The Himalayas Probably Just Got a Little Shorter

Some peaks on the world’s tallest mountain range may have gotten a little shorter following Saturday’s magnitude-7.8 earthquake in Nepal.

Precise figures aren’t available yet, but the dip in the Himalayas mountain range probably measured about 1.3 feet at points north of the epicenter near Kathmandu, according to University of Colorado professor and South Asian earthquake expert Roger Bilham.

It’s not clear what effect the quake had on Mount Everest, the world’s tallest peak and where the earthquake caused an avalanche that killed at least 18 people. Any impact would be minuscule considering its size: China and Nepal, whose border touches the mountain, both say Everest measures 29,029 feet. Without the earthquake the Himalayas typically grow naturally from the movement of tectonic plates, though at a rate of less than 1 inch each year, according to the United States Geological Society.

On the fault line, the Nepal earthquake caused the ground to shift by about 10 feet, according to Bilham.