Argentina

Argentina has many resources, but no silver. The Spanish explorers who discovered it did not know this when they named the country (“argentum” is the Latin word for silver). This valuable ore is found in abundance to the north in Bolivia and Peru, but Argentina has kept its name.Argentina is a huge country. It is the eighth largest in the world and the second largest, after Brazil, in South America. It comprises 22 provinces and the territory of Tierra del Fuego, and includes some south Atlantic islands and a 49-degree wedge of the Antarctic, ending at the South Pole. Parts of the Antarctic sector are also claimed by Chile and Great Britain; at this time, the South Atlantic islands are under British rule. Excluding these disputed areas, Argentina has 2.8 million square kilometres. The islands and the area of the Antarctic together spread over 1.2 million square kilometres. The country is 3500 km long and up to 1400 km wide.
As you can imagine, a country of that enormous size has a very diverse topography and different climates. Although most of Argentina lies within the climate zone of the Southern Hemisphere, the climatic conditions range from tropical in the north to sub-arctic in the south. The climate of the country is moderated by the influence of the two oceans, one on each side. This influence is enforced the farther south you go, where South America becomes smaller and smaller and the two oceans finally meet. As a high cloud barrier against the west, the Andes also play an important role. Thanks to the diversity of its landscape, Argentina has a rich variety of animals and plants.

Climate in Argentina

Except for the small tropical region in the northeast and in the subtropical Gran Chaco in the north, the prevailing climate conditions in Argentina are temperate. In the area around Buenos Aires the average annual temperature is 16.1°C. The mean temperature for January and July is between 23.3 and 10 °C. In San Miguel de Tucumán in northwest Argentina, the temperatures average 26.1 °C in January and 13.3 °C in July. Average temperatures are higher in the north, near the Tropic of Capricorn, where extreme temperatures can be as high as 45°C.

In the higher regions of the Andes, Patagonia, and Terra del Fuego, colder temperatures prevail. In the western section of Patagonia, the average winter temperature is 0 °C. In most of the coastal areas,
the influence of the ocean creates a more moderate climate.

There are huge regional differences in the rainfall in Argentina. More than 1500 millimetres of rain fall annually in the extreme north; in the south and west the conditions are semi-arid. In the area around Buenos Aires, the average annual rainfall is 950 millimetres, and near San Miguel de Tucumán about 970 millimetres.