Moraleda Channel () is a body of water separating the

Chonos Archipelago The Chonos Archipelago is a series of low, mountainous, elongated islands with deep bays, traces of a submerged Chilean Coast Range. Most of the islands are forested with little or no human settlement. The deep Moraleda Channel separates the isla ...

from the mainland of

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 east a ...

. It is located at , leading to

Gulf of Corcovado Gulf of Corcovado () is a large body of water separating the Chiloé Island from the mainland of Chile. Geologically, it is a forearc basin that has been carved out by Quaternary glaciers. Most of the islands of Chiloé Archipelago are located in ...

. Southward from the mouth of the

Aisén Fjord 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 locat ...

, Moraleda Channel divides into two arms. The east arm, called ''Canal Costa'' (Costa Channel), is the main one. Farther south the name changes to ''Estero Elefantes'' (Elefantes Estuary), which terminates in the gulf of the same name. The channel runs along the

Liquiñe-Ofqui Fault The Liquiñe-Ofqui Fault is major geological fault that runs a length of roughly in a NNE-SSW orientation and exhibits current seismicity. It is located in the Chilean Northern Patagonian Andes. It is a dextral intra-arc strike-slip fault. Most ...

. The channel is named after

José de Moraleda y Montero José Manuel de Moraleda y Montero (1750 - 1810) was a Spanish naval officer and cartographer known for his explorations of Chiloé and the archipelagos of Patagonia in the late 18th century. During his lifetime he gained a reputation of sorcere ...

, a Spanish navy officer who explored the area in the 1780s. The deepest part of the channel are situated in west of Magdalena Island. In 1985 the discovery of '' merluza''

fishing ground Fishery can mean either the enterprise of raising or harvesting fish and other aquatic life; or more commonly, the site where such enterprise takes place ( a.k.a. fishing ground). Commercial fisheries include wild fisheries and fish farms, bo ...

s in Moraleda Channel sparkled a fishing boom (''boom merluzero'') that led to the spontaneous growth of two new settlements; Puerto Gaviota and

Puerto Gala Puerto Gala or Gala is a hamlet and fishing community in Toto Island, southern Chile. It is located at the meeting point of Jacaf Channel with Moraleda Channel Moraleda Channel () is a body of water separating the Chonos Archipelago from the ma ...

References

External links

Straits of Chile Bodies of water of Aysén Region {{Aisén-geo-stub