Palmerston (Cook Islands)
| Palmerston (Pamati) | ||
|---|---|---|
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| Waters | Pacific Ocean | |
| archipelago | Cook Islands | |
| Geographical location | 18 ° 0 ′ S , 163 ° 10 ′ W | |
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| Number of islands | over 30 | |
| Main island | Palmerston Island | |
| length | 10 km | |
| width | 7 km | |
| Land area | 2.1 km² | |
| Lagoon area | 37 km² | |
| Residents | 63 (2006) | |
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Palmerston ( Cook Islands Maori : Pamati ) is an atoll in the Pacific Ocean . It is located in the southern part of the Cook Islands about 650 kilometers northwest of the main island of Rarotonga , from where it is administered.
geography
Palmerston is the most northwestern and most remote atoll in the southern Cook Islands. It consists of over 30 islands ( motus ), which rest on an approximately 15 km² fringing reef . The atoll has a north-south extension of 10 km and a west-east extension of 7 kilometers. The largest islands are Palmerston Island, North Island and Leicester Island, the total land area of all islands is 2.1 km². Numerous passages between the motus allow entering the lagoon . The islands are densely overgrown with coconut palms and screw trees ( pandanus ), but there are no natural freshwater sources.
history
The atoll was discovered on June 16, 1774 by James Cook on his second voyage to the South Seas and named by him after Admiral Henry Temple, 2nd Viscount Palmerston . However, James Cook landed on Palmerston on April 13, 1777 during his third South Seas voyage.
In the early days of European contacts, the island came into the possession of the British merchant John Brander. In the early 1860s, Brander, who lived in Tahiti, sent the ship's carpenter William Masters to Palmerston to produce coconut oil. In 1863 Masters landed on the island , coming from Manuae , accompanied by three Polynesian women. In later years Branders appointed him administrator.
In 1954 the island was officially handed over to the family, who now call themselves "Marsters", as full property. The atoll is still inhabited today by the descendants in a small village on Palmerston Island, the population is given as 60 (as of 2011). Most of the descendants of Masters now live in Rarotonga , the other Cook Islands and New Zealand .
In the 1920s and 1930s, Palmerston was hit several times by tropical cyclones , each of which destroyed a large part of the copra harvest.
tourism
In the hurricane-free time, ie from April to November, Palmerston is very popular as an anchorage for yachts. From time to time the atoll is visited by cruise ships that bring their passengers into the lagoon in motorized inflatable boats.
economy
The residents of Palmerston make a living from the sale of parrotfish , which they fillet and freeze on site and then sell mostly to Rarotonga.
Web links
- Jim and Hellen Boswells page about Palmerston (English)
- Deutschen legacy of Palmerston (English)
- Jane's Oceania Page - Palmerston Island (English)
Individual evidence
- ^ Nothing Goes Wrong on Palmerston Island, online , accessed March 2, 2016
- ↑ Total Population and Land Area by Iceland ( Memento from September 27, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) (English; PDF; 170 kB)
