Location:
Southern South America, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between Chile and Uruguay

Geographic coordinates:
34 00 S, 64 00 W

Map references:
South America

Area:
total: 2,780,400 sq km
[see also: Area - total country ranks ]
land: 2,736,690 sq km
[see also: Area - land country ranks ]
water: 43,710 sq km
[see also: Area - water country ranks ]
country comparison to the world: 9

Area - comparative:
slightly less than three-tenths the size of the US
Area comparison map: slightly less than three-tenths the size of the US

Land boundaries:
total: 11,968 km
[see also: Land boundaries - total country ranks ]
border countries (5): Bolivia 942 km, Brazil 1,263 km, Chile 6,691 km, Paraguay 2,531 km, Uruguay 541 km

Coastline:
4,989 km
[see also: Coastline country ranks ]

Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm
[see also: Maritime claims - territorial sea country ranks ]
contiguous zone: 24 nm
[see also: Maritime claims - contiguous zone country ranks ]
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
[see also: Maritime claims - exclusive economic zone country ranks ]
continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
[see also: Maritime claims - continental shelf country ranks ]

Climate:
mostly temperate; arid in southeast; subantarctic in southwest

Terrain:
rich plains of the Pampas in northern half, flat to rolling plateau of Patagonia in south, rugged Andes along western border

Elevation:
mean elevation: 595 m
[see also: Elevation - mean elevation country ranks ]
elevation extremes: lowest point: Laguna del Carbon -105 m (located between Puerto San Julian and Comandante Luis Piedra Buena in the province of Santa Cruz) highest point: Cerro Aconcagua 6,962 m (located in the northwestern corner of the province of Mendoza; highest point in South America)

Natural resources:
fertile plains of the pampas, lead, zinc, tin, copper, iron ore, manganese, petroleum, uranium, arable land

Land use:
agricultural land: 53.9% arable land 13.9%; permanent crops 0.4%; permanent pasture 39.6%
[see also: Land use - agricultural land country ranks ]
forest: 10.7%
[see also: Land use - forest country ranks ]
other: 35.4% (2011 est.)
[see also: Land use - other country ranks ]

Irrigated land:
23,600 sq km (2012)
[see also: Irrigated land country ranks ]

Population - distribution:
one-third of the population lives in Buenos Aires; pockets of agglomeration occur throughout the northern and central parts of the country; Patagonia to the south remains sparsely populated

Natural hazards:
San Miguel de Tucuman and Mendoza areas in the Andes subject to earthquakes; pamperos are violent windstorms that can strike the pampas and northeast; heavy flooding in some areas
volcanism: volcanic activity in the Andes Mountains along the Chilean border; Copahue (2,997 m) last erupted in 2000; other historically active volcanoes include Llullaillaco, Maipo, Planchon-Peteroa, San Jose, Tromen, Tupungatito, and Viedma

Environment - current issues:
environmental problems (urban and rural) typical of an industrializing economy such as deforestation, soil degradation, desertification, air pollution, and water pollution
note: Argentina is a world leader in setting voluntary greenhouse gas targets

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Marine Life Conservation

Geography - note:
second-largest country in South America (after Brazil); strategic location relative to sea lanes between the South Atlantic and the South Pacific Oceans (Strait of Magellan, Beagle Channel, Drake Passage); diverse geophysical landscapes range from tropical climates in the north to tundra in the far south; Cerro Aconcagua is the Western Hemisphere's tallest mountain, while Laguna del Carbon is the lowest point in the Western Hemisphere; shares Iguazu Falls, the world's largest waterfalls system, with Brazil