A country of supreme beauty and ecological diversity, Chile is home to tundra, tropical rainforests, beaches, the mighty Andes Mountains; and the Atacama Desert – a virtually rainless plateau made of salt basins and lava flows.
It’s amazing to note that although certain portions of the Atacama Desert have not seen a single drop of rain ever since record keeping began, more than a million people reside in this 600 miles (1000 km) parched stretch of land. The desert rises upwards into a plateau from Chile’s thin coastal shelf and its center lies, what scientists call absolute desert, Earth’s driest place. Nothing lives there, nothing rots, and everything is preserved by the extreme lack of moisture.
The Atacama has become home to resilient farmers employing drip-irrigation systems, growing olives, cucumbers and tomatoes. Coastal fishers, llama and alpaca herders and a wide range of scientists and astronomers who relish the clear skies of Chile, have also made this desert their home.
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Driest place in the world,
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Voyage to the Planets
This is a great view of Soyuz TMA-13 spacecraft’s lift off. The ride is carrying Expedition 18 Commander Michael Fincke, Flight Engineer Yury V. Lonchakov and American space flight participant Richard Garriott to their workplace on a long commute.
The Photo was taken at the time of launch today, Sunday, Oct. 12, 2008. Surprisingly The Astronauts went on their long commute from Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.
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Worlds Largest Cave
Here is a worthy update for the tourists, that there are still such places available for exploration....
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astronaut,
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Expedition 17,
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Lonchakov,
MAC OS 9,
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Michael Fincke,
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Richard Garriott,
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Yury V. Lonchakov
