Maipo is a

stratovolcano A stratovolcano, also known as a composite volcano, is a conical volcano built up by many layers (strata) of hardened lava and tephra. Unlike shield volcanoes, stratovolcanoes are characterized by a steep profile with a summit crater and peri ...

in the

Andes The Andes, Andes Mountains or Andean Mountains (; ) are the longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range is long, wide (widest between 18°S – 20°S ...

, lying on the border between

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest ...

and

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the eas ...

. It is located south of

Tupungato Tupungato, one of the highest mountains in the Americas, is a massive Andean lava dome dating to Pleistocene times. It lies on the border between the Chilean Metropolitan Region (near a major international highway about east of Santiago) and t ...

and about southeast of

Santiago Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile, is the capital and largest city of Chile as well as one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is the center of Chile's most densely populated region, the Santiago Metropolitan Region, whos ...

. It has a symmetrical, conical volcanic shape, and is among the southernmost 5,000 metre peaks in the Andes. Maipo is located within the Diamante caldera, a feature measuring 15 km by 20 km that is about half a million years old. It rises about 1,900 m (6,230 ft) above the floor of the caldera. Immediately to the east of the peak, on the eastern side of the caldera floor, is

Laguna del Diamante ''Laguna del Diamante'' (Spanish for "lake of the diamond") is a lake located in the province of Mendoza, Argentina, in the San Carlos Department, some 198 km from Mendoza. It covers a surface area of about 14.1 km2 and is one of the ...

, a lake that formed when lava flows blocked drainage channels from the caldera in 1826. The Diamante Caldera erupted of

tephra Tephra is fragmental material produced by a volcanic eruption regardless of composition, fragment size, or emplacement mechanism. Volcanologists also refer to airborne fragments as pyroclasts. Once clasts have fallen to the ground, they r ...

, 450 ka. The region's climate is transitional between the drier Mediterranean climate of the peaks to the north and the cold, moist climate of Chilean

Patagonia Patagonia () refers to a geographical region that encompasses the southern end of South America, governed by Argentina and Chile. The region comprises the southern section of the Andes Mountains with lakes, fjords, temperate rainforests, and g ...

. Hence, while less glaciated than Patagonia, it has more permanent snow on the wet, Chilean side than peaks of similar elevation to the north.

References

;Notes ;Sources * Volcan Maipo or Maipú (span.

* Volcán Maipo NASA

Mountains of Mendoza Province Volcanoes of Mendoza Province Mountains of Santiago Metropolitan Region Volcanoes of Santiago Metropolitan Region Stratovolcanoes of Chile Subduction volcanoes Active volcanoes VEI-7 volcanoes Stratovolcanoes of Argentina Argentina–Chile border International mountains of South America Five-thousanders of the Andes Principal Cordillera Holocene stratovolcanoes {{MendozaAR-geo-stub

See also

References