The Central Volcanic Zone of the Andes is located between latitudes 14º and 29ºS of the Andean cordillera. An elevated region, much of it over 4000 m in altitude (constituting the altiplano of Bolivia and puna of northern Chile and Argentina) dominates much of this zone. This high altitude plateau is second in size only to the great Tibetan plateau of Central Asia, and like the latter is built on thickened continental crust that attains a maximum thickness of almost 70 km. Volcanism is largely restricted to the margins of this remarkable physiographic province in the Cordillera Occidental, or Western Cordillera, with a few isolated examples in the Cordillera Oriental, or Eastern Cordillera, in Bolivia. So little is known about this area that the majority of the volcanoes have never been described, and in a few cases have not even been named. Sixteen of them were considered to be "active" when the existing Catalogue of Active Volcanoes of the World was published (1963-1966).

It is not difficult to account for the obscurity of the central Andean volcanoes: the region is high, remote, and exceptionally arid, and as a consequence is almost unpopulated. These factors, and the resulting limited access, have meant that historic records or eruptions are largely lacking. Even now, it is possible for an eruption to take place unrecorded. Fortunately, the same factors that have been responsible for the difficulties in studying Andean volcanoes by conventional means also make them ideal subjects for remote sensing surveys. The high altitude, cloudless skies, and arid, unvegetated environment provide the best possible conditions for the use of satellite imagery

Within the Central Volcanic Zone, 44 volcanoes should be considered to be potentially active. Each volcano that is colored red within the above image map is linked to a page with information concerning its characteristics. Amongst the information given are the volcano's name (as well as regional synonyms), its location, its type (simple, composite, compound, or complex), its elevation (above sea level), the edifice hieght (relief above base level), and its current state of activity, from active to dormant. A basic description of the volcano's structure and evolution is given, as well as a discussion concerning any hazards it may represent.

References:

de Silva-S.L. and Francis-P.W. Volcanoes of the Central Andes. New York: Springer-Verlag, 1991, 216 p.

de Silva-S.L. and Francis-P.W. Potentially active volcanoes of Peru--Observations using Landsat Thematic Mapper and Space Shuttle imagery, 1990, Bulletin of Volcanology 52, New York: Springer-Verlag, p 286-301.

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