UH-Maui students, professor study high altitude firsthand in Nepal | News, Sports, Jobs

‘Ale‘a Kimokeo (from left), Buddhi Rai, Brissa Christopherson, Tara Apo and Dustin Palos pose for a photo in Kagbeni, the junction where the road divides between Tibet and Muktinath in Nepal. It was one of the highest altitude points of the trip. Photos courtesy Buddhi Rai

Braving altitude sickness and climates ranging from intense heat to snow-capped mountains, four University of Hawai’i at Maui College students and their professor traveled to Nepal earlier this summer to study the physics of high altitude in the home of the world’s tallest peaks.

Associate Professor of STEM Buddhi Rai, who holds a Ph.D. in physics and is a native of Nepal, spent more than two years planning the travel study trip for students Tara Apo, Dustin Palos, Brissa Christopherson and ‘Ale’a Kimokeo, who are pursuing degrees and advanced degrees in sustainable science and/or environmental management.

UH-Maui Chancellor Lui Hokoana also joined the group in Nepal.

Traveling from the lowest altitude in Nepal at 190 feet below sea level to 14,000 feet of elevation in the Himalayas, the students experienced all types of climates and communities.

Brissa Christopherson and ‘Ale‘a Kimokeo ride horses during a visit to the Himalayan mountain range.

“We got to experience such a wide range of diversity of climates, ecosystems, biodiversity and diversity of indigenous people,” Apo said in a news release Wednesday. “We went right to the border of India — the hottest place I’ve ever been in my life — and also experienced the rainiest places. The ecosystems changed so dramatically within such short distances.”

The group’s three-week adventure from May 19 to June 7 started in Kathmandu with visits to several UNESCO World Heritage Sites and “two days of STEM meetings and activities with the government, World Wildlife Fund, Council for Technical Training and Vocational Training, and Nepal Academy of Science and Technology officials,” Rai said.

The next week, the group traveled deep into the Himalayas. They engaged in science, physics and climate experiments at altitudes reaching up to about 14,000 feet, and met with members of the Sherpa community, comparing their own physiological responses and heart rates to those of the high-altitude residents. Apo said that the climate past the Himalayan Mountain range is dry and arid, much like Haleakala crater.

The group had a “home stay” in the village of Jarkot Muktinath, about five hours from Tibet.

At 12,000 feet of elevation, Apo soon learned firsthand the impacts of high altitude, waking up with a splitting headache the morning after their journey from Pokhara into the Himalayas. All the students’ oxygen levels went down significantly. Rai’s level was at 70 percent; normal is above 95 percent.

‘Ale‘a Kimokeo (from left), Dustin Palos, and Buddhi Rai stand in front of the Pyramid International Laboratory-Observatory at an elevation of 16,568 feet.

Still, the students were able to go on a horseback ride, hike to Muktinath temple and continue up the mountain as far as they could go towards the Thorong La pass.

“It was incredibly hard to just put one foot in front of the other. We were so fatigued. But it was definitely interesting to experience,” Apo said. “When we finally left the high-altitude area, our energy returned instantly.”

Rai said that “the group replicated the high-altitude science as we descended to lower altitudes.”

“We also participated in community activities, lived in indigenous homes, ate home-cooked Nepalese food, and learned how the people live day-to-day,” Rai said. “On the way back to Kathmandu we visited religious sites and temples, and every member of my team was overwhelmed with the religious practices, the foods, and especially the flowers — marigolds are everywhere and also used for lei.”

The students also got to travel to Mount Everest and visited the Pyramid International Laboratory/Observatory, Nepal’s high-altitude scientific research center at an elevation of 16,568 feet.

Over the next six months, Rai plans to review the students’ reflective papers while continuing to compile his own notes, analyzing the wealth of data collected in Nepal and drawing comparisons with Hawaii’s sea-level-to-high-altitude data. The research could potentially be submitted for publication and possibly lead to a documentary, the news release said.

In addition to data and new experiences, the students also left with Nepalese names they received during their trip — Apo as Tara Ale-Magar, Palos as Dinesh Pandit, Christopherson as Bina Chhetri and Kimokeo as Alka Karki.

“It was special to go with other Kanaka Maoli,” Apo said. “There was a kinship of culture that I noticed with the Nepalese people. They are kindhearted and they always treated us with respect and honor. The way they hosted us — very giving, preparing a big meal and having us eat first. It was the same kind of hospitality you would expect here. It was a beautiful cultural exchange.”

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