In fact, we will not talk about one mountain at all, but about the whole mountain system called the Andes (Andean Cordilleras). The length of this system is as much as 9000 km, width - 750 km, and the height at its highest point is 6962 m. It is located in South America, penetrating almost the entire continent from north to west through seven states.
According to the data that were obtained by scientists, the beginning of the formation of the Andes dates back to the Jurassic period, which began about 200 million years ago. Moreover, we are talking exclusively about the beginning of formation, since many deflections, massifs, etc. were formed much later. Moreover, the process of mountain building in the Andes is still going on.
The mountain system is rich in non-ferrous metals such as lead, molybdenum, vanadium, tungsten, etc. In the Chile region, there are large deposits of copper, gas and oil are hidden in troughs near Argentina and Venezuela, and Bolivia is rich in iron.
Since the Andes are stretched over almost the entire continent, both soil and vegetation covers are extremely diverse. So, here you can find plants such as palms, ficuses, bananas, evergreen shrubs, cacti, lichens, etc. In a word, we are talking about almost any plants that only grow in South America.
As for the animal world, there are about 600 species of mammals in the mountain system, just over 1,500 species of birds, 400 fish and almost a thousand species of amphibians, which is an incredibly large number (in our country, for example, there are only 28 species of amphibians). Some of the birds and animals are on the verge of extinction, including due to poaching, some have already become extinct. However, there is another problem - air pollution. But more on that below.
Of course, the mountain system has a number of environmental problems. So, since agriculture near the passing Andes is well developed, various chemicals constantly get into the soil, and somewhere desertification occurs due to overgrazing. Fortunately, such situations are rare. The environment is also polluted by various factories in the immediate vicinity of the Andes. Another important problem is that there is a deforestation of tropical rainforests for planting in the vacated areas of rubber and coffee trees, which support the economy of the states.
By the way, about agriculture. The cultivation of coffee, barley, bananas and potatoes is most developed here. At high altitudes, corn, wheat and quinoa are grown (an annual grain that is eaten by the local Indian community), on moist slopes, cocoa, sugar cane, and tropical fruits grow well. Plants imported from European countries have also taken root well, including some citrus fruits, olives and grapes.
Livestock raising is well developed, but its main direction is sheep breeding. The Indians breed llamas. Fishing is poorly developed.
The length of the Andes - 9000 km
Andes or Andean cordillera, in the language of the Incas - copper mountains. They form the longest mountain range in the world. Their length is 9000 km - from the Caribbean Sea to Tierra del Fuego. The highest mountain in this mountain range is Aconkagau (6962 m). There are places where the Andes are 500 km wide, and the maximum width of the longest mountains in the world is 750 km (Central Andes, Andean highlands). Most of the Andes is occupied by the Pune plateau. There is a very high snow line, which reaches 6500 m, and the average height of the mountains is 4000 m.
The Andes are relatively young mountains, the mountain building process ended many millions of years ago. The origin began in the Precambrian and Paleozoic periods. Then, on the site of the endless ocean, areas of land were just beginning to emerge. Throughout the entire time, the area where the present Andes are located was either sea or land.
Formation of the Andes
The formation of the mountain chain ended with the uplift of rocks, as a result of which huge folds of stone moved to a very great height. This process continues to this day. In the Andes, volcanic eruptions and earthquakes occur.
The longest mountains in the world are also the largest interoceanic watershed. In the Andes, the Amazon and its tributaries originate, as well as tributaries of other large rivers in South America - Paraguay, Orinoco, Parana. The Andes serve as a climatic barrier for the mainland, that is, they isolate the land from the west from the influence of the Atlantic Ocean, from the east - from the Pacific Ocean.
Climate and relief of the Andes
The Andes lie in 6 climatic zones: northern and southern subequatorial, southern tropical, equatorial, subtropical temperate. The western slopes of the mountains receive up to 10 thousand millimeters of precipitation per year. As a result of their length, the landscape parts differ significantly from each other.
In terms of relief, the Andes are divided into three regions: central, northern, southern. The North Andes include the Caribbean Andes and the Ecuadorian Andes, the Northwest Andes. The main Cordillera are separated by the valleys of the Magdalena and Cauca rivers. There are many volcanoes in this valley. These are Huila - 5750 m, Ruiz - 5400 m, and the current Kumbal - 4890 m.
Volcanoes of the Andes
The Ecuadorian Andes includes a high volcanic chain with the highest volcanoes Chimborazo - 6267 m and Cotopaxi - 58967 m. They stretch across seven states of South America: Bolivia, Ecuador, Colombia, Peru, Venezuela, Argentina, Chile. The Central Andes include the Peruvian Andes. The highest point is Mount Huascaran - 6768.
One mountain is great, but even better if there are many mountains. It is especially pleasing to the eye when they are united in a long ridge, in which peaks alternate with valleys, small spurs, and all this is diluted with the murmur of rivers. Such beauty, stretching for several thousand kilometers, will not leave anyone indifferent. The emergence of mountain ranges is explained by the theory of relief formation. It says: the ridges of valleys, mountains and hills are formed as a result of the collision of continental plates, crawling on top of each other. It is difficult to imagine the forces that are needed for such a process. Yes, it is not necessary. Better to admire the result of their activities. Especially if these are the longest mountains in the world. Let's rank them and find out where they are.
Cordillera
To begin with, I would like to clarify one important point. Many people confuse these mountains with the Andes, although these are two completely different chains formed in different eras. Some call the Andes the "Andean Cordilleras", but they have nothing to do with these mountains. Also, confusion arises about their location. The Cordillera "embrace" North America from the south and west, creating a tight climatic barrier. For the Andes play the same role. It is interesting that these mountains practically converge at the junction of the two Americas. Therefore, they are often combined into a single mountain range, which is fundamentally wrong. It would be more correct not to confuse these giants and leave the Cordillera to North America, and the Andes to South.
So, the Cordillera is the longest mountain in the world, with a length of just over 18,000 kilometers. They differ from their “colleagues” in a number of ways. The Cordillera are elongated exclusively in the submeridional direction, have a high percentage of high mountains, are formed in five orotectonic belts of different ages, have active volcanism and high seismicity.
Sea mountains
Not everyone knows that mountains can be found not only on the ground, but also under water. Unfortunately, most of them are hidden from the sight of hikers. And they are interesting to few, because you can't ski on such mountains. Well, conquering the peaks will look pretty ridiculous. But underwater chains are not inferior in number to aboveground ones. It is difficult to determine the height of the underwater giants, but it is not difficult to measure the length.
So, the second place in the rating "The longest mountain in the world" is near the Mid-Atlantic ridge with a total length of 18,000 kilometers. It is located in the center along the contour of the American coast. This formation includes several ridges: Knipovich, Mona, Reykjanes, South and North Atlantic. Individual peaks converted to Bermuda, etc.). Among the ridges listed above, there are no particularly high, old or young ones, they are just the longest mountains on earth after the Cordillera, which is also a lot. Go ahead.
Andes
The Andes is the third longest mountain in the world, with a total length of 9,000 kilometers. With their wide front, the Andes are directed towards and in the north they go out to the Caribbean Sea. The eastern part of the border leads to the Andean ridges. By the way, ranges of different ages are located along the entire length of the mountain system. Mountain-building movements continue today, accompanied by earthquakes and volcanic processes.
The Andes are characterized by a high-mountainous relief, which determines a noticeable altitudinal zonation and the formation of significant glaciation. The huge length of the mountain system determines the difference in the moisture and heat supply of its individual parts. Despite the fact that the subcontinent is mountainous, its territory has long been densely populated. The Andean peoples mastered the high plains, intermontane valleys and hollows within the mountain system and adapted to life in such conditions. The Andes are home to the highest mountain villages, cities and arable lands. There are six physical-geographical units within the mountains. But in this article we will only talk about two: the Central Andes and Tierra del Fuego.
Central Andes
The largest part of the mountain system. Within its limits are the mountain ranges of Argentina, Chile, Bolivia and Peru. The orotectonic structure is characterized by the presence of alpine plateaus and a plateau - "Pun" (or "Altiplano" in Bolivia). The rigid median array, within which these plains were formed, is divided into several blocks. This is clearly visible in the cracks that have appeared due to the uplift of magma and the outpouring of lava. As a result, there is a combination of accumulative plains in the lowlands of the relief, peneplain areas and lava plateaus. As for the climate, the Central Andes is quite arid.
Tierra del Fuego
The archipelago includes several dozen islands of various sizes. The largest of them, occupying two-thirds of the total territory, is about. The islands belong to Argentina and Chile. The western part of Tierra del Fuego continues the Andes mountain system and is highly dissected. Mountain ranges (1000-1300 meters) are separated by intermountain valleys, and some are flooded with ocean waters - straits, fjords. The highest point (2469 meters) is located on the Big Island. Ancient glacial relief prevails. There are many lakes, dammed by moraines.
In most of the archipelago, temperate prevails. In the western part, abundant rainfall (drizzling rains) up to 3000 mm falls throughout the year. In the east, precipitation is less - up to 500 mm. Summers are cool and winters are relatively warm (1-5 ° C). Tourists who have visited Tierra del Fuego declare that summer there is like in the tundra, and winter is similar to the subtropics (in terms of temperatures). With the rise in the mountains, the temperature drops sharply and already at around 500 meters reaches negative values.
In Antarctica, there is not only ice, snow and penguins, but also mountains. And quite long. All of Antarctica is crossed by a huge ridge, dividing it into Western and Eastern. Ranked last in the World's Longest Mountain rating, it stretches over 3,500 kilometers. The ridge was discovered back in 1908 by Captain Ross. In subsequent years, it was repeatedly crossed by research expeditions, but most of it still remains unexplored. Fortunately, now there is satellite imagery, which allows, if not to feel the ridge, then at least look at it.
The longest mountain range in the world is the Andean Cordillera or simply the Andes. From the language of the Incas, this short word is translated as the Copper Mountains. In terms of length, the Andes are not comparable to any other mountains on the planet. They stretched for a record 9,000 kilometers. In addition to its incredible scale, the Andes are famous as the birthplace of plants that radically changed the life of people on the planet. After all, it was the Andes that became the birthplace of coca, cinchona, tobacco, tomatoes and potatoes.
The Andes begin near the Caribbean Sea and reach Tierra del Fuego. The highest peak of the mountain range is Mount Aconcagua (6962 meters). In the Andean Cordillera there are places where the mountain range stretches for 500 kilometers in width, and the maximum width of the mountain system is 750 kilometers. The longest mountains in the world serve as the largest interoceanic watershed.
The Andes are extremely diverse and picturesque. And each country crossed by the mountain system has its own flavor. For example, in the Andes of Venezuela, deciduous forests and shrubs grow on red soils. The lower slopes from the Central to the Northwest Andes are covered with tropical and equatorial rainforests. There are ficuses, bananas, palms, cocoa trees, bamboos, lianas. However, there are also numerous moss bogs and lifeless rocky areas. Well, everything above 4500 meters is already eternal ice and snow.
Summit of the Andes - Mount Aconcagua (6962 meters)
The fauna of the Andes is no less interesting. Here you can find exotic alpacas, llamas, chain-tailed monkeys, as well as pudu deer, relic spectacled bears, vicuñas, sloths, blue foxes, chinchillas and hummingbirds.
