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Antofagasta (II Región de Antofagasta)
Region of Chile
Antofagasta bord galleryfull.jpg
The city of Antofagasta
Flag of Antofagasta Region, Chile.svg
Flag
Coat of arms of Antofagasta Region, Chile.svg
Symbol
Country  Chile
Provinces Antofagasta, El Loa, Tocopilla
Capital Antofagasta
 - coordinates 23°38′S 70°24′W / 23.633°S 70.400°W / -23.633; -70.400
Highest point Llullaico
 - location Puna de Atacama, Andes
 - elevation 6,739 m (22,110 ft)
Lowest point Sea level
 - elevation m (0 ft)
Area 126,049.1 km² (48,668 sq mi)
Population 622,640 (2015)
Density 5 /km² (13 /sq mi)
Intendant Valentín Volta Valencia
ISO 3166-2 CL-AN

The II Antofagasta Region (Spanish: II Región de Antofagasta) is one of Chile's 15 first order administrative divisions. It is the second-largest region of Chile. To the east it borders Bolivia and Argentina.

The capital of the region is the port city of Antofagasta.

History

The area away from the coast was populated by the Atacama people around the great dry salt lake called Salar de Atacama, the river basin of the Loa and valleys and oasis across the altiplano, with the most important settlement being the town of San Pedro de Atacama.

The region used to be Bolivian until the War of the Pacific started in 1879.

Geography

The Antofagasta region borders the Tarapacá region to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the southeast, the Atacama region to the south and the Pacific Ocean to the west.

The Llullaillaco volcano is the region's highest elevation at 6,739 m (22,110 ft); it is on the border with Argentina.

The only river of the region is the Loa river, the longest river of Chile, with a length of 440 km (273 mi).

Climate

The climate of the region is extremely arid (a desert climate) but somewhat milder near the coast and the highest mountains.

The three types of desert climate in the region are, (with the Köppen climate classification)

  • Coastal Desert Climate (BWn), along the coast.
  • Normal Desert Climate (BW)
  • Desert Climate in High Mountains (BWh), found in mountains over 3,000 m (9,843 ft) high.

Nearly all of the region does not have any vegetation except close to the Loa river or at oases such as San Pedro de Atacama.

Population

As of 2015, there were (estimated) 622,640 persons living in the region, for a population density of 4.9 inhabitants/km².

The largest cities (2002 census) of the region are the capitals of the three provincesː Antofagasta (285,255 inhabitants), Calama (126,135 inhabitants) and Tocopilla (23,352 inhabitants).

Administration

The Antofagasta region is divided in three provincesː

Antofagasta Comunas
Antofagasta provinces and comunas
Antofagasta Region - Provinces and comunas
Provinces Capital Code Comunas Area
(km²)
Population
2002
Antofagasta
(021)
Antofagasta 02101 1 Antofagasta 30,718.1 296,905
02102 2 Mejillones 3,803.9 8,418
02103 3 Sierra Gorda 12,886.4 2,356
02104 4 Taltal 20,405.1 11,100
Total of the Antofagasta province 67,813.5 318,779
El Loa
(022)
Calama 02201 5 Calama 15,596.9 138,402
02202 6 Ollagüe 2,963.9 318
02203 7 San Pedro de Atacama 23,438.8 4,969
Total of the El Loa province 41,999.6 143,689
Tocopilla
(023)
Tocopilla 02301 9 Tocopilla 4,038.8 23,986
02302 8 María Elena 12,197.2 7,530
Total of the Tocopilla province 16,236.0 31,516
Total of the region 126,049.1 493,984

Related pages

Regions of Chile Flag of Chile
Arica y Parinacota | Tarapacá | Antofagasta | Atacama | Coquimbo | Valparaíso | O'Higgins | Maule | Bío Bío | La Araucanía | Los Ríos | Los Lagos | Aysén | Magallanes y la Antártica Chilena | RM Santiago


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See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Región de Antofagasta para niños

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