Savo Island

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Savo
NASA satellite image of Savo (Landsat 7)
NASA satellite image of Savo ( Landsat 7 )
Waters Savo Sound , Solomon Lake
Archipelago Solomon Islands
Geographical location 9 ° 7 '50 "  S , 159 ° 48' 43"  E Coordinates: 9 ° 7 '50 "  S , 159 ° 48' 43"  E
Savo Island (Solomon Islands)
Savo Island
length 7.2 km
width 6 km
surface 31 km²
Highest elevation Savo Peak
485  m
Residents 3137 (23 November 2009)
101 inhabitants / km²
main place Alialia
Map of Savo Island (1965), with the boundaries of the traditional districts
Map of Savo Island (1965), with the boundaries of the traditional districts

Savo is a volcanic island about six by seven kilometers in size, 15 kilometers northeast of Cape Esperance , the northern tip of Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands , in the southern Pacific . Administratively it belongs to the Central Province of the island state of Solomon Islands . Two of the 13 Central Province wards are on the island (with population as of the November 23, 2009 census):

  • North Savo (1,520)
  • South Savo (1,617)

(actually northwest and southeast). The main town is Alialia in the north.

Savo is around 35 km away from the capital Honiara . The island's residents speak Savosavo, an East Papua language with around 2500 speakers.

The 485 m high volcano on the island last erupted between 1835 and 1850. An eruption was so strong that it wiped out all life on the island. An older eruption is documented from 1568. According to the World Organization of Volcano Observatories (WOVO), the volcano on Savo Island is active every 100 to 300 years.

There are geysers , hot mud lakes and springs on the island . The Bismarck grouse, which lives on Savo and belongs to the large foot fowl, uses the existing geothermal energy by digging deep holes in the warm volcanic soil and laying its eggs there. The chicks hatch after eight to nine weeks without further brood care . Many sharks live in the waters around Savo .

The island is known as the site of five of the seven major naval battles during the Battle of Guadalcanal in the Pacific War . In the battle off Savo Iceland themselves were Japanese and American navies over. Since there are many shipwrecks southeast of the island as a result of these battles , the sea there is known as Ironbottom Sound . The wrecks located near the coast are very popular with wreck divers .

See also

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ David Harcombe: Solomon Islands. a travel survival kit. Lonely Planet, 1988, p. 104: Alialia ... is the island's main center.
  2. ↑ Langwhich.com: Savosavo

Web links