What makes the atacama desert

Basically, there is an absence of rains and high evaporation. These natural, complex, and dynamic factors make the Atacama Desert an incredibly dry place. Nevertheless, this does not mean that there is no water.

There are numerous underground reserves which have accumulated over thousands of years and are still being investigated. In fact, the hotel Tierra Atacama gets its water supply this way, so as not to affect the water consumption of the locals of San Pedro.

This is just one of their sustainable initiatives to protect the native environment. It is important to note that there does exist an even more arid desert on the planet: the dry valleys of Antarctica. The impressive landscapes formed in the Atacama Desert not only amaze during the day with its beautiful sunrises and sunsets.

At night, these special geographic conditions allow for an absolutely clear sky. For this reason, astronomers from around the world have come here to study the universe, developing the most important network of observatories. We invite you to discover the marvelous scenery that the Atacama Desert has for you and your family. Meeting the locals in Quillagua Deserts are described as places receiving less than an average of mm of rain in a year.

The ghost-town of Humberstone Another benefit is that the absence of clouds makes the Atacama the perfect place to watch the stars! The clarity of the air has resulted in a number of observatories being constructed, the best known of which is the Paranal Observatory which Mark visited.

Despite its remote location, this place must have the best road in Chile! Val Vannet Would you expect to find penguins in the desert? Could there be penguins on Mars? Share this page. Comments Post your comment Sign in or register to comment. No comments to display yet. Jump to more content from this blog About this blog. BBC Scotland Learning will bring you diary updates of our latest developments, production tales and things we've been learning while out and about at schools and conferences.

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Scientists hope that studying the dry, dusty conditions of the Atacama will reveal secrets about the key to life in other parts of the universe, such as Mars. Researchers suspect that the microbes that inhabit the desert's hyperarid core — which slip into a sort of stasis during periods of aridity — could survive life on the Red Planet. On average, the driest part of the Atacama receives less than a millimeter of rain each year. In rare cases, torrents of rain do fall, and life responds.

In , wildflowers bloomed the aftermath of a dramatic downpour. Similar rainstorms were reported in March and August of Although the rains awakened fields of wildflowers, the floods had devastating consequences for microbial life in the desert, which has adapted to survive without water.

Many microbes in the desert's hyperarid core, for instance, burst after absorbing too much rainwater. Forgot your password? Get help. Password recovery. Atacama Desert. Dead Sea. Havasu Falls. Angel Falls. Both, in the day is hot about 35 c and at night is frezzing cold about c.

Atacama Desert Facts Country: Argentina. Coordinates: Area in square miles: 40, Beauty Rating: 4. Featured Photo.