The Atacama Desert
By Nerissa, Kate, Samantha and Nicole.
The Atacama Desert on Google Maps:
Chile's Atacama Desert runs for 600miles along the Pacific Coast with the Andes mountains as it's Eastern border, from Peru's southern border into northern Chile. Some parts of the desert are so arid that no precipitation have been recorded. No flora or fauna can survive here. However, on some hills and formations called Lomas, fog from the ocean provides enough moisture in these places for some specially adapted animals and plants to live and breed.
There are many threats to the Atacama desert such as:
The Atacama desert is the second driest place in the world (Antarctica comes first). Most areas in the desert only get moisture from an occasional fog or shower every few decades, the rain gauge at Calama has never recorded any measurable precipitation.The Atacama is a cold desert with average temperatures 0 to 25 degrees Celsius.
There are many threats to the Atacama desert such as:
- Urbanisation
- Pollution
- Mining
- Road Construction
- Livestock grazing
- Fuelwood collection
- Commercial Plant collection
- Erosion
The Atacama desert is the second driest place in the world (Antarctica comes first). Most areas in the desert only get moisture from an occasional fog or shower every few decades, the rain gauge at Calama has never recorded any measurable precipitation.The Atacama is a cold desert with average temperatures 0 to 25 degrees Celsius.