Annapurna

Annapurna is a series of peaks in the Himalayas, a 55-km-long massif whose highest point, Annapurna I, stands at 8,091 m (26,538 ft), making it the 10th-highest summit in the world and one of the "eight-thousanders". Annapurna is a Sanskrit name which is translated as Goddess of the Harvests.

The Annapurna massif contains six major peaks:

Annapurna I was the first 8,000 metre peak to be climbed. Maurice Herzog and Louis Lachenal, of a French expedition, reached the summit on June 3 1950.

The south face of Annapurna was first climbed in 1970 by a British expedition led by Chris Bonnington and including the alpinist Ian Clough, who was killed by a falling ice-pillar during the descent.

On 3 February 1987, Jerzy Kukuczka and Artur Hajzer , a Polish climber, made the first ascent of a eight-thousander in winter.

External link

• Annapurna on Peakware - photos

In Hinduism, Annapurna is a goddess of fertility and agriculture and an avatar of Durgha.

Annapurna also refers to some breath-oriented techniques of meditation.