Nevado Ojos del Salado (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈoxos ðel saˈlaðo] ) is a dormant complex volcano in the Andes on the Argentina–Chile border. It is the highest volcano on Earth and the highest peak in Chile. The upper reaches of Ojos del Salado consist of several overlapping lava domes, lava flows and volcanic craters, with sparse ice cover. The complex extends over an area of 70–160 square kilometres (27–62 mi2) and its highest summit reaches an altitude of 6,893 metres (22,615 ft) above sea level. Numerous other volcanoes rise around Ojos del Salado. Being close to the Arid Diagonal of South America, the mountain has extremely dry conditions, which prevent the formation of substantial glaciers and a permanent snow cover. Despite the arid climate, there is a permanent crater lake about 100 m (330 ft) in diameter at an elevation of 6,480–6,500 metres (21,260–21,330 ft) within the summit crater and east of the main summit. This is the highest lake of any kind in the world. Owing to its altitude and the desiccated climate, the mountain lacks vegetation. Ojos del Salado was volcanically active during the Pleistocene and Holocene, during which it mainly produced lava flows. Activity was in two phases and a depression or caldera formed in the course of its growth. The volcano was also affected by eruptions of its neighbour to the west, Nevado Tres Cruces. The last eruption of Ojos del Salado occurred around 750 CE; steam emissions observed in November 1993 may have constituted another eruptive event. An international highway between Argentina and Chile crosses north of the mountain. Ojos del Salado can be ascended from both countries; the first ascent was made in 1937 by Jan Alfred Szczepański and Justyn Wojsznis, members of a Polish expedition in the Andes. During the middle of the 20th century there was a debate on whether Ojos del Salado or Aconcagua was the highest mountain in South America, which was eventually resolved in favour of Aconcagua.
Name The name Ojos del Salado refers to a river, Río Salado ("Salty River"), which was used by a 1937 Polish expedition to reach the mountain. It is unclear whether the name was already in use before by a Chile–Argentina boundary commission. In geographical terms, Ojo is commonly used in Chile and Argentina to denote a spring or source of water; e.g. the nearby source of the Las Lozas river "Ojo de las Lozas". The mountain is often referred to as Cerro Ojos del Salado and Nevado Ojos del Salado; the former is a common term for "mountain" in Chile and the latter means "snowy", referring to snow-covered mountains. Another theory posits that the name means "salty eyes" or "salty springs", referring to mineral deposits on its flanks. There are two summits, known as the eastern or Argentine and western or Chilean summit; both lie along the international boundary and get their names after the country from which they can be more easily reached.
Geography and geomorphology Ojos del Salado is part of the High Andes and rises from the southern end of the Puna de Atacama, a high plateau next to the Atacama Desert with an average elevation of 4,000 metres (13,000 ft). The Argentina–Chile border runs across the summit of the mountain in an east-west direction. The Argentine part is within Catamarca Province and the Chilean in Copiapo Province of the Atacama Region. The highway Chile Route 31 runs between the city of Copiapo west of the volcano and the Paso San Francisco to Argentina, lying about 20 kilometres (12 mi) north of the volcano, making it more accessible than many other volcanoes there. The region is uninhabited and lacks water resources; many parts are only accessible through dirt roads. Ojos del Salado is a dormant volcano that rises to 6,893 metres (22,615 ft), 6,879 metres (22,569 ft) or 6,887 metres (22,595 ft) elevation. It is the world's highest volcano and the second-highest summit of the Andes, and the highest summit in Chile. Ojos del Salado is not a single conical summit but a massif/complex volcano formed by overlapping smaller volcanoes, with over 20 craters. Two edifices, less than 2.5 kilometres (1.6 mi) wide, flank the 1.3-by-0.5-kilometre-wide (0.81 mi × 0.31 mi) summit crater on its eastern and western side. Basalt, gravel, pumice and scoria crop out in its rim, which is lower on the northern side. A second 300–400-metre-wide (980–1,310 ft) crater lies just west of the summit crater. Reportedly, the summit is separated by a deep gap into two separate peaks. Thick short dacitic lava flows make up the core 13 by 12 kilometres (8.1 mi × 7.5 mi) area of the volcano but pyroclastic fall material covers much of the summit area. The massif rises about 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) above the surrounding terrain and covers an oval area of about 70 square kilometres (27 sq mi)–160 square kilometres (62 sq mi), consisting of lava domes, lava flows, pyroclastic cones and volcanic craters that rise about 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) above the surrounding terrain. The massif appears to feature a buried caldera, visible through a slope break from the western side, and/or a 2.5-kilometre-wide (1.6 mi) depression. The occurrence of a rift-like structure with numerous small craters has also been reported. Volcanic cones form a north-northeast trending alignment on the western flank. Cerro Solo and El Fraile are large lava domes on the flanks of Ojos del Salado, and produced pyroclastic flows. Wind-driven erosion has produced megaripple sand fields on the northern flank. Above 6,000 metres (20,000 ft) elevation talus-covered slopes and lava flows form the bulk of the surface, while the desert plains begin below 5,000 metres (16,000 ft) elevation. The ground above 4,000–5,600 metres (13,100–18,400 ft) elevation is expected to contain permafrost, which is likely continuous at higher elevations and overlaid with a thin active layer. Cryoturbation landforms were not conspicuous according to Nagy et al. 2019, presumably because wind-driven phenomena overprint the effects of cryoturbation. Mass movements have left traces on the mountain.
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