Significance of "Into Thin Air"

I interpreted the title of my book “Into Thin Air” in two different ways.

In one way, you could easily think it signifies that when one climbs Mt. Everest, the air has about one-third the oxygen than there is at sea-level. The air is thinner, with less oxygen, nitrogen, and other gases we breathe at sea-level. Climbers undertake a process called acclimatization to help their bodies grow used to the thinner air and allow them to climb Everest with less risk to their health or possibly their lives. Some climbers believe the best way to climb is to go all natural and not use supplementary oxygen to assist their bodies with better quality air. Many who do this or run out of air on the mountain temporarily lose their minds or even lose their lives. Titling the book “Into Thin Air” could represent the quality of the air at such great heights and the struggle it can pose for climbers and their safety.

A crevasse on Mt. Everest

Do you know the phrase commonly used to describe magicians magic tricks, “it vanished into thin air,” meaning it disappeared without a trace of where it went or where it may be?  In another way, I see “Into Thin Air” as a good representation of some the climbers who die on Mt. Everest. Mt. Everest is a dangerous place that could take your life with the littlest mistake made. Avalanches, crevasses, weather, and rock fall are just the beginning to a long list of hazards that kill climbers, many of which are never to be seen or heard from again. Mt. Everest is unpredictable. In my book, “Into Thin Air,” no one saw the disaster coming or think it would take the lives of expert and amateur climbers alike. In the 1999 season alone, Everest caused twelve casualties. Maybe not all of the bodies of those climbers physically vanished into thin air but spiritually, those people disappeared from the lives of their loved ones in an instant.