The Tuamotu are
a group of low islands stretching from the north-west to the south-east, 300 to 1600 km
from Papeete.
Tuamotu is an archipelago comprising 78 coral atolls scattered over several hundred
kilometers of Pacific Ocean, making them the largest of the Tahiti-Polynesian
archipelagoes and the world's largest chain of atolls, only one, Makatea, is a real
island, all the others are atolls. An atoll is a sunken volcano, where only the hard coral
reef is left after erosion has eaten the soft volcanic stone.
The formation of a coral
reef is very slow, it rises from 0,5 to 2 meters in a hundred year. It is made of coral
polyps, shells and skeletal remains of marine plants and animals. The
atoll lagoons are surrounded by chains of low islets called "motu", which
are only a few metres above the present sea-level. Despite the vast spread of the
archipelago, it covers a total land area of only about 885 km². In the Tuamotu
archipelago, only 41 islands are inhabited. At the 2002 census, the Tuamotus
(including the Gambier Islands) had a population of 15,862 inhabitants. The
climate on the atolls is hot and humid, although not excessively so. Most of the islands
benefit from the influence of the prevailing Easterly trade winds, which are usually quite
moderate, and the sea also helps to cool down the temperature on the atolls and prevent
them from becoming too hot.
There are two seasons in the Tuamotu archipelago: a wet season
from December to March, and a dry season from July to October.
The
mean temperature ranges around 25°C, and the daily temperature range is approximately
4°C. Today the most important source of income in the Tuamotus is
from the cultivation of black pearls and the preparation of copra. The sparse soil of the
coral islands does not permit a diverse vegetation. The coconut palm, which forms the
basis for copra production, is of special economic importance. Agriculture is generally
otherwise limited to simple subsistence. The animal life on the islands is limited to
primarily birds (mostly seabirds), insects and lizards. The underwater fauna however, is
diverse. The beautiful and species-rich reefs make the Tuamotus one of the most scenic
scuba-diving destinations in the world.
Arutua (on
the left side) Apataki (center) Toau (on the right side) and a part of Kaukura (down)
atolls seen from the Space Shuttle.
"Image courtesy of the
Image Analysis Laboratory, NASA Johnson Space Center": http://eol.jsc.nasa.gov
From the left to the
right: Tikehau, Rangiroa, Apataki and Kaukura atolls seen
from the Space Shuttle.
"Image courtesy of the
Image Analysis Laboratory, NASA Johnson Space Center": http://eol.jsc.nasa.gov
