Nihiru

Nihiru
	NASA image of Nihiru
Waters	Pacific Ocean
archipelago	Tuamotu Archipelago
Geographical location	16 ° 42 ′ S , 142 ° 50 ′ W Coordinates: 16 ° 42 ′ S , 142 ° 50 ′ W
Number of islands	-
length	14 km
width	10.5 km
Land area	20 km²
Lagoon area	79 km²
Residents	15 (2002)

Nihiru or Nikia is an atoll in the Tuamotu Archipelago in French Polynesia . The atoll belongs administratively to the municipality of Makemo and has 15 inhabitants (status: 2002). In 1996 there were still 30 residents. The village is located on the Motu in the extreme southwest of the atoll.

The atoll is located 49 km east of Makemo and 30 km northeast of Marutea North . The atoll is 10.5 km wide and 14 km long.

Nihiru was discovered in 1820 by the Baltic German Fabian Gottlieb von Bellingshausen and named Nigeri by him . Most of the current residents come from the neighboring Taenga Atoll .

Web links

Picture and short description ( memento from December 23, 2010 in the Internet Archive )
Summary Report on the macro fauna of the lagoon (English)