Mount Everest may be the highest peak on earth above sea level, but is there another that has a peak farther from the center of the planet?

as far as i know, sea level is a certain distance from the center of the earth, and is pretty much constant, so it is just a refernce point.
I think the distance from the top of everest to the center of the earth would also be more than the distance from the center to any other mountain top.
Chris

Perhaps the highest peak based on its distance from the center of the Earth is Mt. Chimborazo in Ecuador. This distinction arises due to the elliptical shape of the Earth and its equatorial "bulge."


Altitude of the Highest Point on Earth. Note that you will weigh less on the top of Mt. Chimborazo than you would anywhere else on Earth (getting back to your other weight-mass questions).

striders answer makes sense,
i forgot that the earth was mis-shapen.
nice work strider

There are several ways of determining altitude. You may want to compare notes of other sources or find out what method is used (if possible).

Air traffic controllers use barometric pressure to determine altitude, as do the altimeters in aircraft. (38.82 millibars = sea level)

Notice that this doesn't take into account the buldging of the earth, but rather atmospheric pressure, which is nothing more than the density of the air above the water.

Actually, not only is Earth misshapen, but its gravity varies in places your wouldn't necessarily expect. Check out this illustration:

NASA's Grace Mission