Antofalla
Antofalla | |
---|---|
Highest point | |
Elevation | 6,409 m (21,027 ft)[1] |
Prominence | 1,957 m (6,421 ft) |
Coordinates | 25°33′S 67°53′W / 25.550°S 67.883°W[1] |
Geography | |
Location | Pre-Columbian (before 1500) |
Antofalla is a
Antofalla and other Andean volcanoes form because the Nazca Plate is subducting beneath the South American Plate. Antofalla volcano is located in a region with a "basins and ranges" topography, where during the Miocene ranges were uplifted and basins formed through tectonic movement. It sits on a basement formed by Eocene-Miocene sedimentary units over a much older crystalline basement.
Antofalla is formed by a principal volcano, the 6,409-metre (21,027 ft) high Antofalla volcano proper, and a surrounding complex of smaller volcanic systems that are formed by
Name
The mountain is first attested in a map of 1900 as Antofaya, although an earlier map in 1632 uses the name Antiofac for the whole region.
Geography and structure
Antofalla lies in the
Antofalla is part of the
Antofalla is a cluster of
A number of other centres developed around the main Antofalla volcano, forming a 50-kilometre (31 mi) wide volcanic area;[20][1] counterclockwise from the north these are:[10][23]
- 5,804-metre (19,042 ft) high[24] Cerro Onas
- 5,765-metre (18,914 ft) high[24] Cerro Patos (with the neighbouring 5,761-metre (18,901 ft) high Cerro Ojo de Antofalla[12])
- 5,704-metre (18,714 ft)[25] or 5,783-metre (18,973 ft)[26] high Cerro Lila
- 5,700-metre (18,700 ft)[27] or 5,787-metre (18,986 ft)[26] high Cerro Cajeros
- 5,750-metre (18,860 ft)[27] or 5,785-metre (18,980 ft)[26] high Cerro de la Aguada, also known as Cerro Botijuelas[28]
- Cerro Bajo-Cerro Onas
- 5,656-metre (18,556 ft) high[26] Conito de Antofalla.
These volcanic centres overlap with each other,
The Salar de Antofalla, one of the largest salt pans in the world,[21] lies southeast of the Antofalla complex.[30] It is one of many salt pans that developed within closed basins of the region and its surface lies at an elevation of 3,340 metres (10,960 ft);[36] other such salt pans include Salar Archibarca north-northwest of Antofalla,[37] Salina del Fraile south-southwest and Salar del Rio Grande northwest.[38] There also are several lakes such as Laguna Las Lagunitas on the northeastern foot of Antofalla, Laguna Patos west of Cerro Lila – Cerro Ojo de Antofalla and Laguna Cajeros southwest of Cerro Lila – Cerro Cajeros. Most of the northwestern flank of the main Antofalla volcano drains into the Salar de Archibarca, while the southeastern flank has drainages connecting it to the Salar de Antofalla through the (from northeast to southwest) Quebrada de las Cuevas, Quebrada del Volcan and Quebrada de las Minas; the latter two join before entering the salt pan[12] in a large fan, the Campo del Volcán.[10] Northeast of the Conito de Antofalla, the Rio Antofalla originates and flows southeastward into the Salar de Antofalla[12] in a large alluvial fan, similar to other drainages that enter the Salar de Antofalla.[39] Finally, south of Antofalla lies Vega Botijuela,[10] a hot spring that discharges 32 °C (90 °F) warm water at a rate of 2–4 cubic metres per minute (33–67 L/s),[40] and which has emplaced a 550 metres (1,800 ft) wide travertine.[41] There is a conspicuous travertine cone at Botijuela,[42][43] an extinct geyser. Other warm springs in the area are Vega Antofalla, El Hervidero and Te bén Grande; they may be nourished by thermal waters that ascent on faults.[44]
Geology
Off the western coast of South America, the
A fault runs in north–south direction in the western part of the Antofalla complex.[48] Many geologic lineaments control tectonics across the whole region, they direct the ascent of magma and the location of basins; some of these lineaments exist since the Precambrian. One of these lineaments in the region trends north-northeast and separates the Arequipa-Antofalla terrane from the Pampia terrane.[23]
Geologic record
The regional geography developed during the Middle and Late
The oldest volcanic activity occurred during the Permian and early Jurassic, and the present-day manifestations consist mainly of lava and pyroclastic material. During the Cenozoic, a number of now inactive volcanoes and ignimbrites, the latter of which typically have volumes of less than 10 cubic kilometres (2.4 cu mi), erupted in the region.[52] Only less than 15-centimetre (5.9 in) thick ignimbrites were deposited during the Eocene-early Miocene, probably from vents in the Coastal Cordillera.[19] During the Eocene, the subduction became shallower, moving volcanism eastward into the main Andes.[1] Volcanic activity dramatically increased during the Miocene, during which large stratovolcanoes and ignimbrites were emplaced; it is often not clear from which centre a given ignimbrite is sourced from.[19] Later volcanic activity was characterized by the emplacement of ignimbrites and of monogenetic volcanoes, which consist of cinder cones and lava flows with small volumes. Some of these cones are partially eroded,[53] other ones have a fresh appearance and these are as little as 200,000 ± 90,000 years old,[54] with even more recent (Holocene) activity possible.[55] While the Miocene phase of high activity was linked to a fast subduction regime, the monogenetic activity may be linked to delamination of the crust beneath the Puna instead[16] as well as with a change in tectonic regime that favoured crustal extension.[56] The transition between the two volcanic phases was characterized by a decrease in volcanic activity.[36]
The Juan Fernández Ridge was subducted in the region between 11–8 million years ago according to Kraemer et al. 1999. This may have generated a flat subduction profile and thus allowed volcanic arc-like volcanism to occur in the region behind the actual volcanic arc.[57]
Local
Antofalla lies in the Salar de Antofalla area[11] of the Argentine Puna, a high plateau located over a thick crust of the Andes. It is a basin and range-like region with volcanoes.[14] Before the Neogene the region was not part of the Andes proper, being located behind the mountain chain, and was integrated into the mountain chain by tectonic movements.[58]
Antofalla together with neighbouring Cerro Archibarca, Cerro Beltrán and Tebenquicho is part of a group of long lived volcanic complexes that developed in the Argentine Puna;[29][19] the first and the last of these lie due north and northeast of Antofalla, respectively.[23] All of them appear to be associated with a lineament known as the Archibarca lineament, which crosses the Andes in northwest–southeast direction,[53] and which additionally includes the Escondida ore occurrence[23] and the volcanoes Llullaillaco, Corrida de Cori and Galán.[1] This lineament may be an area where the crust is unusually weak.[53] Other such lineaments in the Andes are the Calama-Olacapato-El Toro lineament and the Culampajá one.[1] Seismic tomography has found a low-velocity zone under Antofalla, which may be an active magma body.[59]
The terrain beneath the volcano is formed in part by the crystalline
Composition
Antofalla has erupted
Magma genesis appears to involve extensive interactions with the lower crust, a process which at first gave rise to rhyolitic material; later the now heavily altered crust interacted less with newer magmas and thus a more basaltic andesite-andesite-dacite unit developed.[65]
Hydrothermal alteration has occurred on the southeastern flanks of the complex at Quebrada de las Minas and on Antofalla's western flank. operations:
- The latter three extracted on the eastern side of Antofalla in the old Los Jesuitas mine.[1]
- There are ruins of a gold mining settlement close to the town of Antofalla.[21]
- A map of 1900 mentions the existence of an Antofaya silver mine on the southeastern side of the complex.[2]
- A more recent map showing the existence of a mining site on Quebrada de las Minas.[12]
Mining at Antofalla goes back to 1700 at least,[66] and infrastructure includes mills.[67] Significant ore deposits may exist at the volcano,[61] but their deep burial in the poorly eroded volcanic complex hampers their exploitation.[68]
Climate, vegetation and fauna
Antofalla lies in a region of
Vegetation is scarce in the region. Where water is available,
Animals in the region include llamas, various rodents and vicuñas, as well as carnivores such as Darwin's rhea, pumas and South American foxes. Human hunters were also active in the region and have left a number of archeological traces, including projectiles[71] and trenches where hunters hid from prey.[72] The extreme climate and scarcity of water restrict human habitation to small areas, however.[8]
Climatological implications
During winter snow covers the peaks; meltwater formed during spring has cut
The main Antofalla volcano may have been glaciated during the Pleistocene,[30] but this is disputed especially for the lower mountains of the complex.[25] It is likely that in the past, more water was available and led to the deposition of alluvial fans at the margins of basins[32] although there is no evidence that a lake ever formed in the Salar de Antofalla, unlike in other salars farther north.[43] Indeed, the early Holocene was colder and wetter than present-day, and precipitation may have reached 0.5 metres per year (20 in/year).[69]
Eruptive history
The Antofalla complex has been active from the Miocene 11 million years ago into the Quaternary and has generated a large variety of volcanic rocks;[1] it is thus considered to be a very long-lived volcano.[73] The subsidiary peaks around Antofalla were all considered to be extinct by Ferdinand von Wolff.[28]
The first phase of volcanic activity occurred between 10.89 and 10.1 million years ago. At that time, eruptions covered the terrain beneath the volcano with ignimbrites of rhyolitic composition.[74] Subsequently, lava flows of mafic[a] to trachydacitic composition were emplaced, in part on top of the earlier ignimbrites.[76] Between 9.09 and 1.59 million years ago activity was continuous and dominated by lava flows of andesitic to dacitic composition, which constructed the main Antofalla volcano and the surrounding vents. Small felsic[b] eruptions generating lava domes and ignimbrites concluded this activity, with the ignimbrite in Quebrada de las Cuevas dated to 1.59 ± 0.08 million years ago.[77] Other volcanic units attributed to this volcanic complex are the Aguas Calientes basalt,[78] the Los Patos ignimbrite[79] of lower Pliocene age[80] and the Tambería Ignimbrite.[81]
Even later, several
Climbing
Antofalla is a technically simple climb and there are guides in the region. The main Antofalla volcano can be ascended in three days, although the paths are not always easy to reach by vehicle. Low temperatures and high wind are common issues.[21]
Notes
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Richards, Ullrich & Kerrich 2006, p. 198.
- ^ ISSN 1850-373X.
- .
- ^ Valenzuela, P. A. (1918). Glosario etimológico de nombres de hombres, animales, plantas, ríos y lugares, y de vocablos incorporados en el lenguaje vulgar: aborígenes de Chile, y de algún otro país americano. (in Spanish). Vol. 1. Imprenta universitaria. p. 38 – via Google Books.
- ^ Latorre, Guillermo (1997). "Tendencias generales en la toponimia del Norte Grande de Chile" (PDF). Revista Onomázein (in Spanish). 2: 188. Retrieved 21 January 2017.
- ^ Moreno 2012, pp. 104–105.
- ^ a b Moreno 2011, p. 18.
- ^ a b c Seggiaro et al. 2007, p. 3.
- ^ Moreno 2012, pp. 104, 105.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-8137-0013-7.
- ^ a b Kraemer et al. 1999, p. 159.
- ^ a b c d e Richards, Ullrich & Kerrich 2006, p. 202.
- S2CID 134428867.
- ^ a b c Kraemer et al. 1999, p. 158.
- ^ ISSN 0716-0208.
- ^ a b Richards, Ullrich & Kerrich 2006, p. 199.
- ^ de Silva et al. 1993, p. 307.
- ^ ISSN 0009-2541.
- ^ a b c d e f Kraemer et al. 1999, p. 170.
- ^ a b c d "Antofalla". Global Volcanism Program. Smithsonian Institution. Retrieved 2018-07-14.
- ^ a b c d "Polo Puna". Turismo Catamarca (in Spanish). Catamarca Province. Retrieved 20 January 2018.
- ISSN 0718-6894.
- ^ a b c d Richards, Ullrich & Kerrich 2006, p. 201.
- ^ a b Grosse, Guzmán & Petrinovic 2017, p. 506.
- ^ a b Haselton, Hilley & Strecker 2002, p. 221.
- ^ a b c d Grosse, Guzmán & Petrinovic 2017, p. 507.
- ^ a b Haselton, Hilley & Strecker 2002, p. 217.
- ^ a b c d Von Wolff, F (1929). Der Volcanismus II Band: Spezieller Teil 1 Teil Die Neue Welt (Pazifische Erdhalfte) der Pazifische Ozean und Seine Randgebiete (in German). Stuttgart: Ferdinand Enke. p. 350.
- ^ a b Grosse, Guzmán & Petrinovic 2017, p. 493.
- ^ a b c d e f Richards, Ullrich & Kerrich 2006, p. 203.
- ^ a b Richards, Ullrich & Kerrich 2006, p. 206.
- ^ a b c d Richards, Ullrich & Kerrich 2006, p. 207.
- ^ Seggiaro et al. 2007, p. 45.
- .
- ISSN 0040-1951.
- ^ ISSN 0716-0208.
- ^ Risse et al. 2008, p. 4.
- ^ a b Seggiaro et al. 2007, p. 43.
- ^ Seggiaro et al. 2007, p. 46.
- SEGEMAR. p. 79. Archived from the original(PDF) on 22 January 2018. Retrieved 21 January 2018.
- ^ Varejão et al. 2022, p. 23.
- ^ Varejão et al. 2022, p. 25.
- ^ a b Seggiaro et al. 2007, p. 47.
- ^ Paoli, H.; Bianchi, A. R.; Yáñez, C. E.; Volante, J. N.; Fernández, D. R.; Mattalía, M. C.; Noé, Y. E. (2002). Recursos Hídricos de la Puna, valles y Bolsones áridos del Noroeste Argentino (PDF) (Report). Convenio INTA EEA Salta-CIED, 274 (in Spanish). p. 169.
- ^ a b c de Silva et al. 1993, p. 305.
- ^ de Silva et al. 1993, p. 309.
- ^ de Silva et al. 1993, p. 306.
- ^ Richards, Ullrich & Kerrich 2006, p. 200.
- ^ Kraemer et al. 1999, p. 161.
- ^ Kraemer et al. 1999, p. 178.
- ^ Risse et al. 2008.
- ^ Kraemer et al. 1999, p. 169.
- ^ a b c Kraemer et al. 1999, p. 171.
- ^ Kraemer et al. 1999, p. 172.
- ^ ISBN 9780444531179.
- ^ Risse et al. 2008, p. 1.
- ^ Kraemer et al. 1999, pp. 177, 178.
- ^ Kraemer et al. 1999, p. 173.
- S2CID 208527680.
- ^ Seggiaro et al. 2007, p. 4.
- ^ a b c d Richards, Ullrich & Kerrich 2006, p. 204.
- ^ Grosse, Guzmán & Petrinovic 2017, p. 494.
- ^ Seggiaro et al. 2007, p. 30.
- ^ Richards, Ullrich & Kerrich 2006, pp. 204, 205.
- ^ Richards, Ullrich & Kerrich 2006, pp. 234, 235.
- ISSN 0328-2325.
- ^ Cienfuegos, Francisco Solano Asta-Buruaga y (1899). Diccionario geográfico de la República de Chile (in Spanish). Imp. de F. A. Brockhaus. p. 43.
- ^ Richards, Ullrich & Kerrich 2006, p. 234.
- ^ a b c Moreno 2012, p. 107.
- ^ Haselton, Hilley & Strecker 2002, p. 211.
- ^ Moreno 2011, p. 19.
- ^ Moreno 2011, p. 24.
- ^ Risse et al. 2008, p. 2.
- ^ Richards, Ullrich & Kerrich 2006, p. 219.
- ^ ISBN 9783642112713
- ^ Richards, Ullrich & Kerrich 2006, pp. 219, 220.
- ^ a b Richards, Ullrich & Kerrich 2006, p. 220.
- ^ Fajardo et al. 2014, p. 17.
- ^ Fajardo et al. 2014, p. 232.
- ^ Seggiaro et al. 2007, p. 32.
- ^ Fajardo et al. 2014, p. 411.
- S2CID 129450763.
- ISBN 9781118668788.
- JSTOR 3673119.
Sources
- de Silva, Shanaka L.; Davidson, Jon P.; Croudace, Ian W.; Escobar, Angel (March 1993). "Volcanological and petrological evolution of Volcan Tata Sabaya, SW Bolivia". Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research. 55 (3–4): 305–335. ISSN 0377-0273.
- Fajardo, Dante; Isla, Federico; Iriondo, Martín; Krohling, Daniela (2014). "Lexico estratigráfico de la Argentina: Cuaternario" (PDF) (in Spanish). Asociación Geológica Argentina. Archived from the original (PDF) on 9 May 2016. Retrieved 21 January 2018.
- Grosse, Pablo; Guzmán, Silvina; Petrinovic, Ivan (2017). "Volcanes compuestos cenozoicos del Noroeste Argentino" (PDF). ResearchGate (in Spanish). Retrieved 20 January 2018.
- Haselton, Kirk; Hilley, George; Strecker, Manfred R. (2002). "Average Pleistocene Climatic Patterns in the Southern Central Andes: Controls on Mountain Glaciation and Paleoclimate Implications" (PDF). The Journal of Geology. 110 (2): 211–226. S2CID 18111576.
- Kraemer, B.; Adelmann, D.; Alten, M.; Schnurr, W.; Erpenstein, K.; Kiefer, E.; van den Bogaard, P.; Görler, K. (March 1999). "Incorporation of the Paleogene foreland into the Neogene Puna plateau: The Salar de Antofalla area, NW Argentina". Journal of South American Earth Sciences. 12 (2): 157–182. ISSN 0895-9811.
- Moreno, Enrique Alejandro (11 December 2011). "Tecnología de caza en la Quebrada de Antofalla, Departamento Antofagasta de La Sierra, Catamarca / Hunting technology in the Antofalla Valley, Antofagasta de la Sierra Department, Catamarca". Revista del Museo de Antropología (in Spanish). 4 (1): 17–32. ISSN 1852-4826.
- Moreno, Enrique (March 2012). "The construction of hunting sceneries: Interactions between humans, animals and landscape in the Antofalla valley, Catamarca, Argentina". Journal of Anthropological Archaeology. 31 (1): 104–117. ISSN 0278-4165.
- Richards, Jeremy P.; Ullrich, Thomas; Kerrich, Robert (April 2006). "The Late Miocene–Quaternary Antofalla volcanic complex, southern Puna, NW Argentina: Protracted history, diverse petrology, and economic potential". Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research. 152 (3–4): 197–239. ISSN 0377-0273.
- Risse, Andreas; Trumbull, Robert B.; Coira, Beatriz; Kay, Suzanne M.; Bogaard, Paul van den (July 2008). "40Ar/39Ar geochronology of mafic volcanism in the back-arc region of the southern Puna plateau, Argentina". Journal of South American Earth Sciences. 26 (1): 1–15. ISSN 0895-9811.
- Seggiaro, Raúl E.; Becchio, Raúl; Pereyra, Fernando X.; Martínez, Liliana (2007). "Hoja Geológica 2569-IV Antofalla" (PDF). REPOSITORIO INSTITUCIONAL SEGEMAR (in Spanish). Servicio Geológico Minero Argentino. Retrieved 15 June 2018.
- Varejão, Filipe G.; Warren, Lucas V.; Alessandretti, Luciano; Rodrigues, Mariza G.; Ricomini, Claudio; Assine, Mario; Cury, Leonardo F.; Faleiros, Frederico M.; Simões, Marcello G. (October 2022). "Late Permian siliceous hot springs developed on the margin of a restricted epeiric sea: Insights into strata-confined silicification in mixed siliciclastic‑carbonate successions". Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology. 604: 111213. S2CID 251917064.
External links
- Biggar, John (2020). The Andes: A Guide for Climbers for Climbers and Skiers. Andes. p. 218. ISBN 978-0-9536087-6-8.