Nevado Sajama is an extinct
stratovolcanoA stratovolcano, also known as a composite volcano, is a tall, conical volcano built up by many layers of hardened lava, tephra, pumice, and volcanic ash. Unlike shield volcanoes, stratovolcanoes are characterized by a steep profile and periodic, explosive eruptions...
and the highest peak in
BoliviaBolivia officially known as Plurinational State of Bolivia , is a landlocked country in central South America. It is the poorest country in South America...
. The mountain is located in the
Oruro DepartmentOruro is a department in Bolivia, with an area of 53,588 km². Its capital is the city of Oruro. At the time of census 2001 it had a population of 391,870.- Provinces of Oruro :...
,
Sajama ProvinceSajama is a province in the northwestern parts of the Bolivian department of Oruro.-Location:Sajama province is one of the sixteen provinces in the Oruro Department...
, Curahuara de Carangas Municipality, Sajama Canton. It is situated in the
Sajama National ParkSajama National Park is a national park located in the Oruro Department, Bolivia. It borders Lauca National Park in Chile.The park lies within the Central Andean dry puna ecoregion.. It features a spectacular Andean landscape, with elevations ranging from . It contains the snowy cone of Nevado...
in the southwest area of the country some 16–24 km (10-15 mi) from the border with
ChileChile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
. The peak is an isolated cone, but is geologically complex, with
lava dome|250px|thumb|right|Image of the [[rhyolitic]] lava dome of [[Chaitén Volcano]] during its 2008–2009 eruption.In volcanology, a lava dome is a roughly circular mound-shaped protrusion resulting from the slow extrusion of viscous lava from a volcano...
s of
andesiticAndesite is an extrusive igneous, volcanic rock, of intermediate composition, with aphanitic to porphyritic texture. In a general sense, it is the intermediate type between basalt and dacite. The mineral assemblage is typically dominated by plagioclase plus pyroxene and/or hornblende. Magnetite,...
and rhyodactic composition overlain by an andesitic stratovolcano. The date of the most recent eruption is uncertain, although
HoloceneThe Holocene is a geological epoch which began at the end of the Pleistocene and continues to the present. The Holocene is part of the Quaternary period. Its name comes from the Greek words and , meaning "entirely recent"...
activity is assigned to the volcano by many. The treeline of
Polylepis tarapacanaPolylepis tarapacana, known in its native habitat by the Spanish common name Queñoa De Altura , is a short tree or shrub which is found in small, scattered groupings along the mountainous borders of Bolivia, Chile, and Peru , growing in soil formed by volcanos...
on the volcano is as high as 5200m above sea level, one of the highest altitudes trees can be found growing anywhere in the world.
Joseph Prem made the first attempt to climb the mountain in 1927 by the northwest ridge but was stopped short at 6,200 m. After several more attempts, Prem along with Wilfrid Kuehm reached the top in August 1939 by a more difficult southeast ridge.
In August 2001, two teams of Sajama villagers and Bolivian mountain guides played a soccer match on top of Mount Sajama in an effort to show that altitude itself is not a limitation to physical strain : http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/1476866.stm
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