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Into Thin Air Practice Test

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Why did the Indo-Tibetan expedition not find Hansen, Hall, or Lopsang during their push to the summit?
Correct Answer:
They thought they had reached the summit but they hadn't
Explanation:
The idea being tested is the tendency to misjudge how close you are to the real summit in extreme high-altitude conditions. On Everest, the topography can create false peaks and deceptive cues near the final stretch, and fatigue, wind, and poor visibility make it easy to mistake a high point for the true summit. In this case, the Indo-Tibetan expedition pushed upward with the belief they had reached the summit, but they had not. The terrain and perspective at that height can make the true summit lie just beyond what looks like the top, so their search didn’t line up with where Hansen, Hall, or Lopsang actually were. That misperception explains why they failed to find those climbers during the push.

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