| Geography | Argentina |
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Location:
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Southern South America, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between Chile and Uruguay |
Geographic coordinates:
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34 00 S, 64 00 W |
Map references:
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South America |
Area:
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total: 2,780,400 sq km
land: 2,736,690 sq km
water: 43,710 sq km |
Area - comparative:
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slightly less than three-tenths the size of the US |
Land boundaries:
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total: 9,861 km
border countries: Bolivia 832 km, Brazil 1,261 km, Chile 5,308 km, Paraguay 1,880 km, Uruguay 580 km |
Coastline:
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4,989 km |
Maritime claims:
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territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin |
Climate:
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mostly temperate; arid in southeast; subantarctic in southwest |
Terrain:
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rich plains of the Pampas in northern half, flat to rolling plateau of Patagonia in south, rugged Andes along western border |
Elevation extremes:
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lowest point: Laguna del Carbon -105 m (located between Puerto San Julian and Comandante Luis Piedra Buena in the province of Santa Cruz)
highest point: Cerro Aconcagua 6,960 m (located in the northwestern corner of the province of Mendoza) |
Natural resources:
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fertile plains of the pampas, lead, zinc, tin, copper, iron ore, manganese, petroleum, uranium |
Land use:
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arable land: 10.03%
permanent crops: 0.36%
other: 89.61% (2005) |
Irrigated land:
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15,500 sq km (2008) |
Total renewable water resources:
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814 cu km (2000) |
Total renewable water resources - per capita:
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19,488 cubic meters per capita |
Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):
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total: 29.19 cu km/yr (17%/9%/74%)
per capita: 753 cu m/yr (2000) |
Natural hazards:
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San Miguel de Tucuman and Mendoza areas in the Andes subject to earthquakes; pamperos are violent windstorms that can strike the pampas and northeast; heavy flooding in some areas
volcanism: Argentina experiences volcanic activity in the Andes Mountains along the Chilean border; Copahue (elev. 2,997 m) last erupted in 2000; other historically active volcanoes include Llullaillaco, Maipo, Planchon-Peteroa, San Jose, Tromen, Tupungatito, and Viedma |
Environment - current issues:
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environmental problems (urban and rural) typical of an industrializing economy such as deforestation, soil degradation, desertification, air pollution, and water pollution
note: Argentina is a world leader in setting voluntary greenhouse gas targets |
Environment - international agreements:
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party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Marine Life Conservation |
Geography - note:
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second-largest country in South America (after Brazil); strategic location relative to sea lanes between the South Atlantic and the South Pacific Oceans (Strait of Magellan, Beagle Channel, Drake Passage); diverse geophysical landscapes range from tropical climates in the north to tundra in the far south; Cerro Aconcagua is the Western Hemisphere's tallest mountain, while Laguna del Carbon is the lowest point in the Western Hemisphere |
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