimedia Commons)

Britain has a new highest mountain after satellite data showed a remote peak is 400 metres taller than previously thought.

Mount Hope in the British Antarctic Territory was recently remeasured and found to be 377 metres (1,237 ft) taller then land surveys by polar explorers once estimated.

This makes it more than twice as tall as Ben Nevis, which is mainland Britain’s highest peak at 1,345 metres (4,411ft).

Until now, our tallest mountain was thought to be Mount Jackson, which is 3,239 metres (10,654 ft) high.

The British Antarctic Survey (BAS) said the discovery was made during surveys to update maps.

Britain has a new highest mountain
Ben Nevis looks puny compared to taller peaks around British territory and the rest of the world (Credit: Metro.co.uk)

Adrian Fox, head of mapping and geographic information at BAS, said: ‘This is an exciting discovery within the British Antarctic Territory.

‘Modern satellite data highlights how inaccurate previous surveys and maps were for some parts of the region,’ he said.

‘As well as discovering Mount Hope is the highest mountain in the territory, we have identified several other interesting discoveries.

‘These include new mountain heights, ranges in new locations by up to five kilometres and even some new peaks which hadn’t been surveyed before.’

Fox said the new survey was carried out to ensure the safety of flights passing through the region.

Britain has a new highest mountain
Mountains on the coast of West Antarctica as seen from a window of a NASA Operation IceBridge aeroplane on October 27, 2016 (Photo: Mario Tama/Getty Images)

‘Maps with reliable measurements of the highest peaks are an essential safety requirement for flight planning,’ he added.

‘Accurate elevation data from satellite imagery now allows us to produce these resources for Antarctica, where flying is difficult at the best of times.’

The tallest mountain in the Antarctic is Mount Vinson – which is not part of the British Antarctic Territory – at 4,892 m (16,050 ft).

Foreign Office Minister with responsibility for the Polar Regions, Sir Alan Duncan, said: ‘The discovery of Mount Hope as the UK’s tallest peak is a great example of British science making big steps forward in mapping techniques to help us get a better understanding of this fascinating region.’

More: UK

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