Ambae
| Ambae | ||
|---|---|---|
 |
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| Waters | Coral sea | |
| Archipelago | New Hebrides | |
| Geographical location | 15 ° 24 ′ S , 167 ° 50 ′ E | |
|
||
| length | 38 km | |
| width | 16 km | |
| surface | 402 km² | |
| Highest elevation |
Lomben 1496 m |
|
| Residents | 10,800 27 inhabitants / km² |
|
| main place | Longana | |
 |
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Ambae is an island in the Southwest Pacific New Hebrides and part of the island republic of Vanuatu . It is one of the three main islands of the Penama province as well as the sixth largest island in the country and has an area of 402 km².
Until the independence of Vanuatu (1980) the island was called Aoba .
11,600 residents were evacuated from the island by October 5, 2017, as a stronger volcanic eruption was feared. The Manaro Voui volcano became active in early September 2017.
As of August 14, 2018, the more than 11,000 residents were again evacuated from Ambae - on two neighboring islands - as an eruption of the volcano on the Manaro crater is feared.
geography
Ambae is 50 kilometers east of Espiritu Santo and 25 kilometers southwest of Maéwo and northwest of Pentecost Island . The island is oval in shape with a length (northeast to southwest) of about 38 kilometers and an average width of 16 kilometers. It is densely forested inland and is dominated by the centrally located 1,496 meter high shield volcano Lombenben , which is occasionally also called Aoba . With a volume of 2500 cubic kilometers, the basaltic volcano is the most massive in the New Hebrides archipelago. The summit is formed by three crater lakes with a diameter of up to 6 km. The two summit craters Lake Voui and Lake Manaro Ngoru were formed during an eruption 360 years ago. On November 27, 2005, an ash and steam eruption began, which led to preparations for the evacuation of the population and two hospitals. On December 8, the eruption intensified, resulting in the evacuation of 5,000 people from the island. Another volcanic eruption took place in 2006.
In the wake of renewed volcanic activity in the Manaro crater, which could be signs of an impending major eruption, the Vanuatu government ordered the evacuation of all residents of Ambae on September 28, 2017.
Ambae has about 11,000 inhabitants, who live in small villages mainly on the west coast. The main town of the island and the entire province of Penama is Longana in the north. There and at two other places in Ambae there are easy runways for small aircraft.
society
Traditional ( Bislama kastom ) music includes three horizontally played slit drums of different sizes . In the drum ensembles dingidingi in the east and tingitingi in the west of the island, the largest slit drum, ratahigi, sets the rhythm. The dingidingi ensemble performs at the na huqe pig- killing ceremony , a rite of passage .
structure
The traditional districts of the island are (clockwise, starting from the west):
- Walaha
- Nduindui
- Vuinikalato
- Lombaha
- Lolovinue
- Longana
- Lolovoli
- Lolokaro
Web links
- Ambae in the Global Volcanism Program of the Smithsonian Institution (English)
- Ambae: School Levels, Village Population, Health Facilities. (No longer available online.) Marine Reach, formerly the original ; accessed on April 20, 2018 . ( Page no longer available , search in web archives )
Individual evidence
- ↑ Impending volcanic eruption: Pacific island evacuated . orf.at , October 5, 2017, accessed October 5, 2017.
- ^ Island completely cleared due to impending volcanic eruption faz.net, August 14, 2018, accessed August 14, 2018.
- ↑ Nick Perry: Vanuatu orders evacuation of island with rumbling volcano . AP News , September 28, 2017, accessed April 19, 2018.
- ^ Vanuatu Base . Australian National University , Canberra, February 6, 2018, accessed April 19, 2018.
