Purico Complex
Encyclopedia
The Purico Complex is a pyroclastic shield
located in the eastern part of the Atacama desert
in Chile
's II Region (Antofagasta
), approximately 5 km (3 mi) south of the Bolivia
- Chile border. The complex covers an area of roughly 20 km (12 mi) x 30 km (19 mi) and is conformed by 12 subsidiaries, including stratovolcano
es, lava domes and a maar
.
Pyroclastic shield
In volcanology, a pyroclastic shield or terrestrial ignimbrite shield is an uncommon type of shield volcano. Unlike most shield volcanoes, pyroclastic shields are formed mostly of pyroclastic and highly explosive eruptions rather than relatively fluid basaltic lava issuing from vents or fissures on...
located in the eastern part of the Atacama desert
Atacama Desert
The Atacama Desert is a plateau in South America, covering a strip of land on the Pacific coast, west of the Andes mountains. It is, according to NASA, National Geographic and many other publications, the driest desert in the world...
in Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
's II Region (Antofagasta
Antofagasta Region
The II Antofagasta Region is one of Chile's fifteen first-order administrative divisions. It comprises three provinces, Antofagasta, El Loa and Tocopilla...
), approximately 5 km (3 mi) south of the Bolivia
Bolivia
Bolivia officially known as Plurinational State of Bolivia , is a landlocked country in central South America. It is the poorest country in South America...
- Chile border. The complex covers an area of roughly 20 km (12 mi) x 30 km (19 mi) and is conformed by 12 subsidiaries, including stratovolcano
Stratovolcano
A stratovolcano, also known as a composite volcano, is a tall, conical volcano built up by many layers of hardened lava, tephra, pumice, and volcanic ash. Unlike shield volcanoes, stratovolcanoes are characterized by a steep profile and periodic, explosive eruptions...
es, lava domes and a maar
Maar
A maar is a broad, low-relief volcanic crater that is caused by a phreatomagmatic eruption, an explosion caused by groundwater coming into contact with hot lava or magma. A maar characteristically fills with water to form a relatively shallow crater lake. The name comes from the local Moselle...
.
Subsidiary features
- StratovolcanoStratovolcanoA stratovolcano, also known as a composite volcano, is a tall, conical volcano built up by many layers of hardened lava, tephra, pumice, and volcanic ash. Unlike shield volcanoes, stratovolcanoes are characterized by a steep profile and periodic, explosive eruptions...
- Cerro Purico - 5703 m (18,711 ft)
- Cerros de Macón - 5130 m (16,831 ft)
- Cerro TocoCerro TocoCerro Toco is a stratovolcano located in the eastern part of the Atacama desert in Chile's II Region , approximately south of the border between Bolivia and Chile and SE of the Juriques and Licancabur volcanoes...
- 5604 m (18,386 ft)
- MaarMaarA maar is a broad, low-relief volcanic crater that is caused by a phreatomagmatic eruption, an explosion caused by groundwater coming into contact with hot lava or magma. A maar characteristically fills with water to form a relatively shallow crater lake. The name comes from the local Moselle...
- Alitar - 5346 m (17,539 ft) m
- Lava domeLava dome|250px|thumb|right|Image of the [[rhyolitic]] lava dome of [[Chaitén Volcano]] during its 2008–2009 eruption.In volcanology, a lava dome is a roughly circular mound-shaped protrusion resulting from the slow extrusion of viscous lava from a volcano...
- Cerro Agua Amarga - 5058 m (16,594 ft)
- Cerro Áspero - 5262 m (17,264 ft)
- Cerro Chajnantor - 5639 m (18,501 ft)
- Cerro El Chascón - 5703 m (18,711 ft)
- Cerro Negro - 5016 m (16,457 ft)
- Cerro Putas - 5462 m (17,920 ft)
See also
- List of volcanoes in Chile
- Cerro TocoCerro TocoCerro Toco is a stratovolcano located in the eastern part of the Atacama desert in Chile's II Region , approximately south of the border between Bolivia and Chile and SE of the Juriques and Licancabur volcanoes...
- pyroclastic shieldPyroclastic shieldIn volcanology, a pyroclastic shield or terrestrial ignimbrite shield is an uncommon type of shield volcano. Unlike most shield volcanoes, pyroclastic shields are formed mostly of pyroclastic and highly explosive eruptions rather than relatively fluid basaltic lava issuing from vents or fissures on...
- IgnimbriteIgnimbriteAn ignimbrite is the deposit of a pyroclastic density current, or pyroclastic flow, a hot suspension of particles and gases that flows rapidly from a volcano, driven by a greater density than the surrounding atmosphere....
- LicancaburLicancaburLicancabur is a highly symmetrical stratovolcano on the southernmost part of the border between Chile and Bolivia. It is located just southwest of Laguna Verde in Bolivia. The volcano dominates the landscape of the Salar de Atacama area...
- JuriquesJuriquesJuriques is a stratovolcano on the border between Bolivia and Chile. It is located immediately southeast of Licancabur volcano and has a summit crater 1.5 km in its longest diameter. Laguna Verde lies at the foot of this volcano....
- Laguna Verde (Bolivia)
- San Pedro de AtacamaSan Pedro de AtacamaSan Pedro de Atacama is a Chilean town and commune in El Loa Province, Antofagasta Region. It is located east of Antofagasta, some 106 km southeast of Calama and the Chuquicamata copper mine, overlooking the Licancabur volcano. It features a significant archeological museum, the R. P...
- Llano de Chajnantor ObservatoryLlano de Chajnantor ObservatoryLlano de Chajnantor Observatory is an astronomical observatory located at an altitude of 5,104 m in the Chilean Atacama desert, 50 kilometers to the east of San Pedro de Atacama. It is a very dry site - inhospitable to humans - but an excellent site for submillimetre astronomy...
- NANTEN2 ObservatoryNANTEN2 ObservatoryThe NANTEN2 Observatory is a southern sky observatory in the Atacama Desert of northern Chile. It is located at an altitude of on Pampa la Bola next to Cerro Chajnantor. The observatory is equipped with a millimeter and submillimeter wave telescope that is used for southern sky observations of...