Off the west coast of South America is a subduction zone, where several oceanic plates are sliding under the continental South American Plate. As these plates move into the mantle, they bring seawater and other materials with them that alter the chemistry of the hot mantle rocks, allowing them to partially melt. This molten rock, called magma, rises through the crust, erupting to form volcanoes.
Along the Pacific Ocean. (West)
The Atacama is on the northwestern coast of Chile.
The Andes mountain range runs 5,000-miles along the length of South America. The Andes are the longest continental mountain range in the world.
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It is a convergent boundary The subduction of the pacific plate underneath the west coast of South America creates the uplift and volcanoes that is still producing the Andean mountain range. A divergent boundary would create a mid-ocean ridge, or somthing akin to the great rift valley in Africa.
Located along the entire western coast of South America.
is an arc stretching from New Zealand, along the eastern edge of Asia, north across the Aleutian Islands of Alaska, and south along the coast of North and South America. The Ring of Fire is composed over 75% of the world's active and dormant volcanoes. =)
Both the Atacama and the Sechura Deserts are on the west coast of South America,
Both the Atacama and the Sechura Deserts are on the west coast of South America.
Along the coast of South America
South America is home to many snow-capped mountains, including the Andes, which stretch along the western coast. Some of the active volcanoes in South America include Cotopaxi in Ecuador, Villarrica in Chile, and Sabancaya in Peru. These volcanic peaks add to the region's dramatic landscape and geologic diversity.
South and Central America south and central America
The Atacama Desert is on the Pacific coast of South America.
The major reason is the San Andreas faul which begins along the west coast of California and runs down through the west coast of South America.
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Along the Pacific Ocean. (West)
The Western Cordillera is located along the western coast of North and South America, stretching from Alaska down to Chile. It is a major mountain range with peaks that are part of the Andes in South America and the Coast Mountains in North America.