Documents for "Latin American and Caribbean Physical Geography":

• Abaco and Cays island group, c.780 sq mi (2,020 sq km), most northerly of the Bahamas. It includes Great Abaco (the largest), Little Abaco, and the surrounding cays. The low islands, composed mainly of coral...

• Aconcagua peak, 22,835 ft (6,960 m) high, Mendoza prov., W Argentina, in the Andes, near the Chilean border. It is the highest peak of the Western Hemisphere. The snowcapped Aconcagua was first scaled in...

• Agua inactive volcano, 12,310 ft (3,752 m) high, S Guatemala. In 1541, climaxing several days of unceasing rain and earthquakes, a wall of water swept down from its slopes, completely destroying Ciudad...

• Albemarle island, Ecuador: see Galápagos Islands.

• altiplano high plateau (alt. c.12,000 ft/3,660 m) in the Andes Mts., c.65,000 sq mi (168,350 sq km), W Bolivia, extending into S Peru. The altiplano is a sediment-filled depression between the Cordillera...

• Amazon Port. Amazonas , world's second longest river, c.3,900 mi (6,280 km) long, formed by the junction in N Peru's Andes Mts. of two major headstreams, the Ucayali and the shorter Marañón...

• Anáhuac [Aztec,=near the water], geographical term used variously in Mexico before the Spanish Conquest. Today it commonly refers to that part of the central plateau of Mexico comprising the Pánuco and...

• Ancohuma mountain, Bolivia: see Illampú.

• Andes mountain system, more than 5,000 mi (8,000 km) long, W South America. The ranges run generally parallel to the Pacific coast and extend from Tierra del Fuego northward, across the equator, as the...

• Angel Falls waterfall, Sp. Salto Ángel, 3,212 ft (979 m) high, SE Venezuela, in the Guiana Highlands. Springing from Auyán-Tepuí Mesa, it is the highest uninterrupted waterfall in the world....

• Apurímac river, c.430 mi (690 km) long, rising in the Andes, S Peru. It flows generally northwest in a narrow valley. After joining the Mantaro River, the Apurímac becomes the Ene; after joining the Perené...

• Apure river, c.500 mi (800 km) long, rising in the Andes, N Colombia, and flowing E across W central Venezuela to the Orinoco River. It drains much of the western portion of the Orinoco basin and is...

• Araguaía river, c.1,600 mi (2,575 km) long, rising in the Serra des Araras, at the border of Goiás and Mato Grosso states, S central Brazil. It flows generally northward into the Tocantins River, forming...

• Archipiélago de Colón see Galápagos Islands.

• Atacama Desert arid region, c.600 mi (970 km) long, N Chile, extending south from the border of Peru. The desert itself, c.2,000 ft (610 m) above sea level, is a series of dry salt basins flanked on the W by the...

• Atitlán volcanic lake, 53 sq mi (137 sq km), 17 mi (27.3 km) long and 11 mi (17.7 km) wide, SW Guatemala. One of the most magnificent lakes of Central America, it is set among lofty mountains with three...

• Atrato river, c.415 mi (670 km) long, rising in the Cordillera Occidental, W Colombia. It meanders north, across the base of the Isthmus of Panama, to the Gulf of Urabá. Quibdo is the head of navigation...

• Aves Island or Bird Island, Span. Isla de Aves, small, low-lying sand and coral island, a dependency of Venezuela, in the E Caribbean Sea 380 mi (610 km) N of the Venezuelan mainland. Venezuela's claim that Aves is an inhabitable island (a small...

• Bío-Bío river, c.240 mi (390 km) long, rising in the Andes of central Chile and flowing NW to the Pacific Ocean near Concepción. It forms a natural divide between middle and southern Chile. It is...

• Baixada Fluminense coastal lowland region, Rio de Janeiro state, SE Brazil. It extends c.250 mi (400 km) from Sepetiba Bay to the Paraíba River between the Serro do Mar and the Atlantic Ocean. Intensive farming,...

• Balsas, Río river, c.450 mi (720 km) long, rising in the state of Puebla, E central Mexico. One of Mexico's longest rivers, it flows in a curve from south to northwest through Puebla and Guerrero states,...

• Bananal Island Brazil: see Araguaía , river.

• Banda Oriental [Span.,=eastern shore, i.e., of the Río de la Plata ], region, S Uruguay. An alluvial plain, it is Uruguay's principal cattle-raising and wheat-growing region. In the colonial era, Banda Oriental...

• Bandeira 9,462 ft (2,884 m) high, in the Serra do Caparaó, situated on the border between Minas Gerais and Espírito Santo states, SE Brazil. It was considered Brazil's highest point until the discovery of...

• Beni river, c.1,000 mi (1,600 km) long, rising in the Cordillera Real in Bolivia, flowing NE through the Andean hills. It joins with the Mamoré to form the Madeira River. Steam navigation is possible...

• Bermejo river, c.650 mi (1,050 km) long, rising in N central Argentina, flowing SE along the border with Bolivia and through N Argentina to Pilar, Paraguay. Through much of its course, it is the border...

• Bird Island see Aves Island.

• Canal Zone see Panama Canal Zone.

• Caquetá river, Colombia: see Japurá.

• Casiquiare river, c.100 mi (160 km) long, S Venezuela. Also called the Canal Casiquiare, it is a branch of the Orinoco and flows SW to the Río Negro, thus linking the Orinoco and Amazon basins. The...

• Cat Island see San Salvador , island.

• Catoche, Cape extremity of Yucatán peninsula, SE Mexico. It was the first Mexican land seen by the Spanish (1517).

• Cauca river, c.800 mi (1,290 km) long, rising in the Cordillera Central, near Popayán, W Colombia. It flows north in a rift valley between the Cordillera Central and Cordillera Occidental to the...

• Cauto longest river in Cuba, c.213 mi (343 km) long, rising in the Sierra Maestra. It flows NW and W to the Caribbean Sea just N of Manzanillo.

• Central America narrow, southernmost region (c.202,200 sq mi/523,698 sq km) of North America, linked to South America at Colombia. It separates the Caribbean from the Pacific. Historically, geographers considered...

• Chaco   Chaco Austral,   Chaco Boreal,   Chaco Central, and Chaco War: see Gran Chaco.

• Chapala lake, c.50 mi (80 km) long and 8 mi (12.8 km) wide, W Mexico, in Jalisco and Michoacán states. It is the largest lake in Mexico. Set in a depression on the central plateau, Lake Chapala is fed by...

• Chimborazo inactive volcano, 20,577 ft (6,272 m) high, central Ecuador; the highest in Ecuador. Its summit is always snowcapped. First explored by Alexander von Humboldt in 1802, it was first scaled in 1880...

• Chubut river, c.500 mi (805 km) long, rising in the Andes of SW Argentina and flowing E across Chubut prov. to the Atlantic Ocean at Rawson. The Chico River is its chief tributary. Sheep raising and...

• Citlaltépetl or Orizaba , peak, 18,700 ft (5,700 m) high, in the Cordillera de Anáhuas, E Mexico, on the Veracruz-Puebla border. It is the highest peak in Mexico and the third highest in North America. This snowcapped...

• Cockpit Country hilly region on the plateau of Jamaica, c.200 sq mi (520 sq km), W central Jamaica. Composed of limestone rock, the region has many sink holes, caverns, and subterranean streams.

• Coco river, c.466 mi (750 km) long, rising in S Honduras and flowing E into Nicaragua and then NE to the Caribbean Sea. Part of the Mosquito Coast region, and once the object of dispute between Honduras and Nicaragua, the middle and lower course forms the boundary between the two countries. The Coco River was formerly known as the Segovia...

• Colorado river, c.550 mi (885 km) long, rising from tributaries in the Andes and flowing SE across S central Argentina to the Atlantic Ocean. It marks the northern limit of Patagonia. It is also a rough...

• Conchos river, c.350 mi (560 km) long, rising in S Chihuahua state, N Mexico, and flowing N and NE to the Rio Grande. Dams along its middle course provide water for extensive cotton oases just south of...

• Cotopaxi active volcano, 19,347 ft (5,897 m) high, N central Ecuador. A symmetrical snowcapped cone in the Andes, it is one of the highest volcanoes in the world. It is continuously active, and frequent...

• Cozumel resort island, c.190 sq mi (490 sq km), Quintana Roo state, Mexico, in the Caribbean Sea off the E coast of the Yucatán peninsula. It is famed for its beaches and coral reef (declared a national...

• Culebra Cut see Panama Canal.

• Demerara river, c.200 mi (320 km) long, rising in the Guiana Highlands, E Guyana, and flowing N to the Atlantic Ocean. Georgetown, Guyana's chief port, is at the river's mouth. The Demerara is navigable...

• Desaguadero river, c.200 mi (320 km) long, flowing SE from Lake Titicaca to Lake Poopó, W Bolivia. It is used for irrigation in its northern course. Its flow diminishes toward the south and its banks become...

• El Misti volcano, Peru: see Misti, El.

• Embalse del Río Negro see Negro, Río , Uruguay.

• Enriquillo, Lago salt lake, SW Dominican Republic, the largest lake of Hispaniola , c.110 ft. (34 m) below sea level. Lago Enriquillo has a large and varied wildlife population, including flamingos and iguanas. It...

• Essequibo longest river of Guyana, c.600 mi (970 km) long, rising in the Guiana Highlands, S Guyana, and flowing generally N to the Atlantic Ocean. Most of the river's course is broken by rapids and...

• Fonseca, Gulf of inlet of the Pacific Ocean, c.700 sq mi (1,810 sq km), c.50 mi (80 km) long and c.30 mi (50 km) wide, W Central America. In a volcanic area, it is a natural shallow harbor shared by Nicaragua,...

• Furnas Dam c.390 ft (120 m) high, at the junction of the Rio Grande and Sapucaí rivers, SE Brazil, in Minas Gerais state; completed 1962. It has a 620-sq mi (1,606-sq km) reservoir. It includes large...

• Gatún Lake artificial lake, 163 sq mi (422 sq km), Colón Prov., Panama, formed by the impounding of the Chagres River. Gatún Dam (completed 1912), 1 1/2 mi (2.4 km) long and 115 ft (35 m) high, controls the level of the lake (c.85 ft/26 m above sea level), which is part of the canal route. Barro Colorado Island, high ground to which animals fled as...

• Gran Chaco or Chaco, c.250,000 sq mi (647,500 sq km), extensive lowland plain, central South America. It is sparsely populated and is divided among Paraguay, Bolivia, and Argentina. Some of the highest temperatures in...

• Grijalva river, c.400 mi (640 km) long, rising in SW Guatemala and flowing NW into S Mexico and N through Chiapas and Tabasco states to the Gulf of Campeche. It is navigable for c.60 mi (100 km) upstream...

• Guadalupe Hidalgo shrine, central Mexico, in the Federal District. The basilica of Guadalupe containing the shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe (feast: Dec. 12) is the focal point of the most famous pilgrimage in the...

• Guanahani see San Salvador , island.

• Guaporé river, c.750 mi (1,207 km) long, rising in the mountains of Mato Grosso state, W Brazil. It flows northwest through rain forest and forms part of the Brazil-Bolivia border before joining the...

• Guiana Highlands mountainous tableland, c.1,200 mi (1,930 km) long and from 200 to 600 mi (322-966 km) wide, N South America, bounded by the Orinoco and Amazon river basins, and by the coastal lowlands of the...

• Hispaniola Span. Española , second largest island of the West Indies, 29,530 sq mi (76,483 sq km), between Cuba and Puerto Rico. Haiti occupies the western third of the island and the Dominican Republic the remainder. Visited by Columbus in 1492, the island was called Española. The later French colony was called Saint-Domingue, after Santo Domingo, the Spanish colony in the eastern part of the...

• Horn, Cape headland, 1,391 ft (424 m) high, S Chile, southernmost point of South America, in the archipelago of Tierra del Fuego. It was discovered and first rounded by Willem Schouten, the Dutch navigator,...

• Huascarán extinct volcano, 22,205 ft (6,768 m) high, W central Peru, near Huaráz. The highest mountain in Peru and one of the highest in the Andes, Huascarán and other nearby peaks form an impressive...

• Içá river, Brazil: see Putumayo.

• Iguaçu Falls or Iguassú Falls , in the Iguaçu River, on the Argentina-Brazil border near the Paraguay line. Iguaçu Falls has two main sections that are composed of hundreds of waterfalls separated from each other by rocky...

• Iguassú Falls South America: see Iguaçu Falls.

• Illampú peak, 21,276 ft (6,485 m) high, in the Cordillera Real of the Bolivian Andes, E Bolivia. Although lower than the adjacent peak, Ancohuma (21,489 ft/6,550 m high), Illampú is the name usually given...

• Illimani mountain, 21,184 ft (6,457 m) high, E Bolivia. One of the highest peaks of the Cordillera Real of the Bolivian Andes, it is permanently snowcapped. Illimani was first climbed by Baron Conway of...

• Inter-American Highway c.3,400 mi (5,470 km) long, section of the Pan-American Highway system from Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, to Panama City, Panama. Much of the highway prior to 1941 had been built by the countries concerned, but wartime necessity led the United States to appropriate...

• Ipiranga stream flowing near the city of São Paulo, Brazil. On its banks the regent Pedro (later Emperor Pedro I) issued the Grito do Ipiranga, the declaration of the independence of Brazil from Portugal,...

• Irazú active volcano, c.11,260 ft (3,430 m) high, central Costa Rica. It erupted in 1723, destroying Cartago, and in 1963, covering San José with ash. Vapor constantly rises from one of its craters...

• Isabela island, Ecuador: see Galápagos Islands.

• Iténez see Guaporé.

• Ixtacihuatl or Ixtaccihuatl: see Iztaccihuatl , Mexico.

• Izabal lake, c.30 mi (48 km) long and 15 mi (24 km) wide, E Guatemala, largest lake in the country. Known also as the Golfo Dulce, it drains to the Caribbean Sea through the Golfete Dulce, a small...

• Izalco volcano, 7,828 ft (2,386 m) high, W El Salvador. It was sometimes called the Lighthouse of the Pacific because it was visible to 19th-century navigators off the coast. Although it has not erupted...

• Iztaccihuatl   Ixtacihuatl, or Ixtaccihuatl [Aztec,=white woman], dormant volcano, 17,342 ft (5,286 m) high, central Mexico, on the border between Puebla and Mexico state. Irregular in outline, and snowcapped, it is also popularly known as...

• Japurá river, c.1,750 mi (2,815 km) long, rising as the Caquetá in the Andes, SW Colombia. It flows SE into Brazil, where it is called the Japurá, and enters the Amazon through a network of channels. It...

• Javari Span. Yavarí, river, c.500 mi (805 km) long, rising in the Cerro de Canchyuaya, E Peru. It flows northeast, forming part of the boundary between Brazil and Peru, before entering the Amazon near Tabatinga. It is...

• Juruá river, c.1,500 mi (2,410 km) long, rising in the Cerros de Canchyuaya, E Peru. It flows in a winding course generally NE through Acre and Amazonas states, W Brazil, to the Amazon River E of Fonte...

• Kaieteur Falls waterfall, 741 ft (226 m) high, in the Potaro River, W Guyana. It plunges over an escarpment of the Guyana Highlands. One of the most impressive falls in South America, it is included in a...

• La Guajira peninsula, c.100 mi (160 km) long, N Colombia, extending into the Caribbean Sea. Punta Gallinas, at the tip, is the northernmost point of South America. On the sparsely populated peninsula are...

• La Plata, Río de see Plata, Río de la.

• Laguna District [Span.,=lake], irrigated area in E Durango and W Coahuila states, N central Mexico. Originally a 900,000-acre (364,200-hectare) tract, consisting of large estates, the land was reapportioned (1936)...

• Lempa river, c.200 mi (320 km) long, rising in Guatemala and flowing S through Honduras into El Salvador, then generally S to the Pacific Ocean. An important stream, it waters the fertile Lempa valley,...

• Lerma river, c.350 mi (560 km) long, rising in Mexico state, central Mexico. It flows NW and W through Guanajuato state to Lake Chapala, crossing the part of the central plateau known as the Anáhuac...

• llanos Spanish American term for prairies, specifically those of the Orinoco River basin of N South America, in Venezuela and E Colombia. The llanos of the Orinoco are a vast, hot region of rolling...

• Llullaillaco extinct volcano, 22,057 ft (6,723 m) high, on the border of Chile and Argentina. One of the highest peaks in the Andes and perpetually snowcapped, it overlooks a pass used for rail and highway...

• Loa longest river of Chile, 275 mi (443 km) long, flowing S from the Andes, N Chile, then W and N through the Atacama Desert, before turning W to the Pacific Ocean. It is not navigable but affords...

• Madeira river, c.2,100 mi (3,380 km) long, formed by the junction of the Beni and Mamoré rivers on the Bolivia-Brazil border. It flows north along the border for c.60 mi (100 km), then northeast in a...

• Madre de Dios river, c.700 mi (1,130 km) long, rising in the Andes of SE Peru and flowing NE through NW Bolivia to the Beni River. It is a major artery of NW Bolivia, but frequent rapids make its lower course...

• Maestra, Sierra mountains, Cuba: see Sierra Maestra.

• Magdalena river, c.1,000 mi (1,600 km) long, rising in the Cordillera Central, SW Colombia and flowing N to the Caribbean Sea near Barranquilla. It flows in a fault-block valley (c.50 mi/80 km wide) through...

• Mamoré river, c.600 mi (965 km) long, formed by tributaries rising in the Andes and plains of central Bolivia. It flows north, past Trinidad, to the Brazilian border. After forming part of the...

• Marañón river, c.1,000 mi (1,600 km) long, rising in Lake Lauricaucha in the Cordillera Occidental, W central Peru. It flows generally NW, then E across the Andes to join the Ucayali River in NE Peru where it forms the Amazon River; some consider the Marañón to be the authentic headwater of the Amazon, but an expedition in 2000 determined that the headwaters of the Apurímac River (a tributary of the Ucayali) are the most distant from the Amazon's mouth. The Marañón is navigable to the Pongo de Manseriche, the gorge in NW Peru through which it flows before reaching the...

• Maracaibo, Lake largest lake of South America, c.5,100 sq mi (13,210 sq km), NW Venezuela, extending c.110 mi (180 km) inland. A strait, 34 mi (55 km) long, connects it with the Gulf of Venezuela. Discovered in...

• Mazaruni river, c.350 mi (560 km) long, rising in the Guiana Highlands, NW Guyana, and flowing generally E to the Essequibo River at Bartica. The river is the center of Guyana's diamond industry.

• Misti, El dormant volcano, c.19,150 ft (5,840 m) high, in the Cordillera Occidental, S Peru, rising over the city of Arequipa. El Misti is flanked by two other volcanos—on the NW by Chachani, 19,960 ft...

• Mona Passage strait, c.80 mi (130 km) wide, between Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic. Connecting the N Atlantic Ocean with the Caribbean Sea, it is a favored shipping lane, but its waters are treacherous...

• Mont Pelée volcano: see Pelée.

• Mosquitia region, Central America: see Mosquito Coast.

• Motagua river, c.250 mi (400 km) long, rising in S central Guatemala and flowing NE to the Gulf of Honduras. The longest river within Guatemala, it waters a valley where hemp and bananas are raised. The...

• Mulatas archipelago, Panama: see San Blas Islands.

• Nahuel Huapí lake, c.210 sq mi (540 sq km), in Río Negro and Neuquén provs., W central Argentina. The 45-mi (72-km) lake is drained northeastward by the Limay River. It is part of Nahuel Huapí National Park...

• Nazas river, c.180 mi (290 km) long, rising in the Sierra Madre Occidental, Durango state, N Mexico, and flowing generally east to disappear into the ground near Torreón. During the wet season it...

• Negro, Río river, c.400 mi (640 km) long, formed in central Argentina by the confluence of the Neuquén and the Limay rivers, and flowing E across Río Negro prov. (N Patagonia) to the Atlantic Ocean. The...

• Negro, Río rē´ō nā´grō , river, c.1,400 mi (2,250 km) long, rising as the Guainía River in E Colombia where it flows NE before turning south to form part of the Colombia-Venezuela border. It then flows SE through Amazonas...

• Negro, Río rē´ō nā´grō , principal river of Uruguay, c.500 mi (800 km) long, rising in S Brazil and flowing SW across central Uruguay to the Uruguay River. It traverses a sheep-raising region; there is agriculture along its lower course. On the river is Embalse del Río Negro (c.4,000 sq mi/10,360 sq km), the largest artificial lake in South...

• Nicaragua Canal proposed waterway between the Atlantic and the Pacific oceans. It would be 172.8 mi (278 km) long and would generally follow the San Juan River, then go through Lake Nicaragua near the southern...

• Nicaragua, Lake 3,089 sq mi (8,001 sq km), c.100 mi (160 km) long and up to 45 mi (72 km) wide, SW Nicaragua; the largest lake of Central America. It is drained into the Caribbean Sea by the San Juan River. Lake...

• Nicoya Peninsula Guanacaste and Puntarenas provs., W Costa Rica, separating the Pacific Ocean from the Gulf of Nicoya. About 75 mi (120 km) long and 19-37 mi (30-60 km) wide, it is Costa Rica's largest peninsula...

• Ojos del Salado peak, 22,539 ft (6,870 m) high, on the border between Argentina and Chile, in the Andes. It is the second highest of the Andean peaks. In 1956 a Chilean expedition reported its height to be 23,239...

• Orinoco river of Venezuela, estimated to be from 1,500 to 1,700 mi (2,410-2,735 km) long. Rising near Mt. Delgado Chalbaud in the Guiana Highlands, S Venezuela, the Orinoco flows in a wide arc through...

• Orizaba mountain peak: see Citlaltépetl.

• Pánuco river, c.315 mi (510 km) long, rising as the Santa María River in San Luis Potosí state, N central Mexico, and flowing generally east to empty into the Gulf of Mexico near Tampico. It is navigable...

• Pátzcuaro lake, c.100 sq mi (260 sq km) Michoacán state, W Mexico. Its indented shores, dotted with Tarascan villages, green islands, and the curious native sailboats help make Lake Pátzcuaro popular as a...

• pampas wide, flat, grassy plains of temperate S South America, c.300,000 sq mi (777,000 sq km), particularly in Argentina and extending into Uruguay. Although the region gradually rises to the west, it...

• Pan-American Highway system of roads, c.16,000 mi (25,750 km) long, linking the nations of the Western Hemisphere. It was suggested at the Fifth International Conference of American States (1923) and supported and...

• pantanal lowland region of SW Mato Grosso state, Brazil, bordering the Paraguay River and extending to the the western edge of the Brazilian Plateau. Parts of the pantanal extend into Bolivia and Paraguay...

• Pará river, c.200 mi (320 km) long, N Brazil. It is actually the southeastern arm or estuary of the Amazon, divided from the rest of the river by Marajó island. It receives the waters of the Tocantins...

• Parícutin active volcano, c.8,200 ft (2,500 m) high, Michoacán state, W central Mexico. In one of the most spectacular eruptions of modern times, Parícutin burst forth from a cornfield on Feb. 20, 1943, and...

• Paraíba or Paraíba do Sul , river, c.650 mi (1,050 km) long, rising as the Paraitinga in the Serra do Mar, São Paulo state, SE Brazil. It flows southwesterly to a point NE of São Paulo city where it makes a hairpin turn and...

• Paraguay river, c.1,300 mi (2,090 km) long, rising in the highlands of central Mato Grosso state, Brazil. Flowing generally southward, it forms the border between Brazil and Paraguay in the pantanal , then crosses the center of Paraguay, dividing the Gran Chaco from E Paraguay. Two large tributaries, the Pilcomayo and the Bermejo rivers, join it from the west. Below the Pilcomayo, the Paraguay...

• Paraná river, c.2,000 mi (3,200 km) long, formed by the junction of the Paranaíba and the Rio Grande, SE Brazil. It has the second largest drainage system in South America. It flows generally southwest to...

• Paranaíba river, c.500 mi (800 km) long, rising in W Minas Gerais state, Brazil. It flows generally westward through an agricultural region before joining the Rio Grande to form the Paraná. Diamonds...

• Parnaíba river c.800 mi (1,290 km) long, rising in the highlands of NE Brazil. It flows generally north, forming the boundary between Maranhão and Piauí states, and enters the Atlantic Ocean through a...

• Patagonia region, c.300,000 sq mi (777,000 sq km), primarily in S Argentina, S of the Río Colorado and E of the Andes, but including extreme SE Chile and N Tierra del Fuego. Patagonia, except for the far...

• Patos, Lagoa dos [Port.,=lake of the ducks], shallow tidal lagoon, c.150 mi (240 km) long and up to 30 mi (48 km) wide, Rio Grande do Sul state, SE Brazil. A wide sandbar separates it from the Atlantic Ocean. Pôrto...

• Paulo Afonso Falls Brazil: see São Francisco.

• Pelée volcano, 4,429 ft (1,350 m) high, on N Martinique, in the West Indies. On May 8, 1902, the day after the eruption of Soufrière on St. Vincent, Pelée also erupted, engulfing Saint-Pierre at its base and killing c.40,000 people in the city and adjacent area. Because the chemical composition of the volcanic ash prevents plant life, the thick layer deposited over a wide expanse is...

• Petén region, c.15,000 sq mi (38,850 sq km), N Guatemala. A humid expanse of dense, tropical hardwood forests interrupted by savannas and crisscrossed by ranges of hills, it is related geographically to...

• Pichincha volcano, 15,918 ft (4,852 m) high, N Ecuador, near Quito. It last erupted in 1881. On its lower slopes, in the decisive battle of Pichincha on May 24, 1822, patriot forces under Antonio José de...

• Pilcomayo river c.1,000 mi (1,600 km) long, rising in the Bolivian Andes E of Lake Poopó and flowing SE in a marshy course across the Gran Chaco to the Paraguay River near Asunción. It forms part of the...

• Pitch Lake pool of pitch (asphalt), c.114 acres (46 hectares), SW Trinidad island, Trinidad and Tobago, near La Brea. The lake is believed to be formed and supplied by the seepage of natural pitch, a form of...

• Plata, Río de la estuary, c.170 mi (270 km) long, SE South America, formed by the Paraná and Uruguay rivers. Between Argentina and Uruguay, the estuary is c.120 mi (190 km) wide at its mouth on the Atlantic Ocean...

• Plate, River see Plata, Río de la.

• Poopó salt lake, 965 sq mi (2,499 sq km), on the high plateau of W Bolivia. It is more than 11,000 ft (3,353 m) above sea level and averages only 10 ft (3 m) in depth; it is Bolivia's second largest...

• Popocatépetl [Aztec,=smoking mountain], volcano, 17,887 ft (5,452 m) high, in the Cordillera de Anáhuac, central Mexico, on the Puebla-Mexico state border; the second highest peak in Mexico. The perpetually...

• pororoca tidal bore: see Amazon , river, Brazil; bore.

• puna high plateau region, 12,000 to 16,000 ft (3,658-4,877 m) high, between ridges of the Andes in Peru and Bolivia. Arid, cold, and in general, covered by short coarse grass, the puna has,...

• Punta Gallinas Colombia: see La Guajira.

• Purus river, c.2,100 mi (3,380 km) long, rising in the Andes Mts., E Peru. It flows generally northeast in a meandering course, across Acre and Amazonas states, NW Brazil, to the Amazon River. Mostly...

• Putumayo or Içá , river, c.1,000 mi (1,600 km) long, rising in the Andes, S Colombia, and flowing SE to the Amazon in NW Brazil. Mostly navigable, it marks part of Colombia's boundary with Ecuador and most of...

• Quiriguá city of the Classic epoch of the Maya , E Guatemala. It is famous for its zoomorphics. Its stone steles have fine hieroglyphs. Near the ruins the United Fruit Company maintains a hospital.

• Reventazón river, c.85 mi (140 km) long, rising in the Meseta Central, E Costa Rica, and flowing NE to the Caribbean Sea, N of Limón. The Reventazón is navigable for a short distance only, but its deep...

• Revillagigedo Islands archipelago in the Pacific Ocean, c.450 mi (720 km) W of Colima state, Mexico. Socorro (110 sq mi/285 sq km) is the largest island. A volcano on San Benedicto island rose suddenly in 1952. The...

• Rimac river, c.80 mi (130 km) long, rising in the Andes of W Peru, and flowing W through Lima to the Pacific Ocean near Callao. It is used extensively for irrigation. The scenic Rimac valley affords one...

• Rio Grande name of several rivers of Brazil. The largest rises in S Minas Gerais state, SE Brazil, and flows c.650 mi (1,050 km) NW to the Paranaíba River, with which it forms the Paraná River. Its lower...

• Roosevelt river, c.400 mi (640 km) long, NW Brazil. It was called the Rio da Dúvida [River of Doubt] until it was explored by Theodore Roosevelt in 1913. Renamed in his honor, it is occasionally called Rio...

• Roraima, Mount roorī´me , mountain, 9,219 ft (2,810 m) high, at the junction of the boundaries of Brazil, Guyana, and Venezuela. A giant table mountain, it is the highest point in the Guiana Highlands....

• São Francisco river, c.1,800 mi (2,900 km) long, rising in the Serra de Canastra, SW Minas Gerais state, Brazil, and flowing northeast, then southeast through the sertão region of E Brazil to the Atlantic...

• Salado, Río [Sp.,=salty river], name of several South American rivers, including more than 10 in Argentina. The most important is the Río Salado del Norte (c.1,250 mi/2,010 km long), rising in the Andes near...

• Salinas Grandes salt desert, c.3,200 sq mi (8,290 sq km), in Córdoba and Santiago del Estero provs., N Argentina. The Córdoba-Tucumán RR crosses the desert. Sodium and potassium are mined there....

• Salto Ángel falls, Venezuela: see Angel Falls.

• San Blas Islands formerly Mulatas , archipelago off the northeast coast of Panama. It consists of 332 coral islands. The inhabitants are almost pure-blooded aborigines of Carib origin; fishing and coconut gathering are the chief...

• San Juan river, c.110 mi (180 km) long, flowing from the southeast corner of Lake Nicaragua E to the Caribbean Sea, near the port of San Juan del Norte. The lower course of the deep navigable river is the...

• Santiago, Río Grande de river, Mexico: see Lerma.

• Segovia river, Nicaragua and Honduras: see Coco.

• sertão [Port.,=backlands], semiarid hinterland of NE Brazil; c.250,000 sq mi (647,500 sq km). Its characteristic landscape is the caatinga, or thorny scrub forest. The chief occupation of the region is...

• Sierra Madre chief mountain system of Mexico, consisting of the Sierra Madre Oriental, the Sierra Madre Occidental, and the Sierra Madre del Sur and forming the dissected edges of the vast central Mexican...

• Sierra Maestra rugged mountain range, SE Cuba, rising abruptly from the coast. Consisting of connecting ranges with local names, the Sierra Maestra is the highest system of Cuba. It is rich in minerals,...

• Sierra Nevada de Mérida mountain range, NW Venezuela, a spur of the Andes extending c.200 mi (320 km) NE from the Colombian border to the Caribbean coastal range. From 30 to 50 mi (48-80 km) wide, it rises between the...

• Solimões river, Brazil: see Amazon , river.

• Soufrière active volcano, 4,813 ft (1,467 m) high, on Basse-Terre , Guadeloupe, in the Caribbean Sea. Called also La Grande Soufrière, it is the highest mountain in the Lesser Antilles. The volcano erupted in 1976 with no loss of life, as the area had been safely...

• Soufrière volcano, 4,048 ft (1,234 m) high, on St. Vincent island, St. Vincent and the Grenadines. On May 7, 1902, the day before the great eruption of Pelée on Martinique island, Soufrière erupted,...

• Tacaná volcano, 13,333 ft (4,064 m) high, on the Mexico-Guatemala boundary; second highest peak in Central America. Major eruptions occurred in 1855 and 1878.

• Tajumulco inactive volcano, 13,816 ft (4,211 m) high, W Guatemala. It is the highest mountain in Central America.

• Tapajós river, c.600 mi (970 km) long, formed at the border of Mato Grosso, Pará, and Amazonas states, central Brazil, by the confluence of the Juruena and Teles Pirez rivers. It flows NE across W Pará...

• Tehuantepec, Isthmus of c.125 mi (200 km) wide at its narrowest, S Mexico, between the Gulf of Campeche and the Gulf of Tehuantepec. It is mostly a rolling, tropical lowland with the lowest pass elevation at 754 ft (230...

• Texcoco, Lake see Mexico , city; Tenochtitlán.

• Titicaca lake, c.3,200 sq mi (8,290 sq km), 110 mi (177 km) long, and c.900 ft (270 m) deep at at its deepest point, in the Andes Mts., on the Bolivia-Peru border; second largest freshwater lake in South...

• Tocantins river, 1,640 mi (2,639 km) long, formed in S central Goiás state, Brazil, by the confluence of two headstreams. It flows N to the Pará River, the southern distributary of the Amazon, SW of Belém...

• Tortue, Île de la see Tortuga.

• Tortuga [Span.,=turtle], island, c.70 sq mi (180 sq km), off N Haiti. It was a notorious rendezvous of pirates in the 17th cent. It is called Île de la Tortue by the Haitians.

• Trans-Amazon Highway road, c.3,000 mi (4,830 km) long, traversing N central Brazil. The highway, stretching from the Atlantic coast to the Peruvian border, is an important factor in the economic development of the...

• Tres Marías, Las archipelago, in the Pacific Ocean, c.60 mi (100 km) W of Nayarit state, Mexico. Of the four islands, two—María Madre, which is the largest (c.56 sq mi/145 sq km) and is also a federal penal...

• Turquino peak, 6,560 ft (1,999 m) high, SE Cuba, in the Sierra Maestra range. It is the highest point on the island. The mountain, called Pico Turquino in Spanish, was the scene of intense guerrilla...

• Turrialba inactive volcano, 10,974 ft (3,345 m) high, E central Costa Rica. On its lower slopes is the city of Turrialba.

• Ucayali river, c.1,000 mi (1,610 km) long, formed by the confluence of the Apurímac and Urubamba rivers, E Peru, and flowing generally north through a mountain and jungle wilderness to the Marañón...

• Ulúa river, c.200 mi (320 km) long, rising in the Cordillera de Opalaca, W Honduras, and flowing north to the Caribbean Sea. The Ulúa, with its tributaries, drains almost the entire western half of the...

• Urubamba river, c.450 mi (720 km) long, rising in the Andes Mts., S Peru, and flowing generally north to join the Apurímac River to form the Ucayali. The Urubamba is extensively used for irrigation, and...

• Uruguay yoo´regwā, gwī, Span. ooroogwi´, ooroowī´ , river, c.1,000 mi (1,610 km) long, rising in S Brazil and flowing in an arc W, SW, and S to the Río de la Plata, an estuary; it forms part of the Brazil-Argentina border and most of the...

• Uspallata Pass c.12,500 ft (3,810 m) high, over the Andes between Mendoza, Argentina, and Santiago, Chile. A trail—and later a rough road—for men and pack animals was used before the Transandine Railway...

• Usumacinta river, c.600 mi (970 km) long, formed at the Guatemala-Mexico border by the Chixoy and Pasión rivers and flowing NE through Tabasco state, Mexico, to the Bay of Campeche. It is navigable for c.300...

• Vieques island (1990 pop. 8,602), 51 sq mi (132 sq km), off E Puerto Rico. It is hilly, with a dry, warm climate. The town of Vieques, commonly called Isabel Segunda, was founded in 1843 and is the main population center. The island has gained popularity as a resort. Most of Vieques was within U.S. military installations from the...