Carachipampa

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Coordinates: 26°28′18″S 67°28′08″W / 26.47167°S 67.46889°W / -26.47167; -67.46889
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Space image of Carachipampa

Carachipampa is a Pleistocene volcanic cone in Argentina. Part of a wider, regional volcanic field, it has produced lava flows consisting of andesite. It is surrounded by a lake and a salt flat, the former of which features an ecosystem formed by microbes.

Volcano[edit]

Carachipampa lies in the Catamarca Province[1] of northwestern Argentina.[2] It is a black volcanic cone with its summit on the southeastern crater rim, surrounded by a field of lava flows that were fed from the northwestern side of the cone.[3] Part of the southeastern flank of the cone is collapsed.[4] The occurrence of eroded scoria cones and lava domes has been reported.[5] The lava flows reach thicknesses of 2–6 metres (6 ft 7 in – 19 ft 8 in) and lengths of 8 kilometres (5.0 mi),[6] and consist of mafic andesite[7] that defines a calc-alkaline suite. Phenocrysts are mostly amphibole, clinopyroxene and olivine.[8] Rock samples from the volcano have been analyzed.[9]

The volcano erupted 750,000 years ago[10] and is part of the fourth volcanic stage in the region.[7] There are a number of mafic volcanic centres in the southern Puna, including Antofagasta de la Sierra north of Carachipampa.[11] Cerro Blanco farther southwest produced ignimbrites, which cover the terrain southwest of Carachipampa,[12] and is still active.[2] Seismic tomography has identified a low-speed anomaly underneath Carachipampa, which connects to it and to several neighbouring volcanoes like Galán and Ojos del Salado.[13] The so-called "Cerro Galán Magmatic Body" lies north of Carachipampa; the volcano lies above its margin.[14] There is evidence of neotectonic activity at Carachipampa.[15]

Surroundings[edit]

The cone lies at the centre, and the lowest point, of a[16] 149 by 64 kilometres (93 mi × 40 mi) wide[17] deserted, vegetation-free[a] plain[19] that is one of the lowest-elevation areas in the Puna.[20] To the west, across a ridge, lies the Incahuasi basin,[21] to the east there is a sharp demarcation with[22] the Campo de Piedra Pomez[2] with numerous yardangs carved into ignimbrites. Permian red beds and Paleogene sediments crop out close to Carachipampa.[2] Other rock formations around the Carachipampa plain range in age from Neoproterozoic over Devonian. The basin is filled with sediments, reaching thicknesses of 700 metres (2,300 ft).[17] The basin is notable for the giant (up to 1.5 metres (4 ft 11 in) high), wind-formed megaripples;[23] they are found southwest of Carachipampa in the valley that runs to Cerro Blanco.[24] Winds have removed fine materials, leaving only granular material on the plain,[19] and eroded sediments from wetlands.[25]

Climate and water[edit]

The region has a cold and arid climate,[22] as the Andes prevent moisture from the Atlantic. Winds blow mostly from the northwest and can be intense, explaining the widespread aeolian landforms at Carachipampa.[26] Other traits of the climate are high UV radiation, large daily temperature fluctuations and frequent drying, which make the environment similar to that experienced on Mars.[1]

There are two major waterbodies at Carachipampa,[27] which surround the volcano:[28]

  • Laguna Carachipampa covers a surface of 0.079 square kilometres (0.031 sq mi). Located at 2,915 metres (9,564 ft)[29] or 3,018 metres (9,902 ft) elevation,[30] it is hypersaline[31] and contains salty chloride- and sulfate-rich waters[32] which precipitate aragonite.[33] Its waters are mostly more than 60 years old.[34] The lake is flanked by pools of hydrothermal water,[35] and both them and (in lesser measure) the lake[35] feature a microbial ecosystem, similar to a number of other Puna lakes.[36] The microbes produce microbial mats, oncoids[b] and stromatolites[38] consisting of carbonate minerals.[30] They extend along 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) of the lake, occasionally forming flat pavements.[35] Flamingos breed at Laguna Carachipampa;[39] other birds encountered at Carachipampa include the Puna plover.[40]
  • Salar Carachipampa is a salt pan south-southeast from the volcano.[41] It has an area of 50 square kilometres (19 sq mi)[42] and sometimes fills with water, forming an ephemeral lake.[2] It is partially covered by wind-transported sediments.[43] A smaller volcano lies south of the salt pan.[44]

Several watercourses, many of which are ephemeral, flow into the Carachipampa waterbodies. These include the Pirica and Colorado rivers and the creek at El Peñón.[27] At least one creek feeds the waterbodies.[45] The Pirica and Colorado rivers may still flow to Carachipampa.[46] Wetlands are found mainly north of Carachipampa[47] and cover an area of about 0.361 square kilometres (0.139 sq mi).[48]

It is probable that in the past, the basin extended to Fiambalá, before it was separated by volcanic activity.[49] Later, activity of the Antofagasta de la Sierra volcanoes farther north removed inflow from the north[50] although it is possible that water still flows underground from Antofagasta to Carachipampa.[51] Until 1905 years ago, the climate was wetter and a terrace formed at Laguna Carachipampa.[52] Active wetlands[53] and beach environments developed around 644 years ago.[52]

Human use[edit]

The town of El Peñón is east of Carachipampa,[2] and the volcano/lake is a tourism destination.[48] National Route 53 [es][54][c] from Belen to Antofagasta de la Sierra, Catamarca passes by Carachipampa.[41] There is no evidence of agriculture or archeological sites around Carachipampa,[57] but the inhabitants of Peñón used the wetlands as pastures.[47] In 1978, there was a habitation named Carachi Pampa.[58] Bolivia briefly claimed the southern Puna including Carachipampa during the Puna de Atacama dispute in the early 20th century.[59]

Owing to its extreme environmental conditions, Carachipampa has been used as an Earth-based analogue to Mars.[1] Alum and salt were extracted from Carachipampa,[60] and presently the company Lake Resources owns rights about a lithium extraction project at Carachipampa.[61] The name may refer to Quechua pampa, "plain"; the first component may be a reference to either kachi, "salt", or kachina, a type of white ground, or Qáranpampa, "Erial sterile field".[62]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ A highly permeable ground may additionally hinder vegetation growth[18]
  2. ^ Which in the Puna are also microbially generated.[37]
  3. ^ The Inca road system coming from Quebrada del Toro[55] probably passes along a different location named "Carachipampa".[56]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c Huidobro et al. 2023, p. 2.
  2. ^ a b c d e f Favaro et al. 2020, p. 3.
  3. ^ Sundt 1911, p. 85.
  4. ^ Coira & Cisterna 2021, p. 97.
  5. ^ Maro et al. 2020, p. 3.
  6. ^ Coira & Cisterna 2021, p. 96.
  7. ^ a b Kay, Coira & Mpodozis 2006, p. 500.
  8. ^ Maro et al. 2020, p. 4.
  9. ^ Kay, Coira & Mpodozis 2006, p. 501.
  10. ^ Coira & Cisterna 2021, p. 32.
  11. ^ Coira & Cisterna 2021, p. 94.
  12. ^ Coira & Cisterna 2021, p. 31.
  13. ^ Calixto et al. 2013, p. 4297.
  14. ^ Maro et al. 2020, p. 15.
  15. ^ Olivera, Tchilinguirian & Grana 2004, p. 237.
  16. ^ Pardo-Igúzquiza & Dowd 2021, p. 1033.
  17. ^ a b Gozalvez, Álvarez & Seggiaro 2023, p. 11.
  18. ^ Grau et al. 2018, p. 150.
  19. ^ a b Estrada 1999, p. 10.
  20. ^ Pintar 2014.
  21. ^ Sundt 1911, p. 77.
  22. ^ a b Favaro, Hugenholtz & Barchyn 2021, p. 3064.
  23. ^ Yizhaq 2008, p. 1369.
  24. ^ Hugenholtz, Barchyn & Favaro 2015, p. 136.
  25. ^ Tchilinguirian & Olivera 2012, p. 53.
  26. ^ Favaro et al. 2020, p. 4.
  27. ^ a b Zamora 2022, p. 225.
  28. ^ Muñoz 1894, p. 43.
  29. ^ Mirande 2022, p. 100.
  30. ^ a b Vignale et al. 2022, p. 8.
  31. ^ Maidana & Seeligmann 2015.
  32. ^ Seeligmann & Maidana 2019, p. 477.
  33. ^ Grau et al. 2018, p. 251.
  34. ^ Vignoni et al. 2024, p. 74.
  35. ^ a b c Farías 2020, p. 256.
  36. ^ Vignale et al. 2022, p. 5.
  37. ^ Vignale et al. 2022, p. 3.
  38. ^ Vignale et al. 2022, p. 6.
  39. ^ Torres et al. 2019, p. 6.
  40. ^ Caziani et al. 2001, p. 114.
  41. ^ a b Milana 2009, p. 343.
  42. ^ Munné 1978, p. 260.
  43. ^ Milana 2009, p. 344.
  44. ^ Maro et al. 2020, p. 2.
  45. ^ Sundt 1911, p. 94.
  46. ^ Estrada 1999, p. 151.
  47. ^ a b Muñoz 1894, p. 120.
  48. ^ a b Caziani et al. 2001, p. 106.
  49. ^ Sundt 1911, p. 78.
  50. ^ Sundt 1911, p. 86.
  51. ^ Estrada 1999, p. 11.
  52. ^ a b Grana et al. 2016.
  53. ^ Tchilinguirian & Olivera 2012, p. 54.
  54. ^ Munné 1978, p. 267.
  55. ^ Vitry 2003, p. 155.
  56. ^ Vitry 2003, p. 158.
  57. ^ Tchilinguirian & Olivera 2012, p. 56.
  58. ^ Munné 1978, p. 262.
  59. ^ Pizarro 2010, p. 354.
  60. ^ Zamora 2022, p. 244.
  61. ^ Argento 2022, p. 56.
  62. ^ Estrada 1999, p. 13.

Sources[edit]

External links[edit]

26°28′18″S 67°28′08″W / 26.47167°S 67.46889°W / -26.47167; -67.46889

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