ELEVATIONA GEOGRAPHIC “BIG IDEA”

WITH MANY CONSEQUENCE IN

SOUTH AMERICA

Elevation is a big idea that can help us understandmany geographic patterns in South America

including the patterns of rivers, rainforests,

ancient empires, food production,

mining, tourism, deforestation,

and the locations of capital cities.Skip to

questionsection.

A satelliteimage shows

the majorregions.

The greenAmazonrainforest

The highAndes

MountainsThe dry

Patagoniangrasslands

Here isa simple

basemap.

Here isa simple

basemap.

Theequatorcrosses

the mouthof the

AmazonRiver

That fact is pure luck.

It’s a happy accident, however,because it makes it very easy

for us to remember the locationof the biggest river on the planet

(and also to find the equatorif a mapmaker forgets to put it on a map).

The highAndes

Mountainsform a wall

near thewest coast.

In the eastare low hills,worn-down“stumps”of oldercrustal

collisions.

Big Idea:The elevationof the land

in different placeshas great influence

on many other features of

South America.

For example,the Amazon Riverstarts in the high Andes Mountains and then flows

all the wayacross thecontinent.

While theParaguaydrains thesouthern

partIt’s also called

the Parana andRio de la Plata.

A dense rainforestcovers most

of the low landnear the equator.

TheInca Empire

startedin the highmountainsof modern

Peru.

TheInca Empire

startedin the highmountainsof modern

Peru.

By 1525it had spread

to covermost of themountains.

Then the Spanishand Portugueseexplorers and

missionaries came.

You can tell where they wentby finding towns

named after saints(San, Sao, Santa).

They alsonamed

many townsPorto or Puerto

(port).

As we said,the high

mountainsare along

the west coast.

That is wherenearly all

of the metalores are found,

. . .because

metal ores are associated with

the geologic processes that make

mountains.

ExceptAluminum –it is formed

from the soilin hot, rainy

environments.

In other words,in the low lands

near the equator.

Becauseit drains

so much landnear the equator,

the Amazonis a huge river –by far the largest

in the world.

Much of the landin the Amazon

watershedis rainforest.

The old, worn-down hillsnow have manycattle ranches(think McDonalds!)

It’s hard to raise cattle

on high mountainsor in hot lowlands,

even if you clear the forest.

It’s hard to raise cattle

on high mountainsor in hot lowlands,

even if you clear the forest.

Finally,note howelevation

influencedthe choiceof locations

for capital cities.

Half of thecountries puttheir capitalsright next tothe cooling

ocean water.

Three countriesnear the equatorput their capitals

high in the mountains

As much astwo miles

above sea level.

Three countriesfarthest fromthe equator

put their capitalson low land near rivers.

Brazil builta new capital

high in the hills –above 99%

of the country!

For comparison,here is the

United Statesat the same size

and properlatitude.

It’s “upside-down”because this partof South America

is south ofthe Equator.

Many placesin Chile

and Argentinaare similarto places

in the U.S.

Butno place

in the U.S.is like theAmazon

rainforest or the

high Andesmountains.

Butno place

in the U.S.is like theAmazon

rainforest or the

high Andesnear theequator.

This presentation was a brief look at some consequences of elevation,using examples from South America.

QUESTIONS SECTION

A satelliteimage shows

the majorregions.

What doesdark greenrepresent?

What doeswhite

mean?What does

this tan colorrepresent?

Here isa simple

basemap.

Here isa simple

basemap.

Whatbig riverenters

the oceannear the

Equator?

What rangeof high

mountainsruns nearthe westcoast?

Why arethe hills

in the eastmuch lower

than theAndes

Mountains?

Big Idea:

Why is elevationan importantgeographic

“big idea” ?

How does thearrangement

of high mountainshelp us understand

why the Amazonis the largest

river on earth?

Why does theAmazon rainforest

have very few people?

What ancientempire started

in the highmountainsof modern

Peru?

By 1525, theInca Empire

coveredmost of themountains.

What happenedthen?

All these towns arenamed after saints(San, Sao, Santa).

What does thattell us abouttheir history?

What abouttowns named

Porto orPuerto?

What aresome other

consequencesof mountains

along the west coast?

That is wherenearly all

of the metalores are found.

. . .

Why aremetal mines

often associated with mountains?

Aluminum isan importantexception –

do you know why?

It forms in the soilin the low lands

near the equator.

Review – what kind ofvegetationgrows in

the low landsclose to the

equator?

Much of the landin the Amazon

watershedis rainforest.

Why arecattle ranchesfound mainly

on the low hillsin eastern Brazil?

It’s hard to raise cattle

on high mountainsor in hot lowlands,

even if you clear the forest.

Why is it hard to raise cattle

on high mountainsor in hot lowlands?

Finally,note howelevation

influencedthe choiceof locations

for capital cities.

Why domany countries put their capitalsright next to the ocean shore?

Why do threeof the countriesnear the equator put their capitals

high in the mountains?

What isimportant aboutthe locations of these three

capitals?

What isthe storyabout this

capital city?

For comparison,here is the

United Statesat the same size

and properlatitude.

Why is theUnited States“upside down”

for this comparison?

Why didwe “flip” it backwardsto make thecomparison

better?

What countryis like

coastalTexas –

and why?

What areais like

Florida-

and why?

What small countryis like

Mississippiand

Arkansas?

What countryis like

Kansas?

corn in the rainier east,wheat in the drier west

What areais like eastern

Montana –cool and dry?

Patagoniais like

easternMontana –

cool and dry.

The centralcoastal area

of Chileis like

California.Why is thatimportant?

What stateis most likeCape Horn?

Why?

Why doesthe U.S.have no

place thatis like theequatorialrainforest?