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The Andes (/ˈændiːz/ AN-deez), Andes Mountains or Andean Mountain Range (Spanish: Cordillera de los Andes; Quechua: Anti) are the longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range is 8,900 km (5,530 mi) long and 200 to 700 km (124 to 435 mi) wide (widest between 18°S and 20°S latitude) and has an average height of about 4,000 m (13,123 ft). The Andes extend from South to North through seven South American countries: Argentina, Chile, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, and Venezuela.
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Along their length, the Andes are split into several ranges, separated by intermediate depressions. The Andes are the location of several high plateaus—some of which host major cities such as Quito, Bogotá, Cali, Arequipa, Medellín, Bucaramanga, Sucre, Mérida, El Alto, and La Paz. The Altiplano Plateau is the world's second-highest after the Tibetan Plateau. These ranges are in turn grouped into three major divisions based on climate: the Tropical Andes, the Dry Andes, and the Wet Andes. (Full article...)
Selected general articles
- Image 1Rasac, Yerupaja, Siula Grande and Sarapo (l. to r.), Huayhuash mountain range
Sarapo is a mountain in the Huayhuash mountain range in the Andes of Peru, about 6,127 metres (20,102 ft) high. It is located in the Huánuco Region, Lauricocha Province, Jesús District as well as in the Lima Region, Cajatambo Province, in the districts Cajatambo and Copa. Sarapo lies south of the Yerupaja and the Siula Grande and east of the lake Sarapococha. (Full article...) - Image 2Paquni (Aymara paqu a kind of edible herb, -ni a suffix, "the one with the paqu herbs", Hispanicized spelling Pacuni) is a 4,838-metre-high (15,873 ft) mountain in the Potosí Department of Bolivia. It is located in the Antonio Quijarro Province, Tomave Municipality, northeast of the Jatun Mundo Quri Warani volcano. (Full article...)
- Image 3
Huandoy (probably from Quechua wantuy, to transfer, to transpose, to carry, to carry a heavy load) or Tullparaju (possibly from Quechua tullpa rustic cooking-fire, stove, rahu snow, ice, mountain with snow) is a mountain located inside Huascarán National Park in Ancash, Peru. It is the second-tallest peak of the Cordillera Blanca section of the Andes, after Huascarán. These two peaks are rather nearby, separated only by the Llanganuco glacial valley (which contains the Llanganuco Lakes) at 3,846 m asl.
It is a snow-capped mountain with four peaks arranged in the form of a fireplace, the tallest of which is 6,395 m. The four peaks are each over 6,000 m, and are:- Huandoy (6,395 m)
- Huandoy-West (6,356 m)
- Huandoy-South (6,160 m)
- Huandoy-East (6,000 m)
- Image 4
The andes mountains are one of the tallest. Map of the volcanic arcs in the Andes, and subducted structures affecting volcanism
The Andean Volcanic Belt is a major volcanic belt along the Andean cordillera in Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru. It is formed as a result of subduction of the Nazca Plate and Antarctic Plate underneath the South American Plate. The belt is subdivided into four main volcanic zones which are separated by volcanic gaps. The volcanoes of the belt are diverse in terms of activity style, products, and morphology. While some differences can be explained by which volcanic zone a volcano belongs to, there are significant differences within volcanic zones and even between neighboring volcanoes. Despite being a type location for calc-alkalic and subduction volcanism, the Andean Volcanic Belt has a broad range of volcano-tectonic settings, as it has rift systems and extensional zones, transpressional faults, subduction of mid-ocean ridges and seamount chains as well as a large range of crustal thicknesses and magma ascent paths and different amounts of crustal assimilations.
Romeral in Colombia is the northernmost active member of the Andean Volcanic Belt. South of latitude 49° S within the Austral Volcanic Zone volcanic activity decreases with the southernmost volcano Fueguino in Tierra del Fuego archipelago. (Full article...) - Image 5Male Andean condor at the Cincinnati Zoo.
The Andean condor (Vultur gryphus) is a South American New World vulture and is the only member of the genus Vultur. It is found in the Andes mountains and adjacent Pacific coasts of western South America. With a maximum wingspan of 3.3 m (10 ft 10 in) and weight of 15 kg (33 lb), the Andean condor is one of the largest flying birds in the world, and is generally considered to be the largest bird of prey in the world.
It is a large black vulture with a ruff of white feathers surrounding the base of the neck and, especially in the male, large white patches on the wings. The head and neck are nearly featherless, and are a dull red color, which may flush and therefore change color in response to the bird's emotional state. In the male, there is a wattle on the neck and a large, dark red comb or caruncle on the crown of the head. The female condor is smaller than the male, an exception to the usual sexual dimorphism seen in birds of prey. (Full article...) - Image 6
The Cordillera Paine is a mountain group in Torres del Paine National Park in Chilean Patagonia. The cordillera is located 280 km (170 mi) north of Punta Arenas, and about 1,960 km (1,220 mi) south of the Chilean capital Santiago. It belongs to the Commune of Torres del Paine in Última Esperanza Province of Magallanes and Antártica Chilena Region. No accurate surveys have been published, and published elevations have been claimed to be seriously inflated, so most of the elevations given on this page are approximate. Paine means "blue" in the native Tehuelche (Aonikenk) language and is pronounced PIE-nay. (Full article...) - Image 7
Map showing Iru Phutunqu on the border of Bolivia and Chile, south of the Umani
Iruputuncu (possibly from Aymara iru spiny Peruvian feather grass, phutunqu a small vessel or a hole, pit, crater) is a mountain in the Andes in the Cordillera Occidental on the border of Bolivia and Chile. The Chilean side is in the Tarapacá Region, and the Bolivian side is in the Potosí Department, Daniel Campos Province, Llica Municipality. Iruputuncu is southeast of Mount Candelaria, west of the Salar de Uyuni salt flat and south of the Umani. It is about 4,200 m (13,780 ft) high. (Full article...) - Image 8
Reventador is an active stratovolcano which lies in the eastern Andes of Ecuador. It lies in a remote area of the national park of the same name, which is Spanish for "exploder". Since 1541, it has erupted over 25 times, although its isolated location means that many of its eruptions have gone unreported.
The largest historical eruption occurred in 2002. During that eruption, the plume from the volcano reached a height of 17 kilometres (11 mi) and pyroclastic flows proceeded to 7 kilometres (4.3 mi) from the cone. On March 30, 2007, the mountain ejected ash to a height of about 3.2 kilometres (2.0 mi). No injuries or damage were reported. Its most recent eruption began on 27 July 2008, and it has remained in continuing eruption status (intermittent eruptive events without a break of 3 months or more) as of 15 October 2021. (Full article...) - Image 9
Incahuasi (Spanish pronunciation: [iŋkaˈwasi]; possibly from Quechua: inka Inca, wasi house) is a volcanic mountain in the Andes of South America. It lies on the border of the Catamarca Province of Argentina and the Atacama Region of Chile. Incahuasi has a summit elevation of 6,621 metres (21,722 ft) above sea level.
The volcano consists of a 3.5-kilometre-wide (2.2 mi) caldera and two stratovolcanoes. Four pyroclastic cones located 7 kilometres (4.3 mi) to the northeast have produced basalt-andesite lava flows that cover an area of 10 square kilometres (4 sq mi). (Full article...) - Image 10
Ritacuba Blanco is the highest peak of Cordillera Oriental, in the Andes Mountains of Colombia. It's also named Ritak'uwa, an ancient name from the U'wa indigenous people that live in the lowlands of the National Park Sierra Nevada del Cocuy y Güicán, where the Ritacuba Blanco is located.
The summit is accessible from the west via the town of El Cocuy, the village of Güicán, and the hamlet of Las Cabañas. The hike is fairly easy, but the weather is not reliable, and a glacier must be crossed.
Because of global warming, its glacier is melting at very high rates, backing down 25 linear mts per year; the same is happening at amazing speeds to all other snow-covered tropical mountains in Colombia. In 1950, Ritacuba Blanco's glacier extended down to 4,100 metres (13,500 ft) above sea level; in January 2007 its lowest point was at 4,500 metres (14,800 ft) above sea level. If this melting rate continues, the glacier is expected to disappear before 2055. (Full article...) - Image 11Field of penitentes on the upper Río Blanco, Central Andes of Argentina
The Dry Andes (Spanish: Andes áridos) is a climatic and glaciological subregion of the Andes. Together with the Wet Andes it is one of the two subregions of the Argentine and Chilean Andes. The Dry Andes runs from the Atacama Desert in northern Chile and Northwest Argentina south to a latitude of 35°S in Chile. In Argentina the Dry Andes reaches 40°S due to the leeward effect of the Andes. According to Luis Lliboutry
the Dry Andes can be defined by the distribution of penitentes. The southernmost well-developed penitentes are found on Lanín Volcano.
Rock glaciers occur in parts of the Dry Andes, but are lacking in the more southern Wet Andes. In the Dry Andes, ordinary glaciers develop usually at higher altitudes than rock glaciers. Around Aconcagua rock glaciers reach altitudes as a low as 900 m a.s.l. (Full article...) - Image 12The summit of Chimborazo, the point on the Earth's surface that is farthest from the Earth's center
Chimborazo (Spanish pronunciation: [tʃimboˈɾaso] ⓘ) is an inactive stratovolcano situated in Ecuador in the Cordillera Occidental range of the Andes. Its last known eruption is believed to have occurred around 550 A.D. Although not the tallest mountain in the Andes or on Earth relative to sea level, its summit is the farthest point on Earth's surface from the Earth's center due to its location along the planet's equatorial bulge. Chimborazo's height from sea level is 6,263 m (20,548 ft), well below that of Mount Everest (8,849 m).
Chimborazo is the highest mountain in Ecuador and the 39th-highest peak in the entire Andes. It is a popular destination for mountaineering due to its challenging climbing routes, which involve traversing snow, ice, and rocky terrain. (Full article...) - Image 13
Pumasillo (possibly from Quechua puma cougar, puma, sillu claw, "puma claw") is a mountain in the Vilcabamba mountain range in the Andes of Peru, about 5,991 m (19,656 ft) high'. Pumasillo or Sacsarayoc also refers to the whole massif. It includes the peaks Pumasillo, Sacsarayoc and Lasunayoc. It is located in the Cusco Region, La Convención Province. Its slopes are within the administrative boundaries of the Peruvian city of Santa Teresa. ('Full article...) - Image 14
The llama (/ˈlɑːmə/; Spanish pronunciation: [ˈʎama] or [ˈʝama]) (Lama glama) is a domesticated South American camelid, widely used as a meat and pack animal by Andean cultures since the pre-Columbian era.
Llamas are social animals and live with others as a herd. Their wool is soft and contains only a small amount of lanolin. Llamas can learn simple tasks after a few repetitions. When using a pack, they can carry about 25 to 30% of their body weight for 8 to 13 km (5–8 miles). The name llama (in the past also spelled "lama" or "glama") was adopted by European settlers from native Peruvians. (Full article...) - Image 15
Puracé is an andesitic stratovolcano located in the Puracé National Natural Park in the Cauca Department, Colombia. It is part of the North Volcanic Zone of the Andean Volcanic Belt. The volcano is located at the intersection of the Coconucos and Morras Faults.
It is one of the most active volcanoes in Colombia. Large explosive eruptions occurred in 1849, 1869, 1885, 1949, 1950, 1956, and 1957. There were about a dozen eruptions in the 20th century, the most recent being in 1977. On this occasion, volcanic ash was deposited 7 kilometres (4.3 mi) away. Fumaroles were seen near the summit in 1990, and hot springs emerged from some of the lower slopes. (Full article...) - Image 16The Cerro Bayo volcanic complex lies along the Chile-Argentina border east of the Salar de Gorbea, the light-colored area at the left-center portion of this NASA Landsat image. A young well-preserved crater can be seen NE of an older snow-covered center (bottom-center). A younger northern center along the national border has a well-preserved 400-m-wide crater.
Cerro Bayo is a complex volcano on the northern part border between Argentina and Chile. It consists of four overlapping stratovolcanoes along a north–south line. The main volcano face is located on the Argentine side, thought the summit of the complex is just west of the border, in Chile. The volcano is about 800,000 years old, but it is associated with ongoing ground uplift encompassing also the more northerly Lastarria and Cordón del Azufre volcanoes. The 5,401-metre (17,720 ft) high summit is the source of two viscous dacitic lava flows with prominent levees that traveled to the north.
Elemental sulfur can be found at Bayo, both in the form of high-grade massive deposits and as extinct fumarole chimneys. The volcano formed in three separate phases that produced lava flows. One is dated to 1.6±0.4 million years ago. The volcano can bear snow in winter. The youngest dated rocks are about 23,000 years old; in 2007 a steam eruption were observed by researchers investigating nearby salt pans such as Salar Ignorado. (Full article...) - Image 17
Llullaillaco (Spanish pronunciation: [ʎuʎajˈʎako]) is a dormant stratovolcano on the border between Argentina (Salta Province) and Chile (Antofagasta Region). It lies in the Puna de Atacama, a region of tall volcanic peaks on a high plateau close to the Atacama Desert, one of the driest places in the world. Its maximum elevation is most commonly given as 6723 m, making it the second- or third-highest volcano in the world. Despite its height, it is not clear whether the volcano has any glaciers or merely patches of perennial snow and ice. Between 3700 m and 5000 m elevation there is a sparse plant cover, while at lower altitudes the climate is too dry for plants to grow. A species of mouse on Llullaillaco is the highest-living known vertebrate species.
The volcano formed during the Pleistocene in two stages, named Llullaillaco I and Llullaillaco II. The oldest rocks are about 1.5 million years old. About 150,000 years ago, the volcano's southeastern flank collapsed, generating a debris avalanche that reached as far as 25 km from the summit. During the last stage, three conspicuous lava flows were emplaced on the summit. The youngest dated rocks are 930 ± 140 years old, but there are reports of activity from the 19th century. (Full article...) - Image 18
The Andean goose (Chloephaga melanoptera) is a species of waterfowl in tribe Tadornini of subfamily Anserinae. It is found in Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, and Peru. (Full article...) - Image 19
Nevado del Huila (/nɛˈvɑːdoʊ dɛl ˈwiːlə/, Spanish pronunciation: [neˈβaðo ðel ˈwila]) at 5,364 metres (17,598 ft), is the highest volcano in Colombia, located at the tripoint of the departments of Huila, Tolima and Cauca. It is visible from the city of Cali. The andesitic volcano is located on top of the Ibagué Batholith.
After being dormant for more than 500 years, the volcano showed heavy signs of activity in 2007 and 2008. As of February 20, 2007, there were more than 7000 "minor" seismic events, and a high state of alert was in place for the departments of Cauca, Huila, Caldas and Valle del Cauca. The volcano erupted twice in April 2007, once in April 2008 and again in November 2008. Any eruption would affect the small villages around the volcano, mostly Páez, where their inhabitants still have in memory the eruption of the Nevado del Ruiz volcano and the destruction of Armero. (Full article...) - Image 20Parinacota and Chungará Lake
Parinacota (in Hispanicized spelling), Parina Quta or Parinaquta is a dormant stratovolcano on the border of Bolivia and Chile. Together with Pomerape it forms the Nevados de Payachata volcanic chain. Part of the Central Volcanic Zone of the Andes, its summit reaches an elevation of 6,380 metres (20,930 ft) above sea level. The symmetrical cone is capped by a summit crater with widths of 1 kilometre (0.62 mi) or 1,000 metres (3,300 ft). Farther down on the southern slopes lie three parasitic centres known as the Ajata cones. These cones have generated lava flows. The volcano overlies a platform formed by lava domes and andesitic lava flows.
The volcano started growing during the Pleistocene and formed a large cone. At some point between the Pleistocene and the Holocene, the western flank of the volcano collapsed, generating a giant landslide that spread west and formed a large, hummocky landslide deposit. The avalanche crossed and dammed a previously existing drainage, impounding or enlarging Lake Chungará; numerous other lakes now forming the headwaters of the Rio Lauca sprang up within the deposit. Volcanic activity rebuilt the cone after the collapse, cancelling out the collapse scar. (Full article...) - Image 21Individual from the captive breeding program at Prague Zoo
Telmatobius culeus, commonly known as the Titicaca water frog or Lake Titicaca frog, is a medium-large to very large and endangered species of frog in the family Telmatobiidae. It is entirely aquatic and found only in the Lake Titicaca basin, including rivers that flow into it and smaller connected lakes like Arapa, Lagunillas and Saracocha, in the Andean highlands of Bolivia and Peru. In reference to its excessive amounts of skin, it has jokingly been referred to as the Titicaca scrotum (water) frog.
It is closely related to the more widespread and semiaquatic marbled water frog (T. marmoratus), which also occurs in shallow, coastal parts of Lake Titicaca, but lacks the excessive skin and it is generally smaller (although overlapping in size with some forms of the Titicaca water frog). (Full article...) - Image 22Vicuña in the Atacama Desert
The vicuña (Lama vicugna) or vicuna (both /vɪˈkuːnjə/, very rarely spelled vicugna, its former genus name) is one of the two wild South American camelids, which live in the high alpine areas of the Andes, the other being the guanaco, which lives at lower elevations. Vicuñas are relatives of the llama, and are now believed to be the wild ancestor of domesticated alpacas, which are raised for their coats. Vicuñas produce small amounts of extremely fine wool, which is very expensive because the animal can only be shorn every three years and has to be caught from the wild. When knitted together, the product of the vicuña's wool is very soft and warm. The Inca valued vicuñas highly for their wool, and it was against the law for anyone but royalty to wear vicuña garments; today, the vicuña is the national animal of Peru and appears on the Peruvian coat of arms.
Both under the rule of the Inca and today, vicuñas have been protected by law, but they were heavily hunted in the intervening period. At the time they were declared endangered in 1974, only about 6,000 animals were left. Today, the vicuña population has recovered to about 350,000, and although conservation organizations have reduced its level of threat classification, they still call for active conservation programs to protect populations from poaching, habitat loss, and other threats. (Full article...) - Image 23Paruma is a stratovolcano that lies on the border of Bolivia and Chile. It is part of a ridge that contains several stratovolcanos. Paruma lies at the eastern end of the ridge, with Olca to its west. The older volcano Paruma lies to east of Paruma. Paruma has clearly been active during the Holocene, with many morphologically young lava flows on its flanks. It also has persistent fumaroles. One lava flow in particular extends for 7 kilometres to the south-east of the peak. Historical activity along the ridge has been confined to one eruption from 1865 to 1867, the character of which is not precisely known. (Full article...)
- Image 24
Telmatobius is a genus of frogs native to the Andean highlands in South America, where they are found in Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, northwestern Argentina and northern Chile. It is the only genus in the family Telmatobiidae. Some sources recognize Batrachophrynus as a valid genus distinct from Telmatobius. (Full article...) - Image 25
Hudson Volcano (Spanish: Volcán Hudson, Spanish: Cerro Hudson, Monte Hudson) is a volcano in the rugged mountains of southern Chile. Lying in the Southern Volcanic Zone of the Andes, it was formed by the subduction of the oceanic Nazca Plate under the continental South American Plate. The Nazca Plate ends there at the Chile Triple Junction; south of Hudson is a smaller volcano, followed by a long gap without active volcanoes that separates the Southern Volcanic Zone from the Austral Volcanic Zone. Hudson has the form of a 10-kilometre-wide (6-mile) volcanic caldera filled with ice. The Huemules Glacier emerges from the northwestern side of the caldera. The volcano has erupted rocks ranging from basalt to rhyolite, but large parts of the caldera are formed by non-volcanic rocks.
The volcano erupted numerous times in the late Pleistocene and Holocene, forming widespread tephra deposits both in the proximity of Hudson and in the wider region, and is the most active volcano in the region. The last eruption was in 2011. (Full article...)
Did you know...
- ... that the 1930s Polish Andean expeditions have been credited with several first ascents and the tracing of a new route to the summit of Aconcagua, the Andes' highest peak?
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Selected images
- Image 1Pico Humboldt at sunset (from Andes)
- Image 3Aerial view of Valle Carbajal in the Tierra del Fuego. The Andes range is about 200 km (124 mi) wide throughout its length, except in the Bolivian flexure where it is about 640 kilometres (398 mi) wide. (from Andes)
- Image 4A male Andean cock-of-the-rock, a species found in humid Andean forests and the national bird of Peru (from Andes)
- Image 5Central Andes (from Andes)
- Image 8Irrigating land in the Peruvian Andes (from Andes)
- Image 13Bolivian Andes (from Andes)
- Image 14Huayna Potosí, Bolivia (from Andes)
- Image 16Peruvian farmers sowing maize and beans (from Andes)
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