Iguazu Falls borders Brazil and Argentina
Situated between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, on the tectonic zone known as the Ring of Fire, South America abounds with superlatives of every kind - from the volcanic Andes Mountains, to massive and spectacular waterfalls (eg, Iguazu and Angel), and the world's longest river, the Rio Amazonas.
Argentina's Cerro Aconcagua (22,841 feet/ 6,962 metres) holds the double-distinction of being the highest point in both the Southern and Western Hemispheres (just ahead of North America's Mount Denali).
From llamas, vicunas and kodkod, to Andean condors, cock-of-the-rock and Araripe manakins, its biodiversity is as unique and varied as the continent itself - most famously manifested, perhaps, on Ecuador's Islas Galapagos archipelago, along the Equator, which inspired Charles Darwin's theory of evolution.
Countless stories, books and even motion pictures have also found their inspiration - including such films as The Lost World (1925/silent), two of the Indiana Jones adventures (1981's Raiders of the Lost Ark and 2008's Kingdom of the Crystal Skull), Up (2009), and Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (2003).
In the World of Thunderbirds[]
Three episodes of Thunderbirds feature South American locales:
- In the feature-film Thunderbird 6, Skyship One (with Lady Penelope, Parker, Tin-Tin and Alan Tracy aboard) visits Iguazu Falls (see image above) and the city of Rio de Janeiro.
- In Path of Destruction, the forest-cutting behemoth Crablogger veers out of control, taking out everything in its path - and threatening the nearly-completed San Martino Dam.
- And, in one of the series' most famous episodes - Attack of the Alligators! - International Rescue is called to intervene when a scientist's isolated house along the swampy Ambro River is set upon by (wait for it) - Giant Alligators!
Trivia[]
With reference to the episode The Impostors, International Rescue has at least five field agents based in South America:
- Argentina
- Brazil (possibly two - one north, one south)
- Colombia
- Falkland Islands