Atacama Region

This article is about the Atacama Region; for the desert, see Atacama Desert.
Atacama Region
Región de Atacama
Region of Chile
Nevado Tres Cruces National Park
Nevado Tres Cruces National Park
Flag of Atacama Region
Flag
Coat of Arms of Atacama Region
Coat of arms
Map of Atacama Region
Map of Atacama Region
Coordinates: 27°22′00″S 70°19′56″W / 27.36667°S 70.33222°W / -27.36667; -70.33222
Country Chile
CapitalCopiapó
ProvincesChañaral, Copiapó, Huasco
Government
 • IntendantFrancisco Sánchez (RN)
Area
[1]
 • Total75,176.2 km2 (29,025.7 sq mi)
 • Rank4
Highest elevation
6,891.3 m (22,609.3 ft)
Lowest elevation
0 m (0 ft)
Population
 (2017 census)[1]
 • Total286,168
 • Rank13
 • Density3.8/km2 (9.9/sq mi)
ISO 3166 codeCL-AT
HDI (2019)0.855[2]
very high
WebsiteOfficial website (in Spanish)

The Atacama Region Region (Spanish: Región de Atacama) is one of Chile's 15 first order administrative divisions. The southern portion of the Atacama Desert is in the region; the rest of the desert is in the other regions to the north (Norte Grande natural region).

The capital of the region is the city of Copiapó; it is at 806 km (501 mi) north of Santiago, the capital of country.

History

From 1843, Atacama was a province of Chile but in 1974, with the creation of the Regions of Chile, it became one of those regions.

Geography

The Atacama region borders the Tarapacá region to the north, Argentina (provinces of Catamarca, La Rioja and San Juan), on the east, the Coquimbo region on the south and the Pacific Ocean on the west.[3]

The highest mountains of the region are: Nevados Ojos del Salado, 6,893 m (22,615 ft) high, and Nevado Tres Cruces, 6,748 m (22,139 ft) high; they are in the Andes, in the border with Argentina.

Population

As of 2015, there were (estimated) 312,486 persons living in the region,[4] for a population density of 4.2 inhabitants/km².

The largest city in the region is its capital, Copiapó, with 125,983 inhabitants (2002 census).[source?]

Administration

The Atacama region is divided in three provinces: Chañaral, Copiapó and Huasco.

Atacama Region - Provinces and comunas
Provinces Capital Code Comunas Area
(km²)[3] 		Population[3]
2002
Copiapó
(031) 		Copiapó 03101 4 Copiapó 16,681.3 129,091
03102 3 Caldera 4,666.6 13,734
03103 5 Tierra Amarilla 11,190.6 12,888
Total of the Copiapó province 32,538.5 155,713
Chañaral
(032) 		Chañaral 03201 1 Chañaral 5,772.4 13,543
03202 2 Diego de Almagro 18,663.8 18,589
Total of the Chañaral province 24,436.2 32,132
Huasco
(033) 		Vallenar 03301 9 Vallenar 7,083.7 48,040
03302 6 Alto del Carmen 5,938.7 4,840
03303 7 Freirina 3,577.7 5,666
03304 8 Huasco 1,601.4 7,945
Total of the Huasco province 18,201.5 66,491
Total of the region 75,176.2 254,336

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Región de Atacama" (in Spanish). Library of National Congress. Retrieved 7 November 2022.
  2. ↑ "Sub-national HDI - Area Database - Global Data Lab". hdi.globaldatalab.org. Retrieved 26 October 2021.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 "Región de Atacama" (PDF). Instituto Nacional de Estadísticas. Archived from the original (PDF) on 13 November 2012. Retrieved 18 August 2016.
  4. ↑ "Población país y regiones - Actualización 2002-2012 y Proyección 2013-2020" (XLS) (in Spanish). Instituto Nacional de Estadísticas (INE). 4 September 2014. Retrieved 18 August 2016.

Other websites

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