A Physical Map: South America

Angel Falls in Venezuela has a longer drop than any other waterfall in the world.

The Amazon River is the second-longest river in the world.

The Andes Mountains are the world’s longest mountain range.

The Atacama Desert is one of the driest places in the world.

The Galápagos Islands belong to Ecuador The Galápagos Islands belong to Ecuador. They are home to huge sea turtles and other unusual animals.

The world’s largest rainforest is located in the Amazon River Basin.

Vocabulary Words

archipelago – a group of islands

basin – land drained by a river

cape – a point of land that extends into a sea or an ocean

elevation – height of the land above sea level

Mountain range – a group or chain of mountains

passage – another name for a channel, or a body of water joining two larger bodies of water

Patagonia – a dry, grassy region

Physical map – a map that shows natural landforms and waterways on Earth’s surface

strait – a narrow channel connecting two bodies of water

tributary – a small stream or river that flows into a larger one

Answers

MONDAY 1. Andes Mountains 2. 6; Orinoco River

TUESDAY 1. Mount Aconcagua; 22,831 feet 2. Valdéz Peninsula; -131 feet

1. Patagonia; Pampas grasslands and Andes Mountains WEDNESDAY 1. Patagonia; Pampas grasslands and Andes Mountains 2. Amazon River; Madeira and Tapajós Rivers

1. Strait of Magellan and the Drake Passage THURSDAY 1. Strait of Magellan and the Drake Passage 2. Galápagos Islands, northwest; Marajó Island, northeast; Falkland Islands, southeast; Tierra del Fuego, southeast

FRIDAY 1. Through the Strait of Magellan into the Pacific Ocean; or around Cape Horn into the Drake passage and then into the Pacific Ocean 2. South in the Atlantic through the Drake Passage and into Pacific Ocean; north into the Caribbean Sea, through the Panama Canal, and into Pacific Ocean