What is andes mountains

The Andes are one of the most sought after travel destinations in South America, especially for tourists who love high-altitude expeditions. These mountain ranges offer a playground for myriad outdoor adventures, including mountain climbing, stargazing, hiking, cycling, white water rafting, skiing, and horse riding.

Aconcagua is a must climb for anyone looking to stand on the tallest points of each continent, please contact us with any questions you may have about exploring the Andes, or explore our website, you may also be interested in; Aconcagua routes , Aconcagua weather , health and altitude.

Adventure Alternative. MD Gavin Bate , exploring the Andes. The Andes. Andes mountains facts: Where are the Andes Mountains? How long is the Andes mountains range? How high are the Andes Mountains? Andes highest peak? What is the climate of the Andes Mountains? How old are the Andes Mountains?

What plants grow in the Andes? In the southern end, in Patagonia, there are numerous islands as well which belong to the same mountain chain. The Andes are part of the larger American Cordillera, which is a near-continuous chain of mountains which extend north all the way through North America. Potatoes and tomatoes, two of the most widespread crops on our planet, originated from the Andes.

Over 3, different types of potatoes are grown in Peru alone. Coca leaves also famously originate from the western slopes of the Andean mountains. Although its derivative, cocaine, has brought about many problems in countries like Peru, the ancient Incas used to cultivate coca since before the Spaniards arrived.

Coca tea is served everywhere in the high Andes, and is the one effective reliever of symptoms of altitude sickness. Spectacular Salar Uyuni during wet season. Renowned for its incredible biodiversity, the Andes Mountains comprise three different main climatic zones, known as the Tropical Andes in the north , Dry Andes in the centre and Wet Andes, in the south. The ranges are home to an astronomical array of wildlife, including just under different species of mammals, an equal number of reptile species, species of fish, over 1, types of birds, more than 1, amphibians and way over 30, species of endemic plants.

The heavier oceanic crust of the Nazca plate is pushed towards the South American plate, and because it is denser is subducted underneath. The South American plate is less dense so sits on top of this subduction zone, but the rocks of the South American plate have been folded upwards and crumpled into fold mountains.

There are also Volcanoes and earthquakes along this destructive plate boundary - earthquakes caused by stresses building up as the 2 plates try to move past one another, and volcanoes caused by magma working its way up through vents in the Earth's crust.

This has created a sequence of volcanoes and fold mountains, rising up to m at Aconcagua. The trench marking the boundary between the Nazca and South American plates to the West of the Andes mountains is called the Peru-Chile Trench, and reaches an incredible depth of m under the sea level. These areas are very hard to live in because of the physical geography.

The relief is very steep making farming difficult, and the high altitude makes breathing difficult. The mountainous terrain make it difficult to construct roads and railways to allow for communications. Complete the chart on this sheet using the website links below:. Wikipedia article on Yanacocha gold mine. BBC article on the Yanacocha Gold mine. Info about a mercury spill at the Yanacocha mine. No Dirty gold website about Yanacocha.

The lack of oxygen at high altitudes and rough terrain made it hard for people survive. The mountain shepherds have survived at higher altitudes of 17, feet on a permanent basis because their bodies have been able to adapt, including changes to the makeup of their cells. The Incas managed to establish themselves in the Peruvian Andes in the 15th century, only to be wiped out by civil wars and disease from European invaders to which they had not developed immunities.

Their existence was largely undiscovered, save for some local residents, until July 24, , when the locals led Yale University professor Hiram Bingham to Machu Picchu , at an elevation of 7, feet 2, m in the Peru portion of the mountain range. Because it was relatively undisturbed, Machu Picchu provided a glimpse into the life of the Incas and scientists believe it served as the palace compound of Pachacuti Inca Yupanqui, who reigned from about to It now serves as a major tourist destination.

To survive in the Andes, animals have to be rugged, agile and be able to keep warm.