Lake · Argentina
Lago Argentino
Lago Argentino is the largest freshwater lake in Argentina, in the far south of South America. Giant glaciers flow into it, and icebergs float on its sky-blue water.
Picture credit: Tibby Jones (CC BY 2.0) · Martin Cígler (CC BY-SA 3.0) · Fernando de Gorocica (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Wikimedia Commons
Where is Lago Argentino?
Countries on its shores: Argentina.
Middle of the lake: 50.22° S, 72.50° W
The story behind it
Lago Argentino lies in Patagonia, in the Argentine province of Santa Cruz, and covers about 1 415 km². It is also very deep: in 2001 a survey measured 719 metres in front of the Upsala Glacier. The lake’s surface lies at about 178 metres, so its deepest point is 541 metres below sea level! On 15 February 1877 the explorers Perito Moreno and Carlos Moyano reached the lake, and Moreno named it Lago Argentino. The most famous glacier here carries his name: the Perito Moreno Glacier. Its wall of ice is about 50 metres high, and huge chunks break off and crash into the water as icebergs. In some years the glacier cuts off part of the lake. Then the water rises behind the ice until the pressure bursts the glacier tongue, last time in March 2018. The town of El Calafate lies on the shore, and condors and flamingos can be seen nearby.
Find it on the globe
Lago Argentino is there as a small blue dot with its name, right on the water. From far away the planet is only a blue ball; detail arrives as you zoom in, and this one appears once you are close enough. Open it on the globe.
It sits at its real coordinates, not near them — the same numbers listed in the facts above. Switch off the layer for this kind of place and it disappears again; the buttons for that are down the right-hand edge.
Questions children ask
How big is Lago Argentino?
Lago Argentino covers about 1 415 km². It is the largest freshwater lake in Argentina.
Why are there icebergs in the lake?
Several glaciers, such as the Perito Moreno Glacier and the Upsala Glacier, flow down from the mountains right into the lake. At their fronts, huge pieces of ice break off and float away as icebergs.
Who gave the lake its name?
The explorer Perito Moreno reached the lake with Carlos Moyano on 15 February 1877. Moreno called it Lago Argentino, which means “Argentine Lake”.
Where these numbers come from
Every figure on this page was checked against public reference sources before publication. Where sources genuinely disagree, the text says so.
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