Chapter 16 South America, Section 3 Chile - A Land of Contrasts

The Andes Mountains run down the length of Chile like a giant spine.

The Atacama Desert is the name of the dry region in northern Chile. This desert is one of the few deserts on Earth which does not get any rain. It covers approximately 600 miles along the Pacific coast of South America.

The capitol city of Chile is Santiago.

Many crops like wheat, potatoes and sugar beets grow in Chile’s long central valley.

Chile’s long central valley shown on the left side of this slide, also grows an abundance of corn, tomatoes & many fruit.

Mestizos make up 95% of Chile’s population.

Chile’s capitol, Santiago has a pollution problem. This is because of its location and industrialization

When copper prices dropped in the 1980s, Chile realized it needed to diversify its economy. They chose to sell more of its produce or crops, like wheat, potatoes and other vegetables and fruit around the world. This was known as an agriculture revolution. Copper mines in Chile

Fruits and vegetables are free of many common plant pests, in Chile.

Pests and animal matter are not found on Chile’s produce because of the Andes Mountains and the use of custom inspectors.

Reviewing Key Terms Ferdinand Magellan circumnavigate glacier Augusto Pinochet Ugarte

In 1973, armed forces took over Chile’s government, led by General Augusto Pinochet Ugarte. During his reign, Congress would not meet, opposing political parties were banned and people who spoke out against him were killed, imprisoned or disappeared. However, today, Chile has a democratic government.

One of Ferdinand Magellan’s ships was first to circumnavigate the globe, during his exploration from 1519 – 1520.

Circumnavigate means to go around, and in this case, around the world.

A large, slow moving mass of ice and snow is known as a glacier.