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As the sun sets in the Atacama Desert, the
beauty of the universe slowly begins to reveal
itself. The gentle swish of the Milky Way, the
red glow of Mars, infinite stars twinkling with
an unimaginable intensity. Texas isn’t the
only place where the stars shine bright; this
high plateau in northern Chile is a stargazer’s
paradise. Telescopes are not needed to appreciate
the view, but the Atacama is home to multiple
world-class observatories, several of which are
open to the public.
By day, the scorched rust-colored landscape
resembles the surface of the moon. So much
so, NASA uses the rocky terrain to test Mars
rovers. At the eastern edge of this, the world’s
driest desert, stands the majestic Licancabur
volcano, towering over the surrounding
landscape at an extraordinary 19,409 feet
high. The eerily beautiful Atacama holds other
surprises as well—steaming fields of ancient
geysers, fantastic sandstone ridges, and massive
sand dunes perfect for sandboarding are all
here for exploration and adventure. That is, if
you haven’t stayed up all night staring at the
stars.
PHOTO
V A L L E D E L A M U E R T E , A T A C A M A D E S E R T, C H I L E
ANDREWHARPERTRAVEL.COM
SPRING | 2018