Aysén Fjord is an ~70 km long fjord stretching east from a skerry-guarded ( skjærgård) region called Moraleda Channel ( es, Canal Moraleda), which is a body of water separating the Chonos Archipelago from the mainland of Chile. It is located at and is connected indirectly to the open coast of the Pacific Ocean via the

Darwin Channel The Darwin Channel forms a westward continuation of the Aisén Fjord and links it to the Pacific Ocean at Isquiliac Island. It is located in the coast of Chile at approximately 45.4° south latitude. This is one of the main channels situated betwe ...

. The Aysén River discharges at the head of Aysén Fjord. Puerto Chacabuco is situated by the shores at the head of this fjord. Puerto Aysén lies on the Aysén River approximately 4 km above the head of Aysén Fjord. It serves as the capital for the Aysén Province. The region is heavily influenced by a wide tidal reach (up to 8 meters). It lies near the West Wind Drift, a major oceanic surface current which encounters the west coast of Chile at 41° S latitude. The West Wind Drift splits into the northward flowing branch which meets the

Humboldt Current The Humboldt Current, also called the Peru Current, is a cold, low- salinity ocean current that flows north along the western coast of South America.Montecino, Vivian, and Carina B. Lange. "The Humboldt Current System: Ecosystem components and pr ...

and the southward flowing Cape Horn Current, providing ample heat to drive vaporization of the sea water, which results in onshore precipitation of 4,000 – 7,000 mm per year in the Chilean Andes. The moisture is driven onshore by prevailing westerly winds, the Roaring Forties. The fjord was explored by Enrique Simpson in 1870 in the '' Chacabuco'' who discovering its usfullness to access more inland locations.Simpson, E. (1874). ''Esploraciones hechas por la Corbeta Chacabuco al mando del capitán de fragata don Enrique M. Simpson en los Archipiélagos de Guaitecas, Chonos i Taitao''. Santiago. Imprenta Nacional. From the 1990s up to August 2003 there were plans for building an aluminium smelter in the Puerto Chacabuco at the fjord's head. The project was opposed by

salmon farm The aquaculture of salmonids is the farming and harvesting of salmonids under controlled conditions for both commercial and recreational purposes. Salmonids (particularly salmon and rainbow trout), along with carp, and tilapia are the three most ...

companies operating in the fjord for the water pollution they claimed the smelter would produce. Between January 22 and April 22, 2007, the area around the fjord expierenced a series of minor earthquakes.

References

Fjords of Chile Bodies of water of Aysén Region {{Aysén-geo-stub