The Republic of Argentina has been independent since 1816 and lies on the southern tip of the American continent. From north to south it covers over 3,799 km and at its broadest point from east to west the distance is 1,423 km. In European terms this means the distance from Scotland to the tropic of cancer.
With its area of 2.78 million square km, Argentina is the second largest country in South America and about 8 times the size of Germany. The Andes create the border to Chile in the west, whereas to the east the country borders on the Atlantic Ocean.
Photo left: Bill Tarpenning
Because of its location and geography Argentina offers a wide variety of climate zones and landscapes: the arid countryside of the northern mountainous region, the tropical climate of the north-east, the wide and fertile plain of the pampa in the central region, a 4,725 km coast, the huge lowlands of Patagonia, the icy southern tip, the lake district, the virgin forests, the snow-capped peaks of the southern Andes mountains and the frosty, stormy grasslands of the southern Atlantic archipelago.
In European terms this means the distance from Scotland to the tropic of cancer.
