Reao (atoll)
Reao | ||
---|---|---|
NASA image of Reao | ||
Waters | Pacific Ocean | |
archipelago | Tuamotu Archipelago | |
Geographical location | 18 ° 31 ′ S , 136 ° 22 ′ W | |
|
||
Number of islands | - | |
Land area | 9 km² | |
Lagoon area | 34 km² | |
Residents | 360 (2007) |
The Reao Atoll , old name Clermont de Tonnerre or Clermont Tonnerre , is an atoll belonging to the Tuamotu Archipelago in French Polynesia . Reao consists of an elongated motu in the east, on the west coast the lagoon is shielded from the ocean by about a hundred very small motus, which are separated from each other by sandbanks. The land area is around 9 km², while that of the lagoon is around 34 km².
The atoll has 360 inhabitants (as of 2007) and is 1350 km from Tahiti . The island was discovered by the French Louis Isidore Duperrey on April 30, 1823, who named it after the French noble family Clermont-Tonnerre . Together with the atoll Puka Rua located around 49 km to the west, it forms the municipality of Reao . The inhabitants live from subsistence farming and copra production . There is a small airport to the north ( IATA airport code : REA).
Web links
- Portrait on oceandots.com ( Memento from December 23, 2010 in the Internet Archive )