As the proportionally longest and narrowest country in the world – stretching over 33 degrees in latitude – or 4,200km – from north to south, Chile has its fair share of different climate zones.
In the far south, including the island of Tierra del Fuego, shared with neighbouring Argentina, there is a strongly oceanic climate, with high rainfall – as much as 4,000mm (157 inches) a year – and prevailing westerly winds. Yet the main city, Punta Arenas, lies in the rain-shadow to the west, and so receives just 410mm (16 inches) of precipitation a year.
Chile’s capital, Santiago, lies roughly in the centre of the country, has a more Mediterranean climate, with warm, dry and sunny summers and fairly cool winters; rainfall occurs mainly in the winter months, but is still very low – just 275mm (10.8 inches) a year.
But it is the far north of the country that has the most extreme climate. The Atacama Desert is known as the driest place on the planet, where it hardly ever rains. The reason for this is the cold offshore ocean current, named after the European explorer Alexander von Humboldt, which prevents the formation of rain clouds. Further inland, in the Andes Mountains, the climate is also extremely dry, but much colder due to the high altitude: night-time temperatures can drop well below freezing.
