ForumIAS LATEST
- 22 July | How AIR 333 Cleared UPSC in the First Attempt | Click Here to Watch →
- 22 July | From 3 Prelims Failures to AIR 125 by Sai Krishna's UPSC Journey | Click Here to Watch →
- 22 July | Basics vs Value Addition: What Matters More in UPSC? | Click Here to Watch →
News: At least six people were killed and many others were injured after earthquakes struck Peru’s Junín region, causing widespread damage and relief operations.
Key Facts about Peru
- Location: Peru is the third-largest country in South America and is located just south of the Equator.
- Boundaries:
- Land Boundaries: Peru shares its borders with Ecuador and Colombia in the north, Brazil in the east, Bolivia in the southeast, and Chile in the south.
- Maritime Boundary: Peru’s western boundary lies along the Pacific Ocean.
- Climate: Peru has a tropical climate in the east, a dry desert climate in the west, and temperate to frigid conditions in the Andes.
- Physiographic Zones: Peru is divided into three major regions – Costa (coastal plain) along the Pacific Ocean, Sierra (Andes Highlands) in the central part of the country, and Amazonia (Amazon Basin/Selva region) in the east.
- Highest Peak: Mount Huascarán (6,768 m) is the highest peak in Peru and is located in the Cordillera Blanca, which forms part of the Andes Mountains (Sierra region).
- River Systems: The major rivers include the Amazon, Ucayali, and Madre de Dios.
- Important Lake: Lake Titicaca is shared with Bolivia and is the world’s highest navigable lake.
- Oceanography:
- Humboldt (Peru) Current: It is a cold, northward-flowing ocean current that moves along Peru’s Pacific coast and strongly influences the country’s coastal conditions.
- Upwelling System: The cold Humboldt Current causes deep, nutrient-rich water to rise to the surface, which supports one of the world’s richest marine ecosystems and major commercial fishing zones.
- Earthquake prone:
- Tectonic Setting: Peru lies along the Pacific Ring of Fire (a highly active seismic belt around the Pacific Ocean).
- Reason for Vulnerability: The South American Plate overrides the Nazca Plate, and the continued uplift of the Andes results in frequent earthquakes.
- Biodiversity:
- Megadiverse Status: Peru is among the world’s top 20 megadiverse countries, with 36 ecosystems that support more than 25,000 protected plant and animal species and over 4,000 marine species.
- Peru also has the world’s largest diversity of butterflies and ranks third globally in the number of bird species.
