|
Chile
Natural Regions
Chile may have a "crazy" geography, but it is also a land of unparalleled
beauty, with an incredible variety that has fascinated visitors
since the Spanish conquest. Because Chile extends from a point about
625 kilometers north of the Tropic of Capricorn to a point hardly
more than 1,400 kilometers north of the Antarctic Circle, within
its territory can be found a broad selection of the earth's climates.
For this reason, geographically it is possible to speak of several
Chiles. The country usually is divided by geographers into five
regions: the far north, the near north, central Chile, the south,
and the far south. Each has its own characteristic vegetation, fauna,
climate, and, despite the omnipresence of both the Andes and the
Pacific, its own distinct topography.
Data as of March 1994
Chile
The Far North
The far north (Norte Grande), which extends from the Peruvian border
to about 27° south latitude, a line roughly paralleled by the
R�o Copiap�, is extremely arid. It contains the Atacama Desert,
one of the driest areas in the world; in certain sections, this
desert does not register any rainfall at all. Average monthly temperatures
range at sea level between about 20.5° C during the summer and
about 14° C during the winter. Most of the population lives
in the coastal area, where the temperatures are more moderate and
the humidity higher. Contrary to the image of monochrome barrenness
that most people associate with deserts, the landscape is spectacular,
with its crisscrossing hills and mountains of all shapes and sizes,
each with a unique color and hue depending on its mineral composition,
its distance from the observer, and the time of day.
In the far north, the land generally rises vertically from the
ocean, sometimes to elevations well over 1,000 meters. The Cordillera
Domeyko in the north runs along the coast parallel to the Andes.
This topography generates coastal microclimates because the fog
that frequently forms over the cold ocean waters, as well as any
low clouds, is trapped by the high bluffs. This airborne moisture
condenses in the spines and leaves of the vegetation, droplets that
fall to the ground and irrigate the plants' roots. Beyond the coastal
bluffs, there is an area of rolling hills that encompasses the driest
desert land; this area ends to the east with the Andes towering
over it. The edges of the desert in some sections have subterranean
aquifers that have permitted the development of forests made up
mainly of tamarugos, spiny trees native to the area that
grow to a height of about twenty-five meters. Most of those forests
were cut down to fuel the fires of the many foundries established
since colonial times to exploit the abundant deposits of copper,
silver, and nitrate found in the area. The result was the creation
of even drier surface conditions.
The far north is the only part of the country in which there is
a large section of the Andean (plateau). The area receives considerable
rainfall during the summer months in what is commonly known as the
"Bolivian winter," forming shallow lakes of mostly saline waters
that are home to a number of bird species, including the Chilean
flamingo. Some of the water from the plateau trickles down the Andes
in the form of narrow rivers, many of which form oases before being
lost to evaporation or absorption into the desert sands, salt beds,
and aquifers. However, some rivers do manage to reach into the Pacific,
including the R�o Loa, whose U-shaped course across the desert makes
it Chile's longest river. The water rights for one of the rivers,
the R�o Lauca, remain a source of dispute between Bolivia and Chile.
These narrow rivers have carved fertile valleys in which an exuberant
vegetation creates a stark contrast to the bone-dry hills. In such
areas, roads usually are built half way up the arid elevations in
order to maximize the intensive agricultural use of the irrigated
land. They offer spectacular panoramic vistas, along with the harrowing
experience of driving along the edges of cliffs.
In the far north, the kinds of fruits that grow well in the arid
tropics thrive, and all kinds of vegetables can be grown year-round.
However, the region's main economic foundation is its great mineral
wealth. For instance, Chuquicamata, the world's largest open-pit
copper mine, is located in the far north. Since the early 1970s,
the fishing industry has also developed enormously in the main ports
of the area, most notably Iquique and Antofagasta .
Data as of March 1994
Chile
The Near North
The near north (Norte Chico) extends from the R�o Copiap� to about
32° south latitude, or just north of Santiago. It is a semiarid
region whose central area receives an average of about twenty-five
millimeters of rain during each of the four winter months, with
trace amounts the rest of the year. The near north is also subject
to droughts. The temperatures are moderate, with an average of 18.5°
C during the summer and about 12° C during the winter at sea
level. The winter rains and the melting of the snow that accumulates
on the Andes produce rivers whose flow varies with the seasons,
but which carry water year round. Their deep transverse valleys
provide broad areas for cattle raising and, most important, fruit
growing, an activity that has developed greatly since the mid-1970s.
As in the for north, the coastal areas of the near north have a
distinct microclimate. In those sections where the airborne moisture
of the sea is trapped by high bluffs overlooking the ocean, temperate
rain forests develop as the vegetation precipitates the vapor in
the form of a misty rain. Because the river valleys provide breaks
in the coastal elevations, maritime moisture can penetrate inland
and further decrease the generally arid climate in those valleys.
The higher elevations in the interior sections are covered with
shrubs and cacti of various kinds.
Data as of March 1994
Chile
Central Chile
Central Chile (Chile Central), home to a majority of the population,
includes the three largest metropolitan areas-- Santiago, Valpara�so,
and Concepci�n. It extends from about 32° south latitude to
about 38° south latitude. The climate is of the temperate Mediterranean
type, with the amount of rainfall increasing considerably and progressively
from north to south. In the Santiago area, the average monthly temperatures
are about 19.5° C in the summer months of January and February
and 7.5° C in the winter months of June and July. The average
monthly precipitation is no more than a trace in January and February
and 69.7 millimeters in June and July. By contrast, in Concepci�n
the average monthly temperatures are somewhat lower in the summer
at 17.6° C but higher in the winter at 9.3° C, and the amount
of rain is much greater. In the summer, Concepci�n receives an average
of twenty millimeters of rain per month; in June and July, the city
is pounded by an average of 253 millimeters per month. The numerous
rivers greatly increase their flow as a result of the winter rains
and the spring melting of the Andean snows, and they contract considerably
in the summer. The combination of abundant snow in the Andes and
relatively moderate winter temperatures creates excellent conditions
for Alpine skiing.
The topography of central Chile includes a coastal range of mountains
running parallel to the Andes. Lying between the two mountain ranges
is the so-called Central Valley, which contains some of the richest
agricultural land in the country, especially in its northern portion.
The area just north and south of Santiago is a large producer of
fruits, including the grapes from which the best Chilean wines are
made. Exports of fresh fruit began to rise dramatically in the mid-1970s
because Chilean growers had the advantage of being able to reach
markets in the Northern Hemisphere during that part of the world's
winter. Most of these exports, such as grapes, apples, and peaches,
go by refrigerator ships, but some, such as berries, go by air freight.
The southern portion of central Chile contains a mixture of some
excellent agricultural lands, many of which were covered originally
with old-growth forests. They were cleared for agriculture but were
soon exhausted of their organic matter and left to erode. Large
tracts of this worn-out land, many of them on hilly terrain, have
been reforested for the lumber, especially for the cellulose and
paper industries. New investments during the 1980s in these industries
transformed the rural economy of the region. The pre-Andean highlands
and some of the taller and more massive mountains in the coastal
range (principally the Cordillera de Nahuelbuta) still contain large
tracts of old-growth forests of remarkable beauty, some of which
have been set aside as national parks. Between the coastal mountains
and the ocean, many areas of central Chile contain stretches of
land that are lower than the Central Valley and are generally quite
flat. The longest beaches can be found in such sections.
Data as of March 1994
Chile
The South
Although many lovely lakes can be found in the Andean and coastal
regions of central Chile, the south (Sur de Chile) is definitely
the country's most lacustrine area. Southern Chile stretches from
below the R�o B�o-B�o at about 38° south latitude to below Isla
de Chilo� at about 43.4° south latitude. In this lake district
of Chile, the valley between the Andes and the coastal range is
closer to sea level, and the hundreds of rivers that descend from
the Andes form lakes, some quite large, as they reach the lower
elevations. They drain into the ocean through other rivers, some
of which (principally the R�o Calle Calle, which flows by the city
of Valdivia) are the only ones in the whole country that are navigable
for any stretch. The Central Valley's southernmost portion is submerged
in the ocean and forms the Golfo de Ancud. Isla de Chilo�, with
its rolling hills, is the last important elevation of the coastal
range of mountains.
The south is one of the rainiest areas in the world. One of the
wettest spots in the region is Valdivia, with an annual rainfall
of 2,535.4 millimeters. The summer months of January and February
are the driest, with a monthly average precipitation of sixty-seven
millimeters. The winter months of June and July each produce on
average a deluge of 410.6 millimeters. Temperatures in the area
are moderate. In Valdivia, the two summer months average 16.7°
C, whereas the winter months average 7.9° C.
The lakes in this region are remarkably beautiful. The snowcovered
Andes form a constant backdrop to vistas of clear blue or even turquoise
waters, as at Lago Todos los Santos. The rivers that descend from
the Andes rush over volcanic rocks, forming numerous white-water
sections and waterfalls. The vegetation, including many ferns in
the shady areas, is a lush green. Some sections still consist of
old-growth forests, and in all seasons, but especially in the spring
and summer, there are plenty of wildflowers and flowering trees.
The pastures in the northernmost section, around Osorno, are well
suited for raising cattle; milk, cheese, and butter are important
products of that area. All kinds of berries grow in the area, some
of which are exported, and freshwater farming of various species
of trout and salmon has developed, with cultivators taking advantage
of the abundant supply of clear running water. The lumber industry
is also important. A number of tourists, mainly Chileans and Argentines,
visit the area during the summer.
Many of Chile's distinctive animal species have been decimated
as they have been pushed farther and farther into the remaining
wilderness areas by human occupation of the land. This is the case
with the huemul, a large deer, and the Chilean condor,
the largest bird of its kind; both animals are on the national coat
of arms. The remaining Chilean pumas, which are bigger than their
California cousins, have been driven to isolated national parks
in the south by farmers who continue to hunt them because they occasionally
kill sheep and goats.
Data as of March 1994
Chile
The Far South
In the far south (Chile Austral), which extends from between 43°
south latitude and 44° south latitude to Cape Horn, the Andes
and the South Pacific meet. The continental coastline features numerous
inlets and fjords, from which the mountains seem to rise straight
up to great elevations; this is, for example, the case with the
Cerro Mac� (2,960 meters) near Puerto Ais�n. The rest of the land
consists of literally thousands of islands forming numerous archipelagos
interwoven with sometimes-narrow channels, which provide the main
routes of navigation.
In the northern part of the far south, there is still plenty of
rainfall. For instance, Puerto Ais�n, at 45°24' south latitude,
receives 2,973.3 millimeters of rain per year. However, unlike in
Valdivia, the rain falls more or less evenly throughout the year
in Puerto Ais�n. The summer months average 206.1 millimeters, whereas
the winter months average 300 millimeters. The temperatures at sea
level in Puerto Ais�n average 13.6° C in the summer months and
4.7° C in the winter months. Although the area generally is
chilly and wet, the combination of channels, fjords, snowcapped
mountains, and islands of all shapes and sizes within such a narrow
space makes for breathtaking views. The area is still heavily forested,
although some of the native species of trees that grow in the central
and southern parts of the country have given way to others better
adapted to a generally colder climate.
The southern part of the far south includes the city of Punta Arenas,
which, with about 125,000 inhabitants, is the southernmost city
of any appreciable size in the world. It receives much less precipitation;
its annual total is only 438.5 millimeters, or a little more than
what Valdivia receives in the month of June alone. This precipitation
is distributed more or less evenly throughout the year, with the
two main summer months receiving a monthly average of thirty-one
millimeters and the winter months 38.9 millimeters, some of it in
the form of snow. Temperatures are colder than in the rest of the
country. The summer months average 11.1° C, and the winter months
average 2.5° C. The virtually constant wind from the South Pacific
Ocean makes the air feel much colder.
The far south contains large expanses of pastures that are best
suited for raising sheep. The area's other main economic activity
is oil and natural gas extraction from the areas around the Strait
of Magellan. This strait is one of the world's important sea-lanes
because it unites the Atlantic and Pacific oceans through a channel
that avoids the rough open waters off Cape Horn. The channel is
perilous, however, and Chilean pilots guide all vessels through
it.
Data as of March 1994
|
