What are 3 facts about the Atacama Desert?

Below, we are sharing 10 Fun Facts about the Atacama Desert.

• Driest Desert in the World – Studies conducted by NASA have concluded that this desert located in northern Chile is in fact the driest desert in the world.
• Rainless (or just about) – Average rainfall in this region is about 1 mm per year.

How Atacama Desert was formed?

Why is the Atacama so dry? First, this desert is located in the “rain shadow” between two mountain ranges, the Andes and the Chilean Coast Range. Second, winds called the Pacific Anticyclone flow through this area. Those winds blow dry air into the Atacama Desert.

Why is Atacama the driest desert?

The Atacama Desert forms part of the arid Pacific fringe of South America. Dry subsidence created by the South Pacific high-pressure cell makes the desert one of the driest regions in the world. Rains fall in Iquique or Antofagasta only when powerful southern fronts break into the subsidence area.

What is the culture of Atacama Desert?

Atacama, also called Atacameño, orCunza, extinct South American Indian culture of the Andean desert oases of northern Chile and northwestern Argentina. The last surviving groups of the Atacama have been assimilated by Spanish and Aymara culture.

Why is Atacama Desert famous?

The Atacama Desert is commonly known as the driest place in the world, especially the surroundings of the abandoned Yungay town (in Antofagasta Region, Chile). The average rainfall is about 15 mm (0.6 in) per year, although some locations receive 1 to 3 mm (0.04 to 0.12 in) in a year.

Do humans live in the Atacama Desert?

Surprisingly, around one million people call the Atacama Desert home. Crowding into coastal fishing villages, mining areas and oasis towns. Inhabitants grow dry-weather produce such as olives, tomatoes and cucumbers, and herd alpacas for a living.

What is Atacama Desert famous for?

The Atacama Desert is the driest nonpolar desert in the world, as well as the only true desert to receive less precipitation than the polar deserts and the largest fog desert in the world. Both regions have been used as experimentation sites on Earth for Mars expedition simulations.

What is so special about the Atacama Desert?

The Atacama is the oldest desert on Earth and has experienced semiarid conditions for roughly the past 150 million years, according to a paper in the November 2018 issue of Nature. The average temperature in the desert is about 63 degrees F (18 degrees C).

Is there any life in the Atacama Desert?

The climate of the Atacama Desert limits the number of animals living permanently in this extreme ecosystem. Some parts of the desert are so arid, no plant or animal life can survive. Red scorpions also live in the desert.

What kind of people live in the Atacama Desert?

Atacama people

• The Atacama people, also called Atacameño, are indigenous people from the Atacama Desert and altiplano region in the north of Chile and Argentina and southern Bolivia.
• The origins of Atacameño culture can be traced back to 500 AD.

How does the Atacama Desert affect humans?

Surprisingly, around one million people call the Atacama Desert home. Crowding into coastal fishing villages, mining areas and oasis towns. Inhabitants grow dry-weather produce such as olives, tomatoes and cucumbers, and herd alpacas for a living. The desert is also famous for mining copper.

Is Atacama Desert worth visiting?

Atacama Desert is definitely worth visiting, considering the fact you can enjoy both stunning landscapes in Valley de la Luna and see rare animal species like vicuñas, and flamingos. Spending one week in San Pedro de Atacama during January is the best plan to visit Atacama Desert.

What is so unusual about Atacama Desert known for?

The Atacama Desert is a very, very dry place, making it ideal for stargazing. There are few clouds and no pollution. The sunset is otherworldly. The Valley of the Moon is where many people would go to see the breathtaking sunsets that turn the Andes mountain range in gold, red and pink.

Why is the Atacama Desert the driest desert?

The Atacama Desert forms part of the arid Pacific fringe of South America. Dry subsidence created by the South Pacific high-pressure cell makes the desert one of the driest regions in the world.

What are two characteristics of the Atacama Desert?

The Atacama Desert (North Chile) holds two world records of extreme environmental characteristics: the lowest rainfall and greatest surface ultraviolet radiation and total solar irradiance ever measured on Earth.

What is the Atacama desert’s geographic significance?

The Atacama Desert (Spanish: Desierto de Atacama) is a desert plateau in South America covering a 1,600 km (990 mi) strip of land on the Pacific coast, west of the Andes Mountains running through Chile and Peru.The Atacama Desert is the driest nonpolar desert in the world, as well as the only true desert to receive less precipitation than the polar deserts and the largest fog desert in the world.