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 the largest freshwater lake in Argentina. It is located in the Patagonian region of Santa Cruz Province. The lake is huge, covering about 1,415 square kilometers (546 square miles). It is also very deep, reaching up to 500 meters (1,640 feet) in some parts.
The lake is found inside the Los Glaciares National Park. This area is famous for its many glaciers. Lago Argentino gets its water from melting glaciers and several rivers. One important river that feeds it is the La Leona River, which brings water from Lake Viedma. Many mountain streams also flow into Lago Argentino. All this water eventually flows into the Atlantic Ocean through the Santa Cruz River.
The glaciers, the nearby town of El Calafate, and the lake itself are popular places for tourists to visit. People especially enjoy fishing in the lake. You can find different kinds of fish here, like Perch, common galaxias (also called "puyen grande"), lake trout, and rainbow trout.
There used to be an airport named Lago Argentino that served this area until the year 2000. That airport is now closed, and its runway is part of the city's roads. A new airport, Comandante Armando Tola International Airport, now serves El Calafate and Lago Argentino. It has many flights every day, both from within Argentina and from other countries.
Contents
Wildlife in Lago Argentino
Lago Argentino is home to various types of wildlife. This includes different kinds of Fishes and Mammals.
Fish Species
Only two main types of fish have been officially recorded living in the lake.
- Puyen (Galaxias maculatus)
- Perca (a type of Perch, likely Percichthys vinciguerrae)
Mammals in the Area
Not much is known about the mammals that live right around Lago Argentino. However, in the 1990s, Red Foxes (Dusicyon Culpaeus) were discovered in the area.
Climate Around the Lake
Lago Argentino has a cold desert climate. This means it is generally dry and cold. Even though it's a desert climate, it gets some rain and snow, especially in the colder months. The temperatures can vary quite a bit between summer and winter.
| Climate data for Lago Argentino Airport | |||||||||||||
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| 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
