The Big North (in red on the map) starts at the northern border of Chile with Peru and extends south to the RIo Copiapo. This area is known for being extremely arid as it is part of the Atacama Desert, one of the driest deserts in the world. Some areas have no recorded rainfall. The coastline is wetter as it has fog that comes off the cool ocean currents and gets trapped by the coastal mountain range. Beyond the coastal mountain range is the central valley which is very arid and beyond that to the east the Andes dominate with a high desert plateau. The photo below is of flamingos in the salt flats of the high desert plateau.
Most of the population centers are in the major coastal cities. Starting in the north is Arica, the most northern city in Chile, and home to 200,000+ people. Also known as the city of eternal spring though there is almost no rainfall in recorded history. It attracts a lot of surfers because of its pleasant year round weather and consistent waves.. It is the home of several surf schools and international competetions. Iquique is south of Arica and also has a population of around 200,000. It has one of the largest duty free ports in South America. Antofagasta is the largest city in this region with a population of 400,000. It has a large port to serve the needs of the mining industry. Mining is big in this region with rich deposits of copper, silver, nitrates, molybdenum, and lithium. Chuquicamata is the largest open pit copper mine in the world and Escondida is the open pit copper mine with the largest production in the world. Most of the American Expats in this region live in Antofagasta and work in the mining industry or at the observatories on the high desert plateau. The photo below is of the clock tower in the center of the city of Iquique looking out over the port.
