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Argentina, the second largest country in South America, eighth largest in the world. Located on the southeastern shore of South America, Argentina is bordered to the east by the Atlantic Ocean and Uruguay. To the north lie the Countries of Bolivia and Paraguay. On the west is the longest border of Argentina, the border with Chile. From north to south Argentina covers almost 3200 miles and traveling east to west a distance of 870 miles. The capital of Argentina is Buenos Aires, with a population of 13 million people compared to the total population of 40 million people of Argentina. The official language being Spanish.
Argentina, meaning “land of silver” is made up of 6 distinctly different geographically regions.
Cuyo home to some of the world’s tallest mountains, the Andes, the highest point in all of Argentina, is the mountain peak of Aconcagua. Located in Mendoza and San Juan provinces, along the Chilean border, Aconcaguais is the largest in the western hemisphere standing 22,834 feet tall. Cuyo is also home to 80% of Argentina’s wine production, with little rain and arid soil the region has become known for its world class wines.
Mesopotamia: Surrounded in rainforest, the land between the rivers Uruguay and Parana is called Mesopotamia. A rich and fertile flat plain that is hot, muggy and very swampy during the summer months. It is here that the two rivers join to form the Iguazu River. The waterfalls of Iguazu form a large horseshoe or u shape, called Garganta del Diablo (Devils throat), for over a mile and a half of 275 spectacular drops.
Pampas: From the Atlantic in east to the Andes in the west are large rolling plains known as Pampas, rich in agriculture and farming is home to the gaucho, Argentina’s version of the American cowboy. The area is divided into 2 sections; the Dry Pampas in the west is used mainly for cattle, and the Humid Pampas covering the provinces of Buenos Aires, Santa Fe and Cordoba is very flat and fertile.
Gran Chaco, covers the provinces of Chaco and Formosa, lies in the northern part of Argentina east of the Andes and west of the Paraguay River. The dry Chaco, located close to the Andes is dry and almost void of vegetation. To the east, the Humid Chaco is a large flat landscape covered with grasses and thorn bushes.
Northwest, valleys and mountain ranges with some peaks reaching upwards of 20,000 feet and valleys cut by fertile rivers make up this region. The Tropic of Cancer cuts through the northern provinces of Salta, Tucuman and Catamarca. Cattle and mining make up the economy of this region, with the largest copper mine in the world being found in the province of Catamarca.
Patagonia, located in the southern portion of Argentina this area also extends into Chile; the region takes its name from patagon (giants) which was given to the natives by Magellan who thought the natives were giants. The Andes run through the area to the south and west as they make there way to the southernmost point of South America. The provinces of Neuquen, Chubut, Santa Cruz, Rio Negro and Tierra del Fuego are found in this region. Tierra del Fuego (land of fire) which is separated from the mainland of Argentina is separated by the Straits of Magellan. To the north are low lying plains and beaches rising to the south to mountains and valleys with glaciers.
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