Calama
| Calama | ||
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Coordinates: 22 ° 28 ′ S , 68 ° 56 ′ W Calama on the map of Chile
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| Basic data | ||
| Country | Chile | |
| Residents | 158,487 (2017) | |
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| Detailed data | ||
| height | 2260 m | |
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Calama is a city in the north of the South American Andean state of Chile . It is located in the Región de Antofagasta and has 158,487 inhabitants (2017 census).
geography
The desert town of Calama is located on an intermediate high plateau in the middle of the Atacama desert , about 600 km south of Arica .
With an annual precipitation of 0 mm, the city is one of the driest places on earth. Accordingly, there is practically no vegetation in the vicinity of the city.
history
The city was formerly called Chiu-Chiu and was renamed Calama in 1840. At that time it was part of Bolivia . During the Saltpeter War , the city was conquered by Chilean troops on March 23, 1879 and has been part of Chile ever since. In 1886 the city received a railway connection.
After no one has been allowed to live in the contaminated vicinity of the Chuquicamata copper mine since January 1, 2003, Calama experienced rapid growth.
Attractions
Calama is not a downright tourist town. However, a tour of the huge copper mine is impressive.
Travel to the Salar de Atacama to the south , to the geysers at El Tatio or to Bolivia are possible.
Economy and Transport
Much of the population is professionally connected to the Chuquicamata copper mine, the largest copper mine in the world.
A railway line runs through Calama, which connects the port city of Antofagasta with Oruro in Bolivia. On the one hand, it serves to bring the copper ore mined in Calama to the port in Antofagasta; on the other hand, it is a connection between Bolivia and Chile's largest export port, Antofagasta. Until 2005 there was a weekly passenger train to Oruro. Calama has an airport . Other parts of the country can also be reached by one of the numerous buses.
Calama was a stage on the route of the 2011 Dakar Rally .
