Argentina is composed of nine geographic regions.
In Argentina there are four integrated regions formally established by the respective treaties interprovincial defined by having the appropriate size and scale to operate as a true operating unit in the international economy.
The province of Buenos Aires and Buenos Aires would form a fifth economic unit, although this was not yet formally agreed.
Pampeana region.
The Pampas is a great plain or plain relatively low altitude above sea level (the altitudes of this plain ranging from level 0 m sea-ocean to the east and up to about 500 m in its western areas becomes a peneplain) herbaceous temperate climate so it naturally abundant grasslands and prairie steppes gradually coming as it moves south and west, in the north-naturally change is a biome park contact the warmest and subtropical Chaco region. Historically it is the core of the country and remains as it has been mainly given Creole equestrian complex gauchos (approximately: from the mid-seventeenth century and late nineteenth century, although even livestock, mainly cattle brought from Europe and excellently maintained acclimated to pampeano biome relevance and therefore are valid gauchos).
Thus the Pampas region at present is the most important of Argentina, to the point of being called "The Core Zone" both economically, and politically and demographically. It represents approximately 75% of national activities. In the east bordering the rivers Parana, de la Plata and the Atlantic Ocean; in the North with the Chaco region, both the Pampas and the Chaco region share the same ancient large substrate geological however what the difference is the climate and for that reason between them noticeable to the naked eye, ecological and landscape differences, transitional or ecotone between the Pampas region or the Chaco region Pampasia and zone begins approximately the latitude of 31 ° S area where -of north- south were appearing increasingly thick groves of trees but typically chaqueños such groves have been cut almost entirely during the twentieth century, now visibly defined the boundary between northern and southern Pampas region of the Chaco area round the great salt lake called "laguna Mar Chiquita". In the West the llanísima itself Pampas region that borders the regions of the Precordillera and steppe (Pampa Seca); and in the South with the Pampa Seca and the Atlantic Ocean.
The Pampas region includes much of the Province of Buenos Aires (except for its southern end, between the Colorado and Black rivers), center and south of the province of Santa Fe, eastern Cordoba, Southeast Province San Luis and east of the province of La Pampa. A whole region since the late nineteenth century it has been categorized as one of the granaries of the world with its exports of cereals, legumes, meats, dairy and vegetables, provide food for much of the world's population. As a producer of food and population density the sector exceeds isohieta 500 mm / year and rich in humus called wet Pampa stands, the humid pampas largely usually nicknamed "the Pampa Gringa" because since the end nineteenth century much of its territory was intensively populated by chacareros from Europe, especially immigrants from Italy and Spain which so decisively influenced the Argentina gastronomy and other relevant cultural features typical Argentine (River Plate Spanish, tango, slang, different customs and traditions etc.).
Rainfall decreases from east to west by the lower influence of the sea and from north to south in the province of Buenos Aires. The wettest area is the northeast of the Province of Buenos Aires, usually with more than 1000 mm per year. In the West it drops to 200 mm annually. On the Atlantic coast, the climate is temperate coastal climate, low thermal amplitude. The phenomenon of La Niña whose core is far from Argentina since it occurs in inter-tropicalareas of the Pacific Ocean, but such current appears certain years distant causes in much of the American territory drought worrying.
The Pampas region has four sub - regions: the rolling pampas, the depressed pampa, high pampas and the (very old) Precambrian serrano enclaves Systems Tandilia and Ventania. They were eroded by wind. The Ventania, further south, is higher. These saws have outcrops of limestone that prey on construction. Falls sheer into the sea, precisely in Mar del Plata, at Cape Corrientes.
The depressed area belongs to the basin of Salado river of Buenos Aires, in which many gaps stand in your way. For example, the lagoon of Chascomús and Lobos.
The most populated area is the city of Buenos Aires and its suburbs. The coast of Rio de la Plata is very sparsely populated southeast of the cities of La Plata and port in Ensenada, especially in the Bay of Samborombón such almost depopulated coastal strip is a pocket of limited resources because the land is not fertile because It consists of soft, sandy soil and numerous cangrejales. South of the aforementioned bay coasts and fully oceanic (Atlantic facade of the Southern Cone) are usually equipped, like the estuary of the River Plate, cliffs moderate altitude (no more than 10 meters above sea level ) popularly called ravines, such canyons from the mainland are followed by wide sandy beaches and naturally preceded by dunes called dunes, the Atlantic coasts of the Pampas region were almost uninhabited by humans until the late nineteenth century change from the twentieth century and currently hold lot of cities and towns that have thrived mainly by tourism. The origin of the "canyons" coastal largely because they were the erosional boundary of the ocean whose level was considerably higher tens of thousands of years ago.
The surface of all the Pampas region in Argentina is 535 000 km² (equivalent to 19% of the surface of American continental Argentina) and its population in 2001 was 22,040,628 (equivalent to 61% of the national total).
Pampeanas saws.
This very ecotónica intemerdio region possessing a climate between temperate and continental climate pampeanas called high Sierras is located in the central-western sector Argentine
continental American country. Its interesting climatic characteristics and climate biomes derived from this uniqueness makes much of the Pampas Sierras present landscapes and other very similar to the Mediterranean climate ecosystem aspects although the reverse of the same major spring summer rainfall. Such a region is limited by -mediando ecotonos- Northwest regions, Chaqueña, Pampeana and Cuyana.
Structurally comprises the area of the Pampeanas, although included in this region Famatina system. As sub-regions can be distinguished:
the saws
the plains
the oasis
Saws linked to the bulk of Brasilia, folded in the Paleozoic, were subjected to intense erosion that became penillanuras, then affected by the Andean orogeny that fractured in blocks, of which some were elevated (saws) and other sunken ( fields).
Read also: The Republic of Argentina has 23 provinces and an autonomous city.The mountains are oriented north to south, presenting its western slope gentle slope ( "skirt"), while the eastern falls relatively quickly or abruptly ( "costs"); the ends sink into the surrounding plain constitute the tips and the contact line with level, this constrastado edge of the mountains to the plains called "the coast" but has nothing to do with current maritime areas.
The plains are interposed between the mountain ranges, the North are located at a higher altitude (2300 m) and in the form of circular or elongated pockets or valleys. On the surface of the plain contiguous sectors to pampeanas northern mountains are distinguished, in which sand and pebbles are deposited to these sectors plains are called fields. If it is a closed basin with flat bottom, a deposit of salt bed bordered by a swamp barreal or originates. The most important are located in the Santa Maria Valley, the field of Andalgalá of Bethlehem, the Talampaya and the pocket of Chilecito.
The Llanos region such as La Rioja is characterized by ease of communications with the Pampas and its low altitude. Depressions stay dilated salt as Pampa de las Salinas and Salinas Grandes. In the mountains of Cordoba dominated ancient mountain ranges and therefore relatively low (no more than 3000 m) and relatively rounded and between the mountains but ecologically valuable small plateaux called "pampas" (not to confuse with the huge plains of the Pampas region or Pampasia ), the best known of these highland plains are those of Achala, Pocho and the Olaen these high plains that lie between the peaks and where the granitic material, thanks to the condensation of moisture in them occurs throughout appears the year and the heavy winter snowfalls transform them into important natural reservoirs of pure fresh water to irrigate crops in the drier parts of the Pampas and provide drinking water to urban conglomerates (eg the large metropolitan area of the city Cordoba Argentina, Cordoba conurbation is in full transition zone of penillanura and pedemonte which is part of the intersection of geosets of the Pampas Sierras with this properly Pampas.
The formation of the relief impacts on climatic conditions, and although the region is subjected to the humid summer winds from the Northeast, at the northern end of the Precordillera the highest mountain altitudes with elevations reaching over are located 5000 meters above sea level such as in the Sierra de Famatina or Aconquija, the distribution of precipitation differs markedly, with the system Aconquija the most favored area, with higher rainfall 1500 mm. Presents snowcapped all year (called snow). Numerous rivers come down from their hills that take their waters to the river Salí or Dulce.
To the South and West rainfall decreases to the fields present in desert conditions expressed in the salt and a drainage network landlocked (endorheic). Temperatures vary with altitude and orientation: on the plains and fields the summers are very warm, with large daily temperature ranges; in the high valleys variations are less sensitive and milder summers. The atmosphere is dry and clear and less rainfall than 300 mm / year, but these conditions disappear on the slopes of the Eastern Sierras.
The vegetation presents characters consistent with the rains: in the mountains of Tucumán the mountain forest (practically a southern sector of the yunga) develops, to the South in drier areas, skirts have arboreal mountains where the carob tree predominates while in often undermines the slopes vegetation. Coconut palms frequently calls (though not give coconuts) and cacti ( "thistles") dominate large areas, being pure formations cardones. In the inland valleys, man's existence depends on water, if it is abundant in surface and irrigable soil, crop oasis arise;otherwise, shepherds positions.
They can thus distinguish three zones: the western fringe of extreme dryness, in which agriculture is unimportant and dominated ranching and mining.
The central strip, favored by the rains, has many dams and dikes;abundant agricultural oasis of diverse dimensions among which are: Andalgalá, Catamarca, Chilecito and Arauco. Crops are high performance especially vegetables, fruit, olive and vine. The mount provides wood and firewood and non-arable areas ranching is practiced. It is also important mining, excelling districts of Famatina and Andalgalá.
The third strip is the most favored by rainfall so it has more rivers where larger dikes (San Roque, Cruz del Eje, Rio Tercero) are located. Piedesierra plains, which are confused with the high Pampa, have higher rainfall, but depend on the mountains that provide the water for their crops. For its mild climate the third strip that includes the Sierras de Cordoba and the most fertile area of the Sierras de San Luis (eg the famous area of excellent microclimate around Merlo) for their mesology this southern Precordillera area it has received a very important demographic and cultural influence from Europe.
In this contact zone the most important towns where intensive agriculture is practiced arose, livestock aided with artificial prairies, mining and has great industrial development and tourism.
Whose.
Which limits the North with the Northwest region, east of the Pampas hills and the Pampas plains, the South with the Andean Patagonia and extrandina and the West with the Republic of Chile.
Three sub-regions can be distinguished:
1) The mountainous area, subdivided in Andes Mountains and foothills of La Rioja, San Juan and Mendoza
2) The oasis irrigation
3) the eastern plains.
The difference between the Andean Cordillera and Precordillera is fundamentally geological: the Andes geosinclinal are the most modern orogenic element, being an old marina, narrow and elongated basin, whose sediments were folded and raised to the greatest heights during the Cenozoic, with accompaniment of magmatic effusions.
Precordillera consists of Paleozoic sediments folded in that era and then raised by the Andean orogeny; Eastward it is separated from the Precordillera by a fracture line characterized by intense seismic activity.
Los Andes Aggregates or Central have two strands: the western, by which runs the Argentine-Chilean border, is almost continuous showing steps of high altitude, leads the watershed being born in glaciers in them located rivers that run through narrow valleys strewn with rubble. From the South of Mendoza and up to about 37 ° S, extends in the Andes of Transition have more snow (snow eternal) at summits and more vegetation by varying weather conditions.
The eastern cord, also called Cordillera Frontal and Precordillera, is presented as dashed by being cut by the transverse valleys of the rivers flowing from the west; in it are extremely high peaks (Aconcagua is the highest peak of the Earth outside the system of the Himalayas, Tupungato, etc). A series of narrow valleys locally called drawers, separating the two strands, characterized by high aridity although often covered with snow and mainly "eternal ice".
Among the Aconcagua and Tupungato the appearance of the ridge begins to change, vast glaciers and volcanoes appear south (Overo, Peteroa), accompanied by large expanses covered slag and lava fields.
To the east of the arid Andes a number of large longitudinal valleys (Rodeo, Church, Barreal and others) with predominantly coarse materials from the mechanical breakdown of the Cordilleran rocks are located, but have their very fine flat funds covered materials .
The Valley of Barreal is a basin without drain, the bottom of which is occupied by the barreal the Leoncito, while the Uspallata valley is crossed by the south by the river Mendoza. Here are a series of irrigation oasis, among which stand out Calingasta and Uspallata; They separate these valleys of the Andes foothills. whose summits lack of persistent snows.
A small number of rivers cross the Precordiliera by narrow valleys, at the end of which form extensive alluvial fans connected to the plains. This fine material has served as a seat to important crop oasis in the northern section highlights the Jáchal and the main southern area: San Juan and Mendoza, prolonged in Tunuyán. The rivers that run through these oases have been exploited for energy production and obtaining water for irrigation, highlighting the reservoir Ullum or Ullún.
In the middle of the desert and semi-desert areas of penillanuras calls cruises courses Southern freshwater from the melting of the Andean glaciers (eg the Diamante and Atuel rivers) have generated oasis irrigation have as prominent urban centers San Rafael and General Alvear. In the river Atuel, the topographical features (the existence of a deep canyon eroded by the river) allowed the construction of the reservoir Nihuil important energy production which justifies the establishment in the area of heavy industries.
The surface of the oasis is intended to growing grapes, olives, fruit and vegetables (eg garlic). alfalfa is planted to feed the cattle, and some cereals but in small areas, in terms of viticulture heliofania and continental climate of this region with its consequent water stress combined with good alluvial soils and irrigation with excellent freshwaters thaw makes the Cuyo and its surroundings is one of the areas most renowned worldwide for its production of wines (wines were introduced by the Spanish in the seventeenth century and taken to a premium level with the great Italian immigration followed by the French and Spanish late nineteenth century and the first half of sl twentieth century, after they have already in the late twentieth century and early twenty multinational wine producing important century (mainly French type) made Argentine wines of Cuyo among the most renowned in the world . Although also here ranching is developed with certain forms of small-scale transhumance, leading to graze cattle in summer to the mountainous area.
Mining is also very important, especially highlighting oil Tupungato also exploited copper (El Pachon in San Juan), uranium, lead, zinc, limestone and marble.
To the east the plains of sandy clay, soil aridity and reduced slope great extend. The few torrential rains eroded deep trenches that prevent landslides caused by displacement even with horses, forming the so-called "Huayquerías" adjacent to crossings, such as the Tunuyán.
Argentine Northwest.
Although the Argentine Northwest or NOA is a great cultural unity since pre - Columbian times, has an enormous ecological variety, mainly due to the step - down of altitudes from west to east, with climates and very contrasting landscapes: for example, the actual Andes with lot of very high (over 6000 m) extinct volcanic cones like Llullaillaco, then altoandinos and the high Puna plateau deserts including the high plateau of the Puna de Atacama, then the high Sierras Subandinas stands and then a strip ecotónica valleys and gorges which includes streams of Humahuaca, del Toro, Valle de Lerma, the Calchaquíes valleys, the tucumano tempered Tafi Valley with its winter snows, and then to subtropical and tropical yungas with its dense nimbosilvas (the yungas are the most biodiverse ecoregions in Argentina) and then move to the piedmont "pampas" that anticipate the park of the Chaco region.
Chaco.
The Chaco region is part of the South American Gran Chaco region.Its boundaries are the Pilcomayo River to the north, the Paraguay and Parana rivers to the east; the Salado River region south and west of the Argentine Northwest.
From east to west (and this is from wetter to drier) can be divided into two sub-regions, the eastern Chaco and the western Chaco (containing the Impenetrable), noted that the ecoregion does not correspond exactly with the traditional geographic regions in which is subdivided to the great Chaco region from south to north is distinguished: Austral Chaco, Chaco and Central Chaco Boreal.
Naturally this region, until the twentieth century, covered with dense subtropical forests of hardwood trees quebrachos, carob, -or- guayacanes palosantos, chañares, or relatively soft woods like Yuchán was existing in its east important palm groves of different palm species: yatays, caranday (dawns Copernicias) and Pindos and other palms, quebrachales were decimated since the early twentieth century to produce tannin European tanneries and instead deforested areas not planted were planted cotton fields were invaded by tributed vinales and quimiles, but this scenario already catastrophic deepened from 1990 as much of the Chaco natural forest cover has been removed or "chaqueada" to cultivate non-native legume and transgenic soya (now called popularly "the weed" is say "almost weedy grass"), such massive planting is an industrial crop that is eliminating biodiversity.
Its surface in Argentina is 440 000 km² (16% of total US Argentina) and its population was 2,932,772 in 2001 (8% of the national total).
Mesopotamica.
Mesopotamia Argentina is a relatively heterogeneous region as the missionary plateau crossed by low mountain ranges such as the Sierra de Misiones has more similarities with the Brazilian plateau, estuaries and lagoons of Ibera can be considered part of the Chaco and Entre Rios Province can be assimilated to the Pampas region or Uruguay.
In its entirety comprises the provinces of Misiones, Corrientes and Entre Rios.
Has four sub-regions: the missionary Plateau, the Esteros del Ibera and lakes, the entrerrianas Lomadas and Mercedina plateau and the Parana River Delta.
Until the twentieth century much of Argentina (or Megapotamia) Mesopotamia was covered by dense forests like Montiel in Entre Rios, of the Payubré in Corrientes and the already (despite its subtropical latitude) with tropical characteristics missionary jungle ( after the Gaza yungas, the missionary forest is the ecoregion most biodiverse highlighting the variety of plant species and native fauna, now such large forests are only some remnants to be cleared (as much of the Argentina forest natural surface) throughout the twentieth century and even more so far this century to give rise to industrial monocultures allochthonous such as GM soy. in Misiones Paranaense forest stands.
The surface of Mesopotamia is 196 000 km² (7.1% of the country) and its population in 2001 was 3,016,083 (equivalent to 8.3% of the national total).
West Pampa.
It is an area west and south of the Pampas region, which is transitional to Patagonia. mostly it has a continental climate, ie with large seasonal temperature ranges and even day / night, with frequent cold winters with temperatures below 0 ° C, especially at night, but still snowfalls are not as common suggest that temperatures as cold winds pampero type are usually dry after unloading much of its moisture in the Patagonian Andes, however there are frequent frosts. The vegetation is quite similar to that of the cuyanas crossings and the steppes of the extraandina eastern Patagonia, ie predominantly hard pastures xerófilos often stunted, but throughout the West Pampa has or has had a major forestry diagonal called "caldenal" area very flat deck extensive parks and forests that extends parallel to the river system alóctono and now occasionally exorreico Desaguadero-Chadileo-Chadileuvú-Curacó river whose headwaters are in the (hills) snow-capped Andes del Cuyo distant and snowcapped Precordillera, on the banks of the waterways tend to thrive dense fachinales or even menucos guadales found.
The eastern part of the West Pampa (practically on the border with happiness itself Pampas region) has ancient pampeanos valleys that descend fan from west to east, these valleys are remains of paleocauces as today in what would be the trough of each run no shallow river (although under the same rounded valleys, underground, coursing much of the aquifer Puelche), further west of the valleys are extensive plains such as La Banderita and in such small plains isolated mountains very old crystalline rock called Archean saws such eminences and mahuidas, among the most renowned of such mahuidas is the small but ecologically important Lihue Calel saw as its low altitude atmospheric moisture condenses and forms a sort of oasis pluvionival.
Patagonia region and South Atlantic Islands.
The Patagonian region comprises the part of the Patagonia Argentina and South Atlantic islands (such islands in dispute with the United Kingdom).
The vast Patagonia Argentina is subdivided according ecosystems and climates in an Andean Patagonia with perhumid climate due to heavy rainfall humid winds discharged onto the Patagonian Andes and to a lesser extent on the Chained saws and drumlins constituting the Patagónides, the east of the forest (plethoric coniferous tree species such as the giant pehuenes and lahuanes and fagáceas as lenga and Nire, to cite just some of the native tree species), Andean Patagonia is characterized by its "alpine" scenery with mountains always snowy, cold forests valdivienses and cold forests Magellanic (they are classified as "forests" because despite its appearance and its cold weather in certain areas, such as southern Tierra del Fuego abound several different tree species and understory), part of the Andean subregion Patagonian south of 45 ° S is covered by vast fields of perennial ice sheets and glaciers that now feed their waters into rivers almost all Patagonia during the Würm (makes ca only 30 to 11 thousand years) covered much of the Patagonia erosively carving glacial valleys and at the foot of these valleys basins that resulted after the end of the ice age, large glacial lakes characteristic of south-central Chile and Patagonia Argentina (Lacar Nahuel Huapi Lake Buenos Aires, Argentina Lake, Lake Fagnano etc.), east of the currently narrow wooded strip of Andean Patagonia (which was further narrowed the "clearing" of the twentieth century) the eastern Patagonia is located extraandina with climate very continental (even near the ocean) and therefore with little rainfall so in "modern" times its typical vegetations are xeric steppe and tussoks very suitable for the natural existence of guanacos but overgrazed with the massive inclusion of millions of sheep and goats, as overgrazing since the twentieth century it is causing desertification in Patagonia.
The southern tip of Patagonia extraandina (eg areas where fields Diana were located south of the Santa Cruz River), the Falkland Islands and the north of the Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego) are much more fertile areas because they have greater humidity why there are grasslands and tundra and peatland soils. Increased moisture in southern Patagonia extraandina favors the existence of large dam projects with hydroelectric aims on its major rivers, especially in the above Santa Cruz.
Moreover , the Argentina Patagonia is usually subdivide traditional and politically "North Patagonia" (the provinces of Neuquen and Rio Black) forming almost a geographical unit with Comahue covering southern Cuyo and the West Pampa, and the "South Patagonia "(provinces of Chubut, Santa Cruz and the American island of Tierra del Fuego and theFalkland islands, south of Tierra del Fuego is called Austrandia).
Northern Patagonia is characterized as" less windy "(owning less intense winds) and be at sea level much warmer than the "South Patagonia" example of this is quite warm resort of Las Grutas in full coasts of northern Patagonia, although in the northeast corner of the South Patagonia there are spas like Rada Tilly. to the southeast of the Falkland islands are the islands of subantarctic climate calls Antartillas, they possess a cold ocean climate given the triple influence of the current (very cold) oceanic Antarctica and the almost constant winds "howler" blowing with SO-NE direction from the South Pole and the influence of the Antarctic Convergence for many geographers is the limit of the Antarctic area; An example of this is the south of the islands San Pedro or South Georgia that often retain much of the floes and icebergs detached from the Antarctic ice shelf configured for that reason on the shores of these islands curious ocean microclimates with unique species of flora coast and fauna; for the same reasons many of the Antartillas, especially the subantarctic have a warm or cold climate and oceanic perhumid are covered with ice and tussoks areas and tundras. The costs of the Antartillas, Falklands and island states have been heavily carved by glaciers Würm so have abundant fjords and fringed estuaries of high cliffs (high cliffs or cliffs are also typical of almost all coasts Argentine Patagonia).
This refuge belongs to the Club Andino Piltriquitrón, was conducted in 1958, with wood that HACHO the surrounding forest. it should be noted that the original cottage was made entirely ax, roof shingles cypress. the height which is is 1300 meters above sea level , the limit of the high forest. From this point begins the stocky lenga and swivels. The first refugiero Ice Blue was Ramiro Uriarte, who was in charge of the care of the place for 11 years, from 1989 to 2000. During this period the original shelter was improved by refugiero, who installed a wood stove, made a mezzanine for people to sleep, did latrine and several parts to improve service. In 2000 changed the granting shelter those in charge are currently Lucas Angelino and Lucia Saquero . Since the beginning of the concession was significantly modified construction. Avalanches, landslides, etc ... naturally fallen trees were used, wind, to make wood for parts of the facility. Currently the shelter has running water, hot showers and baths from spring to late fall. During the winter amenities are restricted due to the harsh climate. it also has 12 -volt DC electricity which is generated by a hydraulic micro turbine and a photovoltaic solar panel nonpolluting, energy installed by the current refugieros. This energy is used to power a VHF system, some lighting and background music communications. The waste generated by the shelter are recycled, composted organic matter, separating cans, glass, plastic, for subsequent transfer to people or incineration at place. the service includes overnight use of the kitchen, which is fully equipped with dishes, hot shower and the bedroom features mattresses, but it is always essential to wear insulation for any eventuality.