The majestic mountains of South America. Overview of the mountain systems of South America

South America for our people is as mysterious as the same Australia, in fact it is just as unattainable, incomprehensible and mysterious. About her written a lot of adventure books and shot the same number of no less adventure films. Jungle, monkeys, alligators, piranhas - all this must certainly be present in a good action movie, and all this is fully inherent in South America.

South American Mountain System

But not only such stereotypical things are present on this continent. One of the most interesting geographical sites are the mountains of South America. They can be described in one word: "the most." Because in almost all the characteristics they "conquer" the rest of the world's mountain systems. So, the mountains of South America are the longest chain. Their total length is almost nine thousand kilometers. At the same time, they pass through the maximum number of countries - they are on the territory of seven states.

Only in height mountain systems of South America occupy an honorable second place: they were ahead of the Himalayas. They are the winners by definition of the highest point on the planet. However, we note that the highest mountain of South America - Aconcagua - again follows immediately after Everest, but at the same time is the highest peak of the entire hemisphere. And Aconcagua is an extinct volcano and in the rivalry for the altitude, all the other mountains win, because there is no higher volcano in the world. This largest mountain of South America is located on the territory of Argentina and has a height of almost seven kilometers (6960 m).

Mountain wealth

Its name - the Andes - the mountains of South America received, we can say, from the ancient Incas. The word "anta" denoted in their language "mountains of copper". Apparently, the Incas valued this metal more than other minerals, since they called their mountains so. Not only the copper is rich in the mountains of the Andes of South America. Other metals are being developed here. Among them, lead, zinc, tin and even vanadium. Found and rich deposits of precious metals - platinum and gold, are extracted and high-quality emeralds.

In the foothills of the Andes, there are oil and gas fields (mainly in Venezuela), although they are not as significant as in Iraq or Saudi Arabia.

Geographic separation of mountains

The South American mountain system frames the entire continent from the west and the north. Its breadth is not so great in comparison with its length - "only" three hundred kilometers. But in connection with its huge length of the Andes - the mountains of South America - it is customary to distribute into several parts, also called "clusters". Geographers distinguish four such "segments".

North and West

The first part - the Northern Andes. The most north of South America (plus the island of Trinidad) is relatively low mountains running along the coast. They also include a higher massif of the Cordillera de Merida, which is located to the west, and a separate system of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, which is already on the Pacific coast. The highest mountain of South America in this part of the Andes is Cristobal Colon (5,744 km).

The Western Andes run parallel to the Central and also along the ocean, merging into a single ridge already in Ecuador. Between them there are volcanoes - both extinct and active. Among them - the second highest mountain of South America (Chimborazo). This is also a volcano, like Aconcagua, but lower by 700 meters. Here is also the highest current volcano - Cotopaxi. But it does not reach a height of six kilometers.

South and East

The eastern Andes were also noted by the active volcanoes. Here they are quite high, but still below the Cotopaxi. Although on average this is the highest part of the Southern Cordillera, as the mountains of South America are also called.

The Chilean-Argentine part is the narrowest in the Andes. Here and there it is reduced to a single mountain range, called the Main Cordilleras. It is here that Aconcagua is located. At least half of the peaks of this cluster are active volcanoes to this day.

And, finally, the Southern Andes. In this part of the mainland the mountains are falling again, and the most outstanding peak is only three and a half kilometers.

Formation of the Andes: history and modernity

The average height of the Southern Cordillera, according to geographers, is four kilometers. The mountains are young enough, but their basic formation has already been completed. Now their destruction is slow. It is speeded up by the presence of the Pacific Ocean, which nearly erodes the mountains. The map of South America clearly shows how close the water is. Winds from the ocean open spaces and moist air accelerate the process of destruction, in connection with which the mountains lose a year almost an inch of height.

However, their contribution is made by volcanoes, which, as already mentioned, are numerous in the Andes, and a considerable number of them are still active. Thanks to them, some peaks can still "grow", so that the average height of the system remains the same.

Variety of South American mountains

In different parts of the Andes, the landscape, relief, and vegetation are very different. This is explained, firstly, by the fact that separate parts of the mountain chains developed in different geological epochs. And secondly, by the fact that the Southern Cordilleras are very long and cross several natural belts.

The central part of the Andes, under the influence of the cold Peruvian current, becomes a rather cool zone. On the plateau called Poona, the temperature does not rise more than +10, and sometimes falls to -25 degrees. Here is also the most arid on the planet Atacama Desert.

The southern Andes are subtropics. And although in the hottest month the air does not warm above +15, it is very humid and a lot of rainfall - an abundance of wet snow or rain.

So, if you travel from end to end of the South American mountains, you can personally see most of the climatic zones.

Climbing appeal

The Southern Cordilleras, due to their height and unusualness, are very interesting to climbers. Here they come from all over the world, including from Russia, and from other parts of the former Union.

The most popular are two climbing "objects": the highest mountain in South America, that is, Aconcagua, and the peak of Alpamayo. The first on the list is considered quite simple in overcoming. The mountain is attractive, rather, precisely with its height and views. However, to conquer Aconcagua you need to have a good climbing experience, endurance and reliable tolerance of rarefied air. The danger for the conquerors is mainly changeable weather in the Aconcagua area. Its sharp changes make the mountain so dangerous.

Another thing - Alpamayo. It is considered the most impregnable in South America and is among the ten world's "difficult" mountains. The angle between the "walls" of Alpamayo and the earth reaches 60 degrees. Even well-equipped alpinists often do not get to half the mountain. To the top came a few. And the first time Alpamayo was conquered in 1951 by two mountaineers from the Belgian-French expedition.

Among beginners, it is interesting to climb the Cotopaxi. The volcano, although acting, but now asleep. Like many other peaks, he was conquered far from the first time. In the early 19th century, two climbers tried to climb to the top and could not. This, in principle, is not surprising, but it's a pity that they could not overcome only the last 300 meters.

Despite the difficult moments of the route, today Cotopaxi is accessible even to the trained beginner. The main thing - do not forget to dress warmly, on top the temperature rarely rises above -10.

A curious nuance is the need for a night voyage: you have to return to the camp before the path from the snow melts.

So the mountains of South America are interesting in very different directions, and if there is an opportunity, it is necessary to go there.