While Mount Everest is often called the tallest mountain on Earth, the tallest part of Earth is actually the peak of Mount Chimborazo, located in Ecuador. Although Mount Everest stands at a higher altitude above sea level, Mount Chimborazo is the furthest point from Earth's center due to the Earth's bulge at the equator. This means that the summit of Mount Chimborazo is actually further from the center of the Earth than the summit of Mount Everest.
The Earth is not a perfect sphere, but rather an oblate spheroid, meaning it bulges at the equator and is slightly flattened at the poles. This bulge is due to the centrifugal force created by the Earth's rotation. Because of this bulge, the summit of Mount Chimborazo, which is located close to the equator, is farther from the Earth's center than the summit of Mount Everest, which is located at a higher latitude.
