/ The volcano in Chile. List of active and extinct volcanoes in Chile

The volcano in Chile. List of active and extinct volcanoes in Chile

In Chile there are a lot of attractions andinteresting places are deserts, lakes, glaciers, islands. The country is rich in national parks, monuments and exquisite architecture. But the volcano in Chile is a business card created by nature. Beauty during the eruption is fascinating, but it also brings a lot of destruction.

volcano in Chile

Education of volcanoes

On the surface of the earth's crust, on land and under water,there are geological formations - volcanoes. The eruption of the volcano is accompanied by the ejection of earth from the depths of the earth to the surface of magma, the motion of which occurs through faults of the earth's crust under the action of high pressure. On the surface, magma is converted into lava, volcanic stones, gases, pyroclastic flows. Lava can spill from the cracks of the earth's crust, forming lava fields, or through the vale of the volcano pour through the crater. Volcanoes adjoin to active sites of lithospheric plates. In the oceans, these are deep-sea trenches, and on land - mountain systems.

One of the states on whose territorythere are many volcanoes, is Chile. It is located in South America. Ochos del Salado - a volcano in Chile, located at an altitude of 6769 meters above sea level, is considered the highest in the world.

list of volcanoes
The volcano in mythology

According to ancient Roman mythology, Vulcan is a godunderground fire, patron of blacksmiths and artisans. According to legends, his smithy is located in the bowels of the land of Etna, and the giant cyclops help him. In Rome, he was given the cult of fire, erected temples outside the city, where the senate held meetings. In the name of the god Vulcan, the ancient Romans called the mountains, from which fire erupted and destroyed everything in its path. Every year celebrations were held in honor of the deity - volcanoes. Celebrations were accompanied by sacrifices and games.

In Chilean mythology there is a spirit which, like the Roman god, brings misfortunes, and the eruption of a volcano in Chile connect with it. The spirit is called Pillan. He lives in the "house of spirits" - the volcano Villarrica.

Chilean volcanoes

The state of Chile has an elongated form. On its territory there are two mountain systems: the Andes in the east and the Cordilleras in the west, stretched along the coastline. Through the country stretches the Pacific "fire belt", which includes a chain of volcanoes and a system of tectonic faults, the length of which sometimes reaches up to 40 thousand km. The peculiarity of the mountain system is that it has many active points in the earth's crust. In the list of volcanoes, both extinct and active, includes approximately2900 items. The peaks above 5000 meters above sea level are covered with snow. The mountain landscapes of Chile consist of the alternation of mountain systems and cones of volcanoes.

High seismic activity isa consequence of the geological structure. The eruption of the volcano in Chile occurs very often, sometimes several times a year. The most active volcano in South America is Lyaima.

volcanic eruption in Chile
Active volcanoes

Volcanic activity in Chile continues andToday. There are more than 40 active volcanoes, some of them are located near the cities. The eruption is very spectacular, and many tourists come to see this action. In addition, in the mountains a picturesque landscape - snow peaks and lakes.

In Chile, active volcanoes are naturalsights, and to them are laid tourist routes. You can go up to the crater - see the smoke rising from it and smell the emitted gases.

In Chile there are about 270thermal springs. Thanks to volcanic activity, most of the underground sources have a magmatic origin and a corresponding chemical composition.

Villarrica volcano

The volcano is located in the National ParkVillarrica, its height is 2847 meters, at the foot of the lake and the city of Pucon. The volcano erupted several times, and its last awakening occurred on March 3, 2015.

The top of Villarrica is covered with a glacier, and from itthe vortex constantly rises a column of smoke. This is the only volcano in Chile, at the bottom of the crater there is a basalt lava lake. Sites include lava caves, their peculiarity is that the walls of caves are fragments of lava that flowed out to the surface at the time.

There is a lot of vegetation on the volcano, it is populatedanimals. It is home to puma, South American deer, Chilean opossum, nosed skunks, nutria, South American fox. From the vegetation below can be found notafagusy, at the top forests from coniferous Chilean araucaria grow.

On the volcano there is a ski resort with slopes and lifts, so here you can still go skiing and snowboarding.

active volcanoes
Volcano Puyueu

Puyueu is an active volcano in Chile, it is locatedin the south of the country. Geographically, it belongs to the southeast of the Andes and is part of the chain Puyueu-Cordon-Kaulle. The height of the peak above sea level is 2236 meters.

It is believed that the volcano appeared 300 thousand. years ago, its last activity was recorded in 1960, since then it has not manifested itself. The last volcanic eruption occurred on June 4, 2011. It all began with an earthquake. In the earth's crust a crack appeared, from which the column of ash began to rise. The ash that escaped from the volcano covered the entire surface of Nahuel Huapi Lake, located in Argentina. The eruption of the volcano influenced the development of flora and fauna, vegetation was preserved only at the foot.

The Tupungato Volcano

The size and dimensions of volcanic massifsvarious. The largest of them is located in South America in the Main Cordelier of the Andes at the junction of the borders of the states of Chile and Argentina - this is the Tupungato mountain range. Volcano is located 90 km from the city of Santiago - the capitalChile. Its main peak has an absolute elevation of 6800 meters above sea level. This is the height of an extinct volcano. The active volcano is located to the south-east, and its peak corresponds to an altitude of 5,640 meters, has several craters in which activity is observed.

Tupungato Volcano

Parinacota volcano

On the territory of the Natural National ParkLauka in the northern part of Chile is the volcano Parinacota. Its height is 6348 meters above sea level. The last time the activity of the volcano was manifested in 290 BC. The volcano is considered dormant. On its slopes there are streams of lava flowing about 8,000 years ago.

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