Cordillera

A cordillera is a chain or network of mountain ranges, such as those in the west coast of the Americas.

The term is most commonly used in physical geography[1] and is particularly applied to the various large mountain systems of the American Cordillera, such as the Andes of South America, and less frequently to other mountain ranges in the "ridge" that rims the Pacific Ocean.

Such mountain systems have a complex structure, which is usually the result of folding and faulting accompanied by volcanic activity.

The Andes cordillera has Ojos del Salado, the highest active volcano in the world and second-highest point in the Western Hemisphere (though not itself a volcano, Argentina's Aconcagua, at 6,960 m (22,830 ft), is the highest point in the Western Hemisphere).

Aside from the volcanic peaks, the cordilleran crests include many narrow ridges, some of which reach into the zone of permanent snow.