Tierra del Fuego

Tierra del Fuego (Argentine Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego), archipelago at the southern extremity of South America, from which it is separated on the northwest by the Strait of Magellan, and belonging partly to Argentina and partly to Chile. The islands are bordered by the Atlantic Ocean on the east, the Southern Ocean on the south, and the Pacific Ocean on the west; their southern extremity is Cape Horn. The archipelago consists of a large main island, sometimes called Tierra del Fuego or Great Island (formerly King Charles South Land), and many smaller islands. The Argentine portion, lying east of a line connecting the eastern entrance of the Strait of Magellan with the middle of Beagle Channel, includes the main island and Isla de los Estados at the southeastern extremity; it has an area of 21,263 sq km (8,210 sq mi) and a population (2005 estimate) of 115,288. The rest of the archipelago is included politically in the Chilean Magallanes y La Antárctica Chilena Region (population, 2006 estimate, 156,502). The area of the entire archipelago is 47,000 sq km (18,000 sq mi).

The eastern portion of the main island is a continuation of the Patagonian plateau (see Patagonia). All the islands are mountainous. The average annual temperature is 6° C (43° F), and annual precipitation is 635 mm (25 in). On the mountain slopes facing the wind, rain is almost continuous. Gold deposits and seams of lignite are found, but minerals are exploited minimally. The most important industry is the raising of livestock, particularly of sheep. The aboriginal peoples of this area were the Ona and Aush of the main island, and the Yahgan of the smaller islands to the south; all of these peoples are now extinct. The archipelago was discovered in 1520 by the Portuguese navigator Ferdinand Magellan, who named it. No systematic exploration took place until several British expeditions were undertaken in the 19th century. The most famous of these expeditions was the survey (1831-1836) described by Charles Darwin in his Zoology of the Voyage of HMS Beagle (1840).