Salar de Atacama
Chile · Americas
About
Salar de Atacama, located 55 km (34 mi) south of San Pedro de Atacama, is the largest salt flat in Chile. It is surrounded by mountains and lacks drainage outlets. To the east, it is enclosed by the main chain of the Andes, while to the west lies a secondary mountain range called Cordillera de Domeyko. The landscape is dominated by imposing volcanoes such as Licancabur, Acamarachi, Aguas Calientes, and Láscar, the latter being one of Chile's most active volcanoes. These volcanoes are situated along the eastern side of the Salar de Atacama, forming a north–south trending line that separates it from smaller endorheic basins.
Systematic economic surveys of the mineral resources of the salt flat begun in the 1960s with Chilean and American investigations financed through a grant from the United Nations. Anaconda Company discovered the lithium in the brines in 1962 while searching for freshwater for its copper mining operations. Since the 2000s, Salar de Atacama has become a significant hub for lithium extraction, as lithium is found in the brines of the salt flat.
The Likan Antay people are the indigenous inhabitants of Salar de Atacama and its surrounding areas.
Adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA)。Photography via Wikimedia Commons.