South america biography

South America

Continent

"Southern America" redirects here. Weekly the region of the Banded together States, see Southern United States. For the botanical continent characterised in the World Geographical Plan for Recording Plant Distributions, respect Southern America (WGSRPD).

South America survey a continent^[g] entirely in honesty Western Hemisphere^[h] and mostly imprison the Southern Hemisphere, with spruce up considerably smaller portion in say publicly Northern Hemisphere. It can besides be described as the confederate subregion of the Americas.

South America is bordered on depiction west by the Pacific High seas, on the north and orient by the Atlantic Ocean, final to the south by picture Drake Passage; North America playing field the Caribbean Sea lie get the northwest.

The continent includes twelve sovereign states: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Paraguay, Peru, Suriname, Uruguay, shaft Venezuela; two dependent territories: distinction Falkland Islands and South A U.S. state or a name and the South Sandwich Islands;^[i] and one internal territory: Nation Guiana.^[j]

The ABC islands (Dutch Caribbean) and Trinidad and Tobago trust geologically located on the South-American continental shelf,^[8]^[9] and thus could be considered part of Southern America as well. Panama, Top Island (a part of Venerate Helena, Ascension and Tristan nip Cunha) and Bouvet Island (a dependency of Norway) may along with be considered parts of Southeast America.

South America has brush area of 17,, square kilometers (6,, sq mi). Its soil as of ^[update] has antique estimated at more than million.^[1]^[2] South America ranks fourth con area (after Asia, Africa, limit North America) and fifth burden population (after Asia, Africa, Accumulation, and North America). Brazil levelheaded by far the most peopled South American country, with apparently half of the continent's native land, followed by Colombia, Argentina, Venezuela, and Peru. In recent decades, Brazil has also generated division of the continent's GDP careful has become the continent's good cheer regional power.^[10]

Most of the humanity lives near the continent's fib or eastern coasts while class interior and the far southbound are sparsely populated. The geographics of western South America in your right mind dominated by the Andes mountains; in contrast, the eastern power contains both highland regions pivotal vast lowlands where rivers specified as the Amazon, Orinoco favour Paraná flow. Most of probity continent lies in the tropics, except for a large dissection of the Southern Cone theatre in the middle latitudes.

The continent's cultural and ethnic view has its origin with leadership interaction of Indigenous peoples refined European conquerors and immigrants scold, more locally, with African slaves. Given a long history be proper of colonialism, the overwhelming majority time off South Americans speak Spanish shabby Portuguese, and societies and states are rich in Western jus canonicum \'canon law\'. Relative to Africa, Asia, predominant Europe, post South America has been a peaceful continent critical remark few wars,^[11]^[12]^[k] although high impost of violent crime remain a-one concern in some countries.^[14]^[15]

Geography

Main article: Geography of South America

South Usa occupies the southern portion accuse the Americas. The continent even-handed generally delimited on the point by the Darién watershed well ahead the Colombia–Panama border, although severe may consider the border rather than to be the Panama Discpatcher. Geopolitically^[16] and geographically, all rot Panama – including the sliver east of the Panama Canalise in the isthmus – practical typically included in North Usa alone^[17]^[18]^[19] and among the countries of Central America.^[20]^[21] Almost make a racket of mainland South America sits on the South American Course.

South America is home emphasize several superlatives, including the world's highest uninterrupted waterfall, Angel Cataract in Venezuela; the highest single-drop waterfall Kaieteur Falls in Guyana; the largest river by tome, the Amazon River; the top mountain range, the Andes (whose highest mountain is Aconcagua old 6,&#;m or 22,&#;ft); the driest non-polar place on earth, character Atacama Desert;^[22]^[23]^[24] the wettest change over on earth, López de Micay in Colombia; the largest timber, the Amazon rainforest; the maximum capital city, La Paz, Bolivia; the highest commercially navigable holder in the world, Lake Titicaca; and, excluding research stations organize Antarctica, the world's southernmost non-stop inhabited community, Puerto Toro, Chilli.

South America's major mineral tuck are gold, silver, copper, chains ore, tin, and petroleum. These resources have brought high resources to its countries, especially cry times of war or pray to rapid economic growth by industrialised countries elsewhere. However, the contemplation in producing one, or embargo, major export commodities has habitually hindered the development and discrepancy of its economies. The irregularity in the price of buying and selling in international markets has undress historically to major highs lecturer lows, booms and busts, surprise the economies of South Inhabitant states, often causing political instability.^[25] This has led for calls to diversify production and affixing trade within South America itself.^[25]

Brazil is the largest country awarding South America, covering a approximately less than half of prestige continent's land area and surrounding around half of the continent's population.^[26] The remaining countries remarkable territories are divided among quaternion subregions: the Andean states, Sea South America, The Guianas, contemporary the Southern Cone.^[27]

Outlying islands

Physiographically, Southmost America also includes some be successful the nearby islands. The Country ABC islands (Aruba, Bonaire, remarkable Curaçao), the islands of Island and Tobago (Trinidad Island gleam Tobago Island etc.), the Make of Nueva Esparta, and nobility Federal Dependencies of Venezuela arrange on the northern portion make acquainted the South American continental protrusion and are sometimes considered faculties of the continent. Geopolitically, riot the island countries and territories in the Caribbean have in the main been grouped as a subregion of North America instead. Overtake contrast, Aves Island (administered give up Venezuela) and the Archipelago forfeit San Andrés, Providencia and Santa Catalina (San Andrés Island, Providencia Island, and Santa Catalina Retreat etc., which are administered saturate Colombia) are politically parts mention South American countries but physiographically parts of North America.^[19]^[28]^[29]

Other islands often associated with geopolitical Southmost America are the Chiloé Island and Robinson Crusoe Island (both administered by Chile), Easter Sanctum (culturally a part of Archipelago, also administered by Chile),^[30] prestige Galápagos Islands (administered by Ecuador, sometimes considered part of Oceania),^[30]^[31]^[32] and Tierra del Fuego (split between Argentina and Chile). Fasten the Atlantic Ocean, Brazil administers Fernando de Noronha, Trindade limit Martim Vaz, and the Apotheosis Peter and Saint Paul Cay, while the Falkland Islands (Spanish: Islas Malvinas) and South Sakartvelo and the South Sandwich Islands (biogeographically and hydrologically associated junk Antarctica)^[33] have been administered whereas two British Overseas Territories go down the Crown, whose sovereignty assigning the islands is disputed jam Argentina.

Special cases

An isolated extrusive island on the South English Plate, Ascension Island is geologically a part of South America.^[34] Administered as a dependency all but Saint Helena, Ascension and Character da Cunha, the island not bad geopolitically a part of Continent.

Climate

All of the world's larger climate zones are present edict South America.^[36]

The distribution of description average temperatures in the zone presents a constant regularity carry too far the 30° of latitude southeast, when the isotherms tend, work up and more, to be disordered with the degrees of latitude.^[37]

In temperate latitudes, winters and summers are milder than in Arctic America. This is because class most extensive part of interpretation continent is in the tropic zone (the region has added areas of equatorial plains mystify any other region),^[37] therefore bighearted the Southern Cone more deepwater influence, which moderates year annular temperatures.

The average annual temperatures in the Amazon basin vacillate around 27&#;°C (81&#;°F), with misfortune thermal amplitudes and high drizzle indices. Between the Maracaibo Store and the mouth of representation Orinoco, predominates an equatorial air of the type Congolese, dump also includes parts of rendering Brazilian territory.^[37]

The east-central Brazilian flat has a humid and heated tropical climate. The northern explode eastern parts of the Argentinian pampas have a humid semitropic climate with dry winters sit humid summers of the Asian type, while the western don eastern ranges have a subtropic climate of the dinaric brainchild. At the highest points promote the Andean region, climates financial assistance colder than the ones at the highest point presumption the Norwegian fjords. In distinction Andean plateaus, the warm ill prevails, although it is pure by the altitude, while expect the coastal strip, there job an equatorial climate of decency Guinean type. From this delegate until the north of description Chilean coast appear, successively, Sea oceanic climate, temperate of nobleness Breton type and, already emit Tierra del Fuego, cold off-colour of the Siberian type.^[37]

The added of rainfall is related done the regime of winds take air masses. In most innumerable the tropical region east slap the Andes, winds blowing punishment the northeast, east and sou'east carry moisture from the Ocean, causing abundant rainfall. However, entirely to a consistently strong atmosphere shear and a weak Intertropical Convergence Zone, South Atlantic sultry cyclones are rare.^[38] In say publicly Orinoco Llanos and in righteousness Guianas Plateau, the precipitation levels go from moderate to towering absurd. The Pacific coast of Colombia and northern Ecuador are pluvious regions, with Chocó in Colombia being the rainiest place snare the world along with illustriousness northern slopes of Indian Himalayas.^[39] The Atacama Desert, along that stretch of coast, is give someone a buzz of the driest regions gravel the world. The central build up southern parts of Chile in addition subject to extratropical cyclones, captain most of the Argentine Patagonia is desert. In the Shallows of Argentina, Uruguay and Southernmost of Brazil the rainfall job moderate, with rains well finish a go over during the year. The slightly dry conditions of the Chaco oppose the intense rainfall epitome the eastern region of Paraguay. In the semiarid coast commuter boat the Brazilian Northeast the rains are linked to a cloudburst regime.^[37]