Argentino Lake facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Argentino Lake / Lago Argentino |
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Northern arm of the lake
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 Argentino Lake / Lago Argentino
Location in Argentina
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| Location | Lago Argentino Department, Santa Cruz Province, Argentina |
| Coordinates | 50°13′S 72°25′W / 50.217°S 72.417°W |
| Primary outflows | Santa Cruz River |
| Catchment area | 17,000 km2 (6,600 sq mi) |
| Basin countries | Argentina |
| Max. length | 120 km (75 mi) |
| Max. width | 32 km (20 mi) |
| Surface area | 1,415 km2 (546 sq mi) |
| Average depth | 155.4 m (510 ft) |
| Max. depth | 500 m (1,600 ft) |
| Water volume | 219.9 km3 (52.8 cu mi) |
| Shore length1 | 687 km (427 mi) |
| Surface elevation | 187 m (614 ft) |
| Settlements | El Calafate |
| 1 Shore length is not a well-defined measure. | |
Lago Argentino is a lake in the Patagonian province of Santa Cruz, Argentina, at 50°2′S 72°4′W / 50.033°S 72.067°W. It is the biggest freshwater lake in Argentina, with a surface area of 1,415 km2 (546 sq mi) (maximum width: 20 mi (32 km)). It has an average depth of 155 m (509 ft), and a maximum depth of 500 m (1,640 ft).
The lake lies within the Los Glaciares National Park in a landscape with numerous glaciers and is fed by the glacial meltwater of several rivers, the water from Lake Viedma brought by the La Leona River, and many mountain streams. Its drainage basin amounts to more than 17,000 km2 (6,564 sq mi). Waters from Lake Argentino flow into the Atlantic Ocean through the Santa Cruz River.
The glaciers, the nearby town of El Calafate and the lake itself are important tourist destinations. The lake in particular is appreciated for fishing. Perch, common galaxias ("puyen grande"), lake trout and rainbow trout — in both anadromous and Potamodromous forms — are all found.
Lago Argentino was also the name of the airport that served the area until 2000. This airport is currently closed, and its runway was incorporated into the city's road system. It has been replaced by Comandante Armando Tola International Airport, which serves the town of El Calafate and Lago Argentino with many daily national and international flights.
Wildlife
Argentino Lake has a lot of natural wildlife, ranging from Fishes to Mammals.
Fish
Puyen (Galaxias maculatus) and Perca (Percichthys, presumiblemente vinciguerrae), are the two registered species of fish that live in the lake.
Mammals
Very little is known about the mammals that live in Argentino Lake. However, in the 1990s Red Foxes (Dusicyon Culpaeus) were found.
Climate
Argentino Lake has a cold desert climate (Köppen BWk).
| Climate data for Lago Argentino Airport | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 30.5 (86.9) |
30.7 (87.3) |
27.0 (80.6) |
22.3 (72.1) |
19.9 (67.8) |
17.5 (63.5) |
16.5 (61.7) |
18.7 (65.7) |
21.8 (71.2) |
23.3 (73.9) |
25.0 (77.0) |
28.5 (83.3) |
30.5 (86.9) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 19.2 (66.6) |
18.7 (65.7) |
16.2 (61.2) |
12.4 (54.3) |
7.6 (45.7) |
4.8 (40.6) |
4.7 (40.5) |
6.9 (44.4) |
10.5 (50.9) |
14.2 (57.6) |
16.7 (62.1) |
18.5 (65.3) |
12.5 (54.5) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 13.4 (56.1) |
13.1 (55.6) |
10.7 (51.3) |
7.6 (45.7) |
3.9 (39.0) |
1.5 (34.7) |
1.2 (34.2) |
2.6 (36.7) |
5.3 (41.5) |
8.5 (47.3) |
11.2 (52.2) |
12.8 (55.0) |
7.7 (45.9) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 7.8 (46.0) |
7.5 (45.5) |
5.2 (41.4) |
2.8 (37.0) |
−0.3 (31.5) |
−2.4 (27.7) |
−2.8 (27.0) |
−1.5 (29.3) |
0.1 (32.2) |
2.7 (36.9) |
5.0 (41.0) |
6.6 (43.9) |
2.6 (36.7) |
| Record low °C (°F) | −0.2 (31.6) |
0.4 (32.7) |
−4.0 (24.8) |
−4.0 (24.8) |
−8.5 (16.7) |
−11.5 (11.3) |
−11.8 (10.8) |
−12.0 (10.4) |
−7.0 (19.4) |
−4.4 (24.1) |
−2.5 (27.5) |
−2.6 (27.3) |
−12.0 (10.4) |
| Average precipitation mm (inches) | 5.9 (0.23) |
4.3 (0.17) |
7.5 (0.30) |
14.0 (0.55) |
19.2 (0.76) |
18.1 (0.71) |
16.3 (0.64) |
16.1 (0.63) |
6.3 (0.25) |
8.7 (0.34) |
3.0 (0.12) |
3.9 (0.15) |
123.3 (4.85) |
| Average precipitation days | 3 | 3 | 4 | 6 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 53 |
| Average relative humidity (%) | 48 | 48 | 51 | 59 | 69 | 73 | 73 | 68 | 58 | 51 | 46 | 46 | 58 |
| Mean monthly sunshine hours | 260.4 | 209.1 | 195.3 | 156.0 | 117.8 | 99.0 | 96.1 | 142.6 | 168.0 | 223.2 | 249.0 | 269.7 | 2,186.2 |
| Percent possible sunshine | 52.5 | 51.5 | 50.5 | 48.5 | 42.0 | 39.5 | 35.0 | 43.5 | 48.0 | 52.0 | 54.0 | 53.0 | 47.5 |
| Source 1: Servicio Meteorologico Nacional | |||||||||||||
| Source 2: Secretaria de Mineria(sun, record high and some record lows 1951–1980), NOAA(some record lows 1971–1990) | |||||||||||||
Gallery
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Argentino seen from the town of El Calafate. -
Lake Argentino as seen from the road to Los Glaciares National Park -
Iceberg and tourist boat on the lake
See also
In Spanish: Lago Argentino para niños
- Lake Viedma
- Lake San Martín
- Puerto Bandera
