# What country has the greatest elevation difference within its contiguous borders? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 14, 2010, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-country-has-the-greatest-elevation-difference-within-its-contiguous-borders/560664 "2010-11-14T20:01:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2010, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-country-has-the-greatest-elevation-difference-within-its-contiguous-borders/560664/1 "2010-11-14T20:01:35Z")
The title is the question. For example, Death Valley’s lowest point is 282 feet below sea level and Mount Whitney is 14,494 feet above sea level. Difference: 14,776 feet. ---
**Author:** ![GreasyJack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/df705f/32.png) [@GreasyJack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreasyJack)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2010, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-country-has-the-greatest-elevation-difference-within-its-contiguous-borders/560664/2 "2010-11-14T20:05:46Z")
China. Plenty of spots that are at sea level and they have half of Mount Everest (opinions about Tibetan sovereignty notwithstanding). ---
**Author:** ![yabob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yabob/32/2821_2.png) [@yabob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yabob)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2010, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-country-has-the-greatest-elevation-difference-within-its-contiguous-borders/560664/3 "2010-11-14T20:08:05Z")
Mount Everest is on the China / Nepal border, with an elevation of 8850 meters. The lowest point in Nepal is 70 meters, the lowest point in China -154 meters: > **[Highest And Lowest Points Of Countries Of The World](https://www.worldatlas.com/geography/highest-and-lowest-points-of-countries-of-the-world.html)** > > At 8,850 meters, Mount Everest, located on the China-Nepal border, is the world’s highest point. La Rinconada (Peru) is the world’s highest human habitation ETA: As noted, China’s claims to Tibet are questionable. If you don’t accept them, Nepal probably gets the prize. ---
**Author:** ![yabob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yabob/32/2821_2.png) [@yabob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yabob)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2010, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-country-has-the-greatest-elevation-difference-within-its-contiguous-borders/560664/4 "2010-11-14T20:24:03Z")
BTW, we might also note that the -154 meters for China is in the [Turpan Depression](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turpan_Depression), located in the Xinjiang Autonomous Region. China’s right to that bit of real estate is also questioned in some circles, though not as strongly as Tibet. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2010, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-country-has-the-greatest-elevation-difference-within-its-contiguous-borders/560664/5 "2010-11-14T20:31:03Z")
> [@](#): > > As noted, China’s claims to Tibet are questionable. If you don’t accept them, Nepal probably gets the prize. Looks like it. The second-highest mountain in the world is K2, on the China-Pakistan border (though I imagine that’s also the Tibetan part of China), at 8611 meters, and Pakistan’s lowest point is sea level. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2010, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-country-has-the-greatest-elevation-difference-within-its-contiguous-borders/560664/6 "2010-11-14T20:35:04Z")
Well, the OP seems to be answered. Shall we open it to the Top 10? ---
**Author:** ![yabob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yabob/32/2821_2.png) [@yabob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yabob)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2010, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-country-has-the-greatest-elevation-difference-within-its-contiguous-borders/560664/7 "2010-11-14T21:06:32Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Looks like it. The second-highest mountain in the world is K2, on the China-Pakistan border (though I imagine that’s also the Tibetan part of China), at 8611 meters, and Pakistan’s lowest point is sea level. Actually, it’s in the Xinjiang Autonomous Region. -154 to 8611 still doesn’t edge out 70 to 8850. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2010, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-country-has-the-greatest-elevation-difference-within-its-contiguous-borders/560664/8 "2010-11-14T21:10:10Z")
> [@yabob](#): > > As noted, China’s claims to Tibet are questionable. If you don’t accept them, Nepal probably gets the prize. China’s claims to Tibet are _morally_ questionable, but if you’re asking geography questions, Tibet is _de facto_ China, so China should get this one. ---
**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2010, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-country-has-the-greatest-elevation-difference-within-its-contiguous-borders/560664/9 "2010-11-14T21:16:51Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > The title is the question. > > For example, Death Valley’s lowest point is 282 feet below sea level and Mount Whitney is 14,494 feet above sea level. Difference: 14,776 feet. Death Valley (California) is -282 feet and Denali (Mt. McKinley - Alaska) is 20,320. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2010, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-country-has-the-greatest-elevation-difference-within-its-contiguous-borders/560664/10 "2010-11-14T21:18:21Z")
> [@Duckster](#): > > Death Valley (California) is -282 feet and Denali (Mt. McKinley - Alaska) is 20,320. Only Denali isn’t in the contiguous United States. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![user\_hostile](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/user_hostile/32/474_2.png) [@user\_hostile](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/user_hostile)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2010, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-country-has-the-greatest-elevation-difference-within-its-contiguous-borders/560664/11 "2010-11-14T21:51:01Z")
> [@Duckster](#): > > Death Valley (California) is -282 feet and Denali (Mt. McKinley - Alaska) is 20,320. Why not argue Mauna Kea to the ocean floor (10,203 m)? Or Mount Lamlam in Guam and the Marianas Trench (11,530 m)? USA! USA! USA! ---
**Author:** ![TheScogg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a5b964/32.png) [@TheScogg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheScogg)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2010, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-country-has-the-greatest-elevation-difference-within-its-contiguous-borders/560664/12 "2010-11-14T21:56:40Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > Only Denali isn’t in the contiguous United States. 😉 But, much of Alaska itself is at sea level. That still leaves a height disparity of more than 20,000 within Alaska’s borders. Surely that counts. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2010, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-country-has-the-greatest-elevation-difference-within-its-contiguous-borders/560664/13 "2010-11-14T23:00:09Z")
McKinley’s a mere 6,194 m high. ---
**Author:** ![coremelt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4491bb/32.png) [@coremelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/coremelt)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2010, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-country-has-the-greatest-elevation-difference-within-its-contiguous-borders/560664/14 "2010-11-14T23:57:25Z")
So which country has the least difference in elevation. My entry is “Tromelin Island”, 7 meters difference. > **[Tromelin Island](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tromelin_Island)** > > Tromelin Island (/ˌtroʊmlɪn/\[citation needed\]; French: Île Tromelin, pronounced \[il tʁɔmlɛ̃\]), once called the Isle of Sand, is a low, flat island in the Indian Ocean about 500 km (310 mi; 270 nmi) north of Réunion and about 450 km (280 mi; 240 nmi) east of Madagascar. Tromelin is part of the Scattered Islands in the Indian Ocean, the fifth district of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands, a French Overseas Territory, but Mauritius claims sovereignty over the island. > Tromelin has facilities... Anyone beat that? ---
**Author:** ![GreasyJack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/df705f/32.png) [@GreasyJack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreasyJack)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2010, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-country-has-the-greatest-elevation-difference-within-its-contiguous-borders/560664/15 "2010-11-15T00:06:23Z")
> [@coremelt](#): > > So which country has the least difference in elevation. My entry is “Tromelin Island”, 7 meters difference. > > [Tromelin Island - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tromelin_Island) > > Anyone beat that? Well, for one, that’s hardly a “country” so much as a chunk of French territory with an airstrip and weather station. Also, yes. The Maldives’ elevation ranges from sea level to a dizzying 2.3 meters: [Maldives - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maldives)