Inglés para adolescentes: 10 amazing facts about the Grand Canyon

Te invitamos a leer 10 datos asombrosos sobre el Gran Cañón del Colorado en inglés: 10 amazing facts about the Grand Canyon. Una lectura muy interesante, elaborada por la redacción de la revista para aprender inglés I Love English, basado en el contenido que pueden leer en el número 343 de la revista (mayo - junio 2022).

Esta lectura en inglés para adolescentes ayudará a los jóvenes entre 12 y 15 años a mejorar su nivel de inglés y además, aprenderán un montón de curiosidades las distintas razas de perros. 

Ver +: Divertidas lecturas en inglés para adolescentes

10 amazing facts about the Grand Canyon: 10 datos sorprendentes sobre el Gran Cañón

1. This famous canyon of the Colorado River in Arizona, USA, is 446 km long and 1.6 km deep. It?s not the deepest Canyon in the USA (that?s Hells Canyon), but it is America?s most spectacular, or "grandest", canyon!

2. Six million years ago, geological activity and erosion by the Colorado River started to carve out the Grand Canyon. Before then, the region was a high plateau, made of layers of sedimentary rock. It is one of the most studied landscapes in the world.

3. An estimated 1,000 caves are hidden within the Grand Canyon. Of those, only 335 have been examined. Even fewer have been mapped and, today, only one cave is open to the public.

4. Grand Canyon National Park is home to 91 species of mammal, including bighorn sheep, mountain lions, elk and skunks. There are also 447 different birds, 22 species of bat, 48 species of reptile, 1,443 species of invertebrates... Rock squirrel in the park can be dangerous. Many visitors are bitten when they try to feed these animals, so don?t approach them if you visit the park!

5. 29 km is the width of the Grand Canyon at its widest point. It bisects Grand Canyon National Park, and has two rims ? the South Rim and the North Rim. The North Rim is 2,400 metres high, while the South Rim is 2,100 metres. The vegetation, climate and scenery are different on them two rims. Bison live only on the North Rim.

6. The Grand Canyon was first protected in 1893 as a reserve. Later, it was declared as a national monument in 1908 by President Roosevelt, who fell in love with it. But it wasn?t until 1919 that the Grand Canyon became a national park thanks to President Woodrow Wilson.

7. 5.97 million people visited the Grand Canyon in 2019, before Covid-19. 90% of visitors arrive at the South Rim and look down into the canyon, but only 5% of them descend into it! Hopi Point is one of the most popular viewpoints for watching the sunset and sunrise because of its wide views.

8. Temperatures vary by more than 25 degrees within the canyon, depending on the elevation of your current location. The depths of the gorge are very hot during the summer while the North Rim reaches below-freezing temperatures in winter. Generally, the temperature increases by 5.5 degrees every time you descend about 300 metres.

9. The air at the Grand Canyon is considered among the cleanest air in the United States as the elevation of the South Rim is around 2,000 metres above sea level. Combined with wind and rain, the Colorado River continues to shape the canyon and its landscape today. Although we can?t perceive it, the Grand Canyon is constantly changing.

10. The Hopi Tribe considers the Grand Canyon a spiritual and sacred site. They think that upon death, a person passes through a place located at the confluence of the Colorado River and the Little Colorado River in the canyon, on his or her journey to the afterlife. Many ceremonies and pilgrimages are performed there.