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ATACAMA DESERT

July 30, 2016 By Howard Kramer Leave a Comment

Peru/Chile

The Atacama Desert is one of the highest, oldest and driest deserts on Earth.  It averages barely half an inch of rainfall every year, and there are some regions where no rainfall is recorded for years at a time.  Because of its altitude and especially dry conditions, the Atacama is a favorite destination for athletes, astronomers, filmmakers and (around Nazca) archaeologists.

The plateau that runs between the Pacific Coast and the Andes Mountains probably desertified about three million years ago.  The Nazca people, who lived at the extreme northern end of the desert in the 1st millennium AD, left behind great glyphs in the Earth that have been preserved thanks to the aridity.  The area was generally sparsely settled until the Spanish showed up in the 16th century to establish ports and mines.  Since 2000, the desert has become a popular location for extreme sporting events and races.

The Atacama Desert is the third driest desert in the world (after the polar regions) and probably the second oldest desert in the world after the Namib in Africa.  The area is so dry that manyof the surrounding mountains do not have ice caps.  There are many mining operations active in the area, but also many abandoned, so that much of the desert is littered with ghost towns.

The Atacama Desert draws a very diverse array of visitors.  Many tourists come to enjoy the unique beauty of the area.  The desert hosts a number of annual sporting events, from track and field to motor sports.  Several major astronomical observatories here are considered among the best such facilities in the world.  The amazingly preserved Nazca lines amaze scientists and the curious.  Web: N/A.

Filed Under: Desert Tagged With: Latin America

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About Howard Kramer

Howard Kramer is the creator and author of The Complete Pilgrim. He first took an interest in religious sites in his early twenties when traveling through Italy after college. In the two decades since he has traveled to more than two dozen countries and almost every state, visiting and photographing hundreds of the world’s greatest churches, synagogues and other places of religious interest. Howard has been writing about religious sites for the better part of the last decade, and The Complete Pilgrim is a culmination of years of his work and passion.

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Welcome to The Complete Pilgrim(TM)! This site, created by Howard Kramer, is a combination travel blog and online guide to the world's greatest sites of religious interest (with some historic and recreational places thrown in for good measure). All written content has been originally researched and produced and is provided free for public research and enjoyment. Thank you for visiting!

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Where would you like to go?

Africa (North) Africa (Sub-Sahara) Arabia Armenia/Azerbaijan/Georgia Australia/Pacific Austria/Switzerland Balkans Belgium/Netherlands British Isles Canada Caribbean Central Asia China Czech Republic Egypt France Germany Greece Hungary/Romania/Bulgaria India (NE)/Nepal India (NW) India (South)/Sri Lanka Iran/Iraq Israel Italy/Malta Japan/Korea Latin America Mexico Palestine Poland/Lithuania Russia Scandinavia Southeast Asia Spain/Portugal Syria/Jordan/Lebanon Turkey/Cyprus Ukraine US-California US-Mid Atlantic US-Midwest US-New England US-New York US-Pacific Northwest US-South US-Southwest

Contact Us

Have a comment, a great photo or a religious site you'd like to nominate for the weekly spotlight? We would love to hear from you. Email us at hkramer@thecompletepilgrim.com.

About the Author

Howard Kramer is the creator and author of The Complete Pilgrim. He first took an interest in religious sites in his early twenties when traveling through Italy after college. In the two decades since he has traveled to more than two dozen countries and almost every state, visiting and photographing hundreds of the world’s greatest churches, synagogues and other places of religious interest. Howard has been writing about religious sites for the better part of the last decade, and The Complete Pilgrim is the culmination of years of his work and passion.

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