re what planets are habitable in article rpt v q h hsc usc edu khayash hsc usc edu ken hayashida writes as for human tolerances the best example of human endurance in terms of altitude i e low atmospheric pressure and lower oxygen partial pressure is in my opinion to the scaling of mt everest without oxygen assistance this is quite a feat of physiological endurance indeed so it s at the extreme limit of what is humanly possible it is possible only because mount everest is at a fairly low latitude there is a slight equatorial bulge in the atmosphere beyond what is induced by the earth s rotation thanks to the overall circulation pattern of the atmosphere air cools at poles and descends flowing back to equator where it is warmed and rises and this helps just enough to make everest without oxygen feasible only just feasible mind you the guys who did it reported hallucinations and other indications of oxygen starvation and probably incurred some permanent brain damage svr resembles a high speed collision henry spencer u of toronto zoology between svr and sunos dick dunn henry zoo toronto edu utzoo henry
