Altiplano Basin
The Altiplano Basin (Spanish: Cuenca del Altiplano) is a sedimentary basin within the Andes in Bolivia and Peru. The basin is located on the Altiplano plateau between the Cordillera Occidental and the Cordillera Oriental. Over-all the basin has evolved through time in a context of horizontal shortening of Earth's crust. The great thickness of the sediments accumulated in the basin is mostly the result of the erosion of Cordillera Oriental.
Altiplano Basin | |
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Cuenca del Altiplano | |
DEM, showing the approximate area of the basin | |
Coordinates | 18°28′S 67°20′W |
Etymology | Altiplano |
Region | Central Andes |
Country | Bolivia Peru |
State(s) | La Paz, Oruro, Potosí Puno |
Cities | La Paz, Oruro, Potosí, Uyuni |
Characteristics | |
On/Offshore | Onshore |
Boundaries | Pasani Fault, Cordillera Occidental, Ayaviri Fault, Cordillera Oriental, Coniri Fault |
Part of | Intramontane Andean basins |
Area | 154,176 km2 (59,528 sq mi) |
Hydrology | |
River(s) | Desaguadero River |
Lake(s) | Titicaca, Poopó |
Geology | |
Basin type | Piggy-back |
Plate | South American |
Orogeny | Andean |
Age | Early Paleozoic-Holocene |
Stratigraphy | Stratigraphy |
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