Chimborazo (volcano) 361958 225467231 2008-07-13T21:10:12Z 75.58.41.232 /* Location */ {{Otheruses4|the Volcano|the Ecuadorian province|Chimborazo Province}} {{Infobox Mountain | Name=Chimborazo [[Image:Flag of Ecuador.svg|37px]]| Photo=Chimborazo_from_southwest.jpg | Caption=Chimborazo from the SW | Elevation={{convert|6268.2|m|ft|0}} <ref name="elev">The elevation given here was established by a [[DGPS|differential GPS]] survey in 1993. The survey was carried out by a team of 10 personnel from the School of Military Survey in Newbury, [[United Kingdom]], working in cooperation with the [[Ecuador]]ean Instituto Geografico Militar. Accuracy of ±2 m is claimed. Source: Mountain INFO 136, High Magazine, March 1994 ([http://www.viewfinderpanoramas.org/chimbo-high2.jpg copy]). This figure is compatible with [[SRTM]] data, unlike an older but still frequently given figure of {{convert|6310|m|ft|0}}.</ref>| Location=[[Ecuador]] | Range=[[Andes]], [[Cordillera Occidental, Ecuador|Cordillera Occidental]] | Prominence = 4,123 m <small> [[List of peaks by prominence|Ranked 17th]]</small> | Coordinates = {{coor at dms|01|28|09|S|78|49|03|W|type:mountain}} | Easiest route=glacier/snow climb [[Grade (climbing)#French 2|PD]] | Type=[[Stratovolcano]] | Topographic map = IGM, CT-ÑIV-C1 <ref>[http://www.igm.gov.ec/cms/files/cartabase/enie/imagenes/ENIEIV_C1_ALTA.jpg Topographic Map]</ref> | Age= [[Paleogene]] (Gomez 1994)| Last eruption=640 AD ± 500 years <ref name="gvp">{{cite web | title = Chimborazo | work = Global Volcanism Program | publisher = [[Smithsonian Institution]] | url = http://www.volcano.si.edu/world/volcano.cfm?vnum=1502-071 | accessdate = 2007-02-27 }}</ref> }} The inactive [[stratovolcano]] '''Chimborazo''' ({{pronounced|tʃimboˈraso}}) is [[Ecuador|Ecuador's]] highest summit. Its last eruption is thought to have occurred some time in the first millennium AD. Its summit is generally regarded as the spot on the surface farthest from the center of the Earth, measuring 6,384.4 km (3,968 mi) from the Earth's core to the peak. ==Geography== [[Image:Chimborazo shadow.jpg|thumb|The shadow of Chimborazo as seen from the summit at sunrise]] ===Location=== Chimborazo is located in the [[Cordillera Occidental, Ecuador|Cordillera Occidental]] of the [[Andes]] of central [[Ecuador]], 150 km (93 mi) south-southwest of the capital [[Quito]]. It's neighbored by 5,018 m high [[Carihuairazo]]. Chimborazo's majestic summit rises 2,500 m above the surrounding highlands (~3,500 to 4,000 m) with a ~20 km wide base. Under clear conditions the summit of Chimborazo can be seen from the coastal city [[Guayaquil]]. The nearest cities are [[Riobamba]] (~30km to the southeast), [[Ambato]] (~30km to the northeast) and [[Guaranda]] (~25km to the southwest).Chimborazo is surrounded by the ''"Reserva de Produccion Faunistica Chimborazo"'' which forms a protected ecosystem to preserve the habitat for the Andes native [[camelids]] [[Vicuña]], [[Llama]] and [[Alpaca]]. ===Glacier=== The top of Chimborazo is completely covered by glaciers with some north-eastern glacier arms flowing down to 4,600 m. Its glacier is the source of water for the population of the [[Bolívar Province (Ecuador)|Bolivar]] and [[Chimborazo Province|Chimborazo]] provinces of Ecuador. Chimborazo glacier's ice mass has [[Retreat of glaciers since 1850|decreased]] over the past decades due to the combined influences of [[Global warming#Impact on glaciers|global warming]], ash covers from recent volcanic activity<ref>[[Tungurahua|Tungurahua's]] recent activity period started in 1999 with the most significant eruptions between October and December 1999 and May and July 2006 ({{cite web | title = Actividad Volcan Tungurahua | publisher = Instituto Geofísico, EPN Ecuador | url = http://www.igepn.edu.ec/INFORMES/volcanicos.asp?volcan=55&tipo=Anual | accessdate = 2007-04-28 }}).</ref> of [[Tungurahua]] (Schotterer ''et al'' 2003) and the [[El Niño-Southern Oscillation|El Niño]] phenomenon (Chaffaut & Guillaume 2004, [http://www.innovations-report.com/html/reports/earth_sciences/report-35174.html]). As on other glaciated Ecuadorian mountains, Chimborazo's glacial ice is mined by locals (the so called ''Hieleros'' from Spanish ''Hielo'' for Ice) to be sold in the markets of Guaranda and Riobamba. In earlier days the ice was transported down to coastal towns like [[Babahoyo]] or [[Vinces]] (Borja 2004). [[Image:ChimborazoTungurahua ETM 20010916.jpg|thumb|left|False-color satellite image of Chimborazo (bright blue mass in the center left) and its neighbor [[Tungurahua]] (center right, with plume of ash).]] ===Volcanism=== Chimborazo is a dominantly [[Andesite|andesitic]]-[[Dacite|dacitic]] [[stratovolcano]]. About 35,000 years ago a collapse of Chimborazo produced a debris avalanche, the deposits of which underlie [[Riobamba]]. Chimborazo then erupted several times during the [[Holocene]], the last time around 640 AD ± 500 years.<ref name="gvp"/> Today Chimborazo is considered inactive. ===Elevation=== With an elevation of 6,268 m<ref name="elev"/>, Chimborazo is the highest mountain in Ecuador and the Andes north of Peru; it is higher than any more northerly summit in the Americas. ===Farthest point from Earth's center=== The summit of [[Mount Everest]] reaches a higher elevation above sea level, but the summit of Chimborazo is widely reported to be the ''farthest point from Earth's center'' (Senne 2000, [http://www.profsurv.com/archive.php?issue=42&article=589]), despite a possible challenge from [[Huascarán]].<ref>See the calculation at [[Talk:Huascarán]]. If the heights given by Wikipedia for Chimborazo and Huascaran are correct, it is a close tie. But Huascarán is often only credited with 6,746 m, in which case Chimborazo is a likely clear winner.</ref> Chimborazo is one degree south of the [[equator]] and the earth's [[equatorial bulge|diameter at the equator]] is greater than at the latitude of Everest, nearly 28° north, with sea level also elevated. Despite being 2,581&nbsp;m (8,568&nbsp;ft) lower in elevation above sea level, it is 6,384.4&nbsp;km (3,968&nbsp;mi) from the Earth's center, 2.1&nbsp;km farther than the summit of Everest.<ref>In this ranking order several other Andean peaks and also Africa's highest mountain, [[Kilimanjaro]], precede Everest.</ref> ==History== [[Image:Humboldt-Bonpland Chimborazo.jpg|thumb|Alexander von Humboldt and Aimé Bonpland at the Chimborazo base]] ===Etymology=== Several theories regarding the origin of the name Chimborazo exist. After one theory it is a combination of the Cayapa ''Schingbu'' for ''Women'' and the Colorado/[[Quichua]] ''Razo'' for ''Ice/Snow'' resulting in ''Women of Ice''. After another theory ''Chimbo'' is [[Jivaro]] for ''Throne of Master/God'' resulting in ''Icethrone of God''. The locals also used to call the mountain ''Urcorazo'', with the Quichua ''Urco'' for ''Mountain'' resulting in ''Mountain of Ice'' (Schmudlach 2001). For the local indigenous mysticism the Chimborazo represents ''Taita'' (Father) whereas neighbouring [[Tungurahua]] is seen as ''Mama'', ''Taita Chimborazo and Mama Tungurahua''. ===First ascent by Europeans=== Until the beginning of the nineteenth century it was thought that Chimborazo was the [[List of past presumed highest mountains|highest mountain on Earth]] (measured from sea level), and such reputation led to many attempts on its summit during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. In [[1802]] during his expedition to [[South America]], Baron [[Alexander von Humboldt]], accompanied by [[Aimé Bonpland]] and the Ecuadorian [[Carlos Montúfar]] attempted to reach the summit. From his description of the mountain it seems he reached a point at 5,875 m, from where he and his companions returned suffering from [[altitude sickness]]. At that point they had reached the highest point attained by any European in recorded history.<ref>[[Incans]] reached much farther already, see [[Llullaillaco]].</ref> Chimborazo's summit was then first climbed by [[Edward Whymper]] and the brothers Louis and [[Jean-Antoine Carrel]] in [[1880]]. As there were many critics who doubted that Whymper had reached the summit, later in the same year he climbed to the summit again choosing a different route (Pogyos) with the Ecuadorians David Beltrán and Francisco Campaña (Whymper 1892). ===SAETA Flight 232=== In August 1976 [[SAETA Flight 232]] carrying 55 passengers and four crew members aboard a [[Vickers Viscount]] from Quito to Cuenca disappeared enroute. In October 2002, after 26 years, the aircraft was found with the bodies of its 59 occupants at {{convert|5400|m}} elevation on Chimborazo by Ecuadorian climbers on the rarely used eastern route ''Integral''. (El Comercio 2003). ===Other=== *Chimborazo is featured on the [[Coat of arms of Ecuador|Ecuadorian coat of arms]], to represent the beauty and richness of the Ecuadorian Sierra (Highlands). *[[Simón Bolívar]]'s poem, ''"Mi delirio sobre el Chimborazo"'', was inspired by the mountain. *[[Walter J. Turner]]'s poem,''"Romance"'' contains the couplet ''"Chimborazo, Cotopaxi/They had stolen my soul away!"'' (Marsh 1917). ==Mountaineering== As Ecuador's highest mountain, Chimborazo is a very popular climb, and can be climbed year round with the best seasons being December-January and July-August. [[Image:Chimborazo+sketch.png|thumb|left|Sketch of Chimborazo Huts, main Summits and Routes]] ===Routes=== The easiest (Grade: [[Grade (climbing)#French 2|PD]]) and most climbed routes are the Normal and the Whymper route. Both are western ridge routes starting at the Whymper hut and leading via the Ventemilla summit to the main (Whymper) summit. There are several other less used and more challenging routes on the other mountains faces and ridges leading to one of Chimborazo's summits: Main (Whymper, Ecuador), Politecnico (Central), N. Martinez (Eastern). The mountain is contained on the IGM (''Instituto Geografico Militar'') 1:50000 Map ''Chimborazo (CT-ÑIV-C1)'' (IGM 1991, [http://www.igm.gov.ec/cms/files/cartabase/enie/imagenes/ENIEIV_C1_ALTA.jpg]). ===Refugios=== There are two functioning Huts, the Carrel Hut (4,850 m) and the nearby Whymper Hut (5,000 m). The Carrel Hut can be reached by car from Riobamba, Ambato or Guaranda. On the north-west side there is the now defunct Zurita hut (4,900 m) which served as base for the Pogyos route. ==References== [[Image:Chimborazo seen from highway.jpg|thumb|Chimborazo seen from the south.]] <!-- This article uses Harvard referencing, see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citing_sources#Harvard_referencing --> *{{cite journal | last = Borja | first = Carmen | title = Hieleros del Chimborazo. Entrevista a Igor Guayasamín | journal = Ecuador Terra Incognita | volume = 29 |date=2004 }} *{{cite web | last = Chaffaut | first = Isabelle | coauthors = Marie Guillaume | title = El Niño and glacier melt in the tropical Andes | publisher = innovations report | url = http://www.innovations-report.com/html/reports/earth_sciences/report-35174.html |date=2004 | accessdate = 2006-08-08 }} *{{cite news | author = El Comercio | title = Different Saeta Chimborazo accident articles | language = Spanish | publisher = El Comercio, Quito |date=February to May 2003 }} *{{cite book | last = Gomez | first = Nelson | title = Atlas del Ecuador | publisher = Editorial Ediguias |date=1994 | id = ISBN 9978-89-009-2 }} *{{cite web | last = IGM (Instituto Geografico Militar, Ecuador) | title = Chimborazo Ecuador, CT-ÑIV-C1 |date=1991 | url = http://www.igm.gov.ec/cms/files/cartabase/enie/imagenes/ENIEIV_C1_ALTA.jpg | accessdate = 2008-01-26 }} *{{cite book | last = Marsh | first = Edward Howard, Sir | title = Georgian Poetry, 1916-1917 | publisher = The Poetry Bookshop | url = http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/etext05/8gp0310.txt | date=1917 | accessdate = 2008-06-23 }} *{{cite book | last = Schmudlach | first = Günter | title = Bergführer Ecuador | publisher = Panico Alpinverlag | date=2001 | id = ISBN 3-926807-82-2 }} *{{cite journal | last = Schoterer | first = Ulrich | coauthors = Grosjean M., Stichler W, Ginot P ''et al'' | title = Glaciers and Climate in the Andes between the Equator and 30° S: What is Recorded under Extreme Environmental Conditions? | journal = Climatic Change | volume = 59 | date=2003 }} *{{cite journal | last = Senne | first = Joseph H. | title = Did Edmund Hillary Climb the Wrong Mountain | journal = Professional Surveyor | url=http://www.profsurv.com/archive.php?issue=42&article=589 | accessdate=2007-02-04 | volume = 20 | issue = 5 | date=May 2000 }} *{{cite web | last = Smithsonian, Global Volcanism Program | title = Chimborazo Summary | publisher = [[Smithsonian Institution|Smithsonian]] | url = http://www.volcano.si.edu/world/volcano.cfm?vnum=1502-071 | accessdate = 2006-07-18 }} *{{cite book | last = Whymper | first = Edward | title = Travels Amongst the Great Andes of the Equator | publisher = [[John Murray (publisher)|John Murray]] | date=1892 | id = ISBN 1-904466-24-9 }} ==Notes== <!--See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Footnotes for an explanation of how to generate footnotes using the <ref(erences/)> tags--> {{reflist}} ==External links== {{Portal | Ecuador | Coat_of_arms_of_Ecuador.svg | 50}} {{Commons|Chimborazo (Ecuador)|Chimborazo}} * [http://www.summitpost.org/mountain/rock/150349/chimborazo.html Climbing information for Chimborazo] * {{VNUM|1=1502-071|2=Chimborazo}} [[Category:Extreme points of Earth]] [[Category:Mountains of Ecuador]] [[Category:Stratovolcanoes]] [[Category:Volcanoes of Ecuador]] [[am:ቺምቦራዞ]] [[be:Вулкан Чымбараса]] [[be-x-old:Чымбараса (вулькан)]] [[bs:Chimborazo]] [[bg:Чимборасо]] [[ca:Chimborazo]] [[cs:Chimborazo]] [[de:Chimborazo]] [[es:Chimborazo (volcán)]] [[eo:Ĉimborazo]] [[fr:Chimborazo]] [[gl:Monte Chimborazo]] [[hi:चिम्बरोजी]] [[hr:Chimborazo]] [[it:Chimborazo]] [[lt:Čimborasas]] [[hu:Chimborazo]] [[nl:Chimborazo (vulkaan)]] [[ja:チンボラソ]] [[no:Chimborazo]] [[nn:Chimborazo]] [[pl:Chimborazo]] [[pt:Chimborazo]] [[qu:Chimpurasu]] [[ru:Чимборасо]] [[sk:Chimborazo (sopka)]] [[sl:Chimborazo]] [[fi:Chimborazo (vuori)]] [[sv:Chimborazo]] [[th:ยอดเขาชิมโบราโซ]] [[tr:Chimborazo]] [[uk:Чімборасо]] [[zh:钦博拉索山]]