Aconcagua: Highest Mountain in South America
Aconcagua [ Real name -Cerro Aconcagua (Cerro means Hill) ] is the highest mountain outside Asia, at 6,960.8 metres (22,837 ft) and by extension the highest point in both the Western Hemisphere and the Southern Hemisphere.It is located in the Andes mountain range, in the Mendoza Province, Argentina, and lies 112 kilometres (70 mi) northwest of its capital, the city of Mendoza, about five kilometres from San Juan Province and 15 kilometres from the international border with Chile. The mountain itself lies entirely within Argentina, immediately east of Argentina's border with Chile.Its nearest higher neighbor is Tirich Mir in the Hindu Kush, 16,520 kilometres (10,270 mi) away. It is one of the Seven Summits.Aconcagua is bounded by the Valle de las Vacas to the north and east and the Valle de los Horcones Inferior to the west and south. The mountain and its surroundings are part of the Aconcagua Provincial Park. The mountain has a number of glaciers. The largest glacier is the Ventisquero Horcones Inferior at about 10 kilometres long, which descends from the south face to about 3600 metres in altitude near the Confluencia camp.Two other large glacier systems are the Ventisquero de las Vacas Sur and Glaciar Este/Ventisquero Relinchos system at about 5 kilometres long. The most well-known is the north-eastern or Polish Glacier, as it is a common route of ascent.
Former volcano
some people think Aconcagua is a volcano, it is not. The mountain was formed when the Nazca Plate and the South American Plate collided during the relatively recent Andean orogeny, defined as a period of mountain formation through upward displacement of the earth's crust.
The Andes Mountains were formed as the result of subduction of the oceanic Nazca Plate under the South American continent, according to Marieke Dechesne, a geologist with the U.S. Geological Survey. Aconcagua used to be a volcano, when the oceanic plate dipped at a higher angle under the continent.However, sometime in the Miocene,about 8 to 10 million years ago, the subduction angle started to decrease causing the magma to stop melting and increasing the horizontal stresses between the oceanic plate and the continent, causing the thrust faults that lifted Aconcagua up off its volcanic root.
Climbing Aconcagua
Climbers of Aconcagua often struggle with low humidity, low oxygen and fierce winds. Storms are often triggered by humid currents of warm sea air coming from the Pacific Anticyclone, a high-pressure system in the southern Pacific Ocean. These south-bound winds clash against the Andes Mountains, cooling and creating snow on the high peaks, according to Aconcagua Treks. In the summer, the mountain also has its share of lightning storms, creating an even greater risk for climbers.
About 60 percent of climbers who attempt the mountain succeed in summiting. Because it is not a highly technical climb, many mistakenly believe that it will be an easy ascent. More than 135 climbers have died on Aconcagua
Aconcagua history
1883: German mountaineer and explorer Paul Güssfeldt makes the first attempt by a European to reach the summit of Aconcagua. Güssfeldt allegedly bribes some local men to be his porters by telling them there is treasure on the mountain, according to Aconcagua Treks. The team has poor equipment and is forced to head back down only about 1,640 feet (500 m) from the summit due to extremely dangerous winds.
1897: American-born mountaineer Edward FitzGerald leads the first known ascent of Aconcagua. Swiss climber Mathias Zurbriggen reaches the summit alone on Jan. 14, followed a few days later by Nicholas Lanti and Stuart Vines, who were also members of the expedition team.
1940: French climber Adrienne Bance is the first woman to summit as part of an expedition from of the Andinist Club of Mendoza.
1953: Argentines E. Huerta, H. Vasalla and F. Godoy make the first winter ascent from Sept. 11 to 15.
1984: Titoune Meunier is the first woman to climb the South Face. She reaches the summit, along with her former husband John Bouchard, using the French 1954/Messner route.
1985: A well-preserved skeleton is discovered at 17,060 feet (5,200 m) on the southwest ridge of Cerro Pyramidal, an Aconcagua sub-peak, providing evidence that the pre-Colombian Incas had climbed Aconcagua.
2007: Scott Lewis, at 87, is the oldest person to summit when he makes his ascent on Nov. 26.
2013: Tyler Armstrong, a 9-year-old boy from Yorba Linda, Calif., is the youngest to reach the summit.
First Ascent
While the first summit of Aconcagua is credited to Swiss Climber Mathias Zurbriggen, there are traces of Inca civilization and culture near the summit. The name itself hearkens back to indigenous roots, the Quechua word Anco (white) and Cahuac (sentinel). Much like the explorers of the Himalayas, the passes around Aconcagua came into play during military expeditions. In 1817, General Jose de San Martin crossed the range in successful efforts to liberate Chile from Spain. By 1950 most sides of the mountain were climbed with variations of these routes being added to the long line of successful summits.
Dangers
Aconcagua is the highest peak of South America and is also considered ‘easy’ at nearly seven thousand metres. And through that, Aconcagua is believed to have the highest death rate of any mountain in South America – around three a year – which has earned it the nickname, “Mountain of Death”. More than a hundred people have died on Aconcagua since records began. Due to the improper disposal of human waste in the mountain environment there are significant health hazards that pose a threat to both animals and human beings. Only boiled or chemically treated water is accepted for drinking.
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