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Caroline Island

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   Coordinates: 9°56′13.13″S, 150°12′41.40″W
   NASA orbital photo of Caroline Island; north is to the upper right. The
   two largest islets are Nake Islet (top) and South Islet (bottom) and
   are about 500 m wide.
   Enlarge
   NASA orbital photo of Caroline Island; north is to the upper right. The
   two largest islets are Nake Islet (top) and South Islet (bottom) and
   are about 500 m wide.

   Caroline Island or Caroline Atoll (also known as Millennium Island), is
   the easternmost of the uninhabited coral atolls which comprise the
   southern Line Islands in the central Pacific Ocean.

   First sighted by Europeans in 1606, claimed by the United Kingdom in
   1868, and part of the Republic of Kiribati since the island nation's
   independence in 1979, Caroline Island has remained relatively untouched
   and is considered one of the world's most pristine tropical islands,
   despite guano mining, copra harvesting, and human habitation in the
   19th and 20th centuries. It is home to one of the world's largest
   populations of the coconut crab and is an important breeding site for
   seabirds, most notably the sooty tern.

   The atoll is best known for its role in celebrations surrounding the
   arrival of the year 2000 — a 1995 realignment of the International Date
   Line made Caroline Island one of the first points of land on Earth
   (outside Antarctica) to see sunrise on January 1, 2000.

Geography and climate

   Caroline Atoll lies near the southeastern end of the Line Islands, a
   string of atolls extending across the equator some 1500 km (900 miles)
   south of the Hawaiian Islands in the central Pacific. The slightly
   crescent-shaped atoll ( 3.76 km² or 1.45 mi² in land area) consists of
   39 separate islets surrounding a narrow lagoon. Extending approximately
   9 km (6 mi) from north to south and 2 km (1 mi) from east to west, the
   islets rise to a height of only 6 meters (20 ft) above sea level. The
   islets, like those of all atolls, share a common geologic origin and
   consist of sand deposits and limestone rock set atop a coral reef.
   The many islets of Caroline Island are separated by shallow channels.
   In the foreground: coral rubble beach and Tournefortia shrub on Long
   Islet. In the background: Pisonia forest and a row of non-indigenous
   Coconut palms on Nake Islet.
   Enlarge
   The many islets of Caroline Island are separated by shallow channels.
   In the foreground: coral rubble beach and Tournefortia shrub on Long
   Islet. In the background: Pisonia forest and a row of non-indigenous
   Coconut palms on Nake Islet.

   Three large islets make up the bulk of Caroline's land area: Nake Islet
   (1.04 km² or 0.40 mi²) at the north; Long Islet ( 0.76 km² or 0.29 mi²)
   at the northeast of the lagoon and South Islet (1.07 km² or 0.41 mi²).
   The remaining assembly of small islets, most of which were named during
   the 1988 ecological survey conducted by Angela and Cameron Kepler, fall
   into four major groupings: the South Nake Islets, the Central Leeward
   Islets, the Southern Leeward Islets, and the Windward Islets (see map).
   Caroline's islets are particularly ephemeral — over the course of a
   century of observation, several of the smallest islets have been
   documented to appear or disappear entirely following major storms,
   while the shapes of larger ones have significantly changed.

   The central lagoon, roughly 6 km by 0.5 km (3.5 miles by 0.3 miles), is
   shallow – at most 5-7 m (15-25 ft) in depth – and is crossed repeatedly
   by narrow coral heads and patch reefs. Reef flats generally extend
   about 500 m (1600 ft) from shore — although some sources report them to
   extend more than a kilometer from land — and make boat landings
   perilous except at high tide. There are no natural landings,
   anchorages, or deep water openings into the central lagoon; water which
   spills into the lagoon over shallow channels at high tide is contained
   within the surrounding reef and remains stable despite ocean tides.
   Most landings are generally made at a small break in the reef at the
   northwest corner of South Islet (visible on the satellite photo above).
   Caroline (circled, lower right) is the easternmost island in the
   central Pacific republic of Kiribati.
   Enlarge
   Caroline (circled, lower right) is the easternmost island in the
   central Pacific republic of Kiribati.

   There is no standing fresh water on Caroline Island, although the Nake
   and South Islets harbour underground freshwater aquifers (or
   Ghyben-Herzberg lenses), and wells have been built to tap drinking
   water for temporary settlements. Soils on Caroline are similarly poor,
   dominated by coral gravel and sand, with significant organic content
   present only within stable, forested island centers. Guano deposits
   make island soil, where it does exist, nitrogen-rich; but even in the
   oldest and most vegetated regions of the atoll, soils are only a few
   centimeters (one or two inches) thick.

   Like the rest of Kiribati, Caroline Island enjoys a tropical maritime
   climate – consistently hot and humid. Meteorological records are
   sparse, but temperatures generally range between 28 and 32 degrees
   Celsius (82 and 90 degrees Fahrenheit) year-round. Caroline lies within
   a region of highly variable precipitation, but is estimated to receive
   an average of 1500 mm (60 in) of rain annually. Tides are on the order
   of 0.5 m (1.5 feet) and trade winds, generally from the northeast, mean
   that corner of the island experiences the roughest seas.

   Caroline Island is among the most remote islands on earth – 230 km
   (140 mi) from the closest land at Flint Island, 1500 km (930 mi) from
   the nearest permanent settlement on Kiritimati, 4200 km (2600 mi) from
   the Kiribati capital of Tarawa, and 5100 km (3200 mi) from the nearest
   continental land in North America.

Flora and fauna

   Although it remains unclear whether the coconut crab is endangered,
   Caroline Island hosts a substantial population of the arthropod.
   Enlarge
   Although it remains unclear whether the coconut crab is endangered,
   Caroline Island hosts a substantial population of the arthropod.

   Despite more than three centuries of occasional human impact on
   Caroline, it is considered to be one of very few remaining
   "near-pristine tropical islands." and has been rated as as one of the
   most unspoiled Pacific atolls. Its relatively undisturbed state has led
   to Caroline being considered for designation as a World Heritage Site
   and as a Biosphere Reserve. Ecological surveys documenting the island's
   flora and fauna have been made intermittently through the later 20th
   century: Caroline was visited in 1965 by the Pacific Ocean Biological
   Survey Program, in 1974 by the Line Island Expedition, and in 1988 and
   1991 by the United Nations Environment Programme Wildlife Conservation
   Unit.

   Caroline Island is heavily vegetated, and most islets possess three
   ringed zones of vegetation: an outermost herb mat, typically comprised
   largely of Heliotropium anomalum; an inward zone of shrub, primarily
   Tournefortia argentea; and a central forested region, typically
   dominated by groves of Pisonia grandis trees. Coconut palms have also
   been introduced and exist in substantial quantities on the larger
   islets. This pattern of vegetation is consistent across the larger
   islets, with smaller islets lacking the central forest and the smallest
   vegetated solely by low herbs. Other common plants include
   Messerschmidia argentea, Suriana, and Morinda citrifolia.

   Caroline Island is an important breeding site for a number of species
   of seabirds, most notably the Sooty Tern (Onychoprion fuscata),
   numbering around 500,000 – a colony of Sooty Terns dominates the
   eastern islets – and the Great Frigatebird (Fregata minor), numbering
   over 10,000. Caroline Island and its neighbour, Flint Island, also host
   some of the world's largest populations of the coconut crab. (Birgus
   latro). Other native animals include the Tridacna clam, which is
   abundant in the central lagoon, hermit crabs, and multiple species of
   lizards.

   The endangered green sea turtle (Chelonia mydas) nests on the beaches
   of Caroline Island, but there have been reports of poaching by recent
   homesteaders. The Bristle-thighed Curlew (Numenius tahitiensis), a
   migrant visitor from Alaska, is also classified as vulnerable.

   Around twenty non-native species of flora have been introduced to
   Caroline Island via human contact. Among these are the Ipomea tuba
   vine, which has begun to proliferate. Domestic cats and dogs introduced
   alongside a small homestead have driven the seabird population away
   from the islet of Monu Ata-Ata.

History

Prehistory

   Caroline Island is believed to have originated from a volcanic hotspot
   which eroded and then become home to a coral reef which grew above the
   ocean surface. Although these geological processes are poorly
   understood, the orientation of the Line Islands (roughly north-south)
   suggests that they were formed more than 40 million years ago, before
   the Pacific Plate changed its direction of travel. The same hotspot
   more recently gave rise to the Tuamotu Archipelago.

   There is evidence of settlement by Polynesian peoples on the largest
   islets from before European contact. Graves and template platforms were
   uncovered by early expeditions to the island, and a large marae exists
   on the west side of Nake Islet. To date, these artifacts have not been
   surveyed by archaeologists.

17th to 19th century

   French and American expeditions converged on Caroline Island in May
   1883 to observe an unusually long total solar eclipse. An expedition
   member made this drawing.
   Enlarge
   French and American expeditions converged on Caroline Island in May
   1883 to observe an unusually long total solar eclipse. An expedition
   member made this drawing.

   The first recorded sighting of Caroline Island by Europeans was on
   February 21, 1606, by Pedro Fernández de Quirós, a Portuguese explorer
   sailing on behalf of Spain; his account names the island "San
   Bernardo." The atoll was "rediscovered" on December 16, 1795 by Captain
   William Robert Broughton of the HMS Providence, who gave the atoll the
   name Carolina (which later became " Caroline") "in compliment to the
   daughter of Sir P. Stephens of the Admiralty." Caroline was again
   sighted in 1821 by the English whaling ship Supply and was then named
   "Thornton Island" for the ship's captain. Other early names for the
   atoll include Hirst Island, Clark Island, and Independence Island.
   Among other early visits which left behind accounts of the island are
   that of the USS Dolphin in 1825 (recorded by Lieutenant Hiram
   Paulding), and of a whaling ship in 1835 (recorded by Frederick Debell
   Bennett in his Narrative of a Whaling Voyage Round the Globe From the
   Year 1833–1836).

   In 1846, the Tahitian firm of Collie and Lucett attempted to establish
   a small stock-raising and copra (coconut meat) community on the island,
   an operation which met with limited financial success. In 1868,
   Caroline was claimed by the British vessel HMS Reindeer, which noted 27
   residents in a settlement on South Islet. This settlement lasted until
   1904, when the 6 remaining Polynesians were relocated to Niue.

   In 1872, the island was leased by the British government to Houlder
   Brothers, who conducted minimal guano mining on the island. In 1881,
   the lease was later taken over by the mining operation's manager, John
   T. Arundel (for whom one of the islets is named). Guano mining, which
   began in 1874, supplied a total of about 10,000 tons of phosphate until
   supplies were exhausted around 1895.

   In 1883, an expedition of American astronomers traveled from Peru to
   Caroline Island aboard the USS Hartford to observe a total solar
   eclipse on May 6. A French expedition also observed the eclipse from
   Caroline, and the United States Navy mapped the atoll. Johann Palisa, a
   member of the expedition, discovered an asteroid later that year which
   he named Carolina "in remembrance of his visit to [the] island."

20th century

   Leased to S.R. Maxwell and Company, a new settlement was established in
   1916, this time built entirely upon copra export. Much of the South
   islet was deforested to make way for coconut palms, a non-indigenous
   plant. The business venture, however, went into debt, and the island's
   settlement slowly decreased in population. By 1926, it was down to only
   ten residents and by 1936, the settlement consisted of only two
   Tahitian families before abandonment sometime in the late 1930s.

   Caroline Island remained uninhabited and undisturbed through World War
   II and afterwards. It remained under British jurisdiction, repossessed
   by the British Western Pacific High Commission in 1943 and governed as
   part of the Central and Southern Line Islands. In January 1972, the
   Central and Southern Line Islands, including Caroline, were joined with
   the British colony of the Gilbert and Ellice Islands, which had become
   autonomous in 1971 as part of British decolonization efforts.

   In 1979, the Gilbert Islands became the independent nation of Kiribati;
   Caroline Island was then and continues to be Kiribati's easternmost
   point. The entire island is presently owned by the government of the
   Republic of Kiribati, overseen by the Ministry of Line and Phoenix
   Groups, which is headquartered on Kiritimati. Competing claims to
   sovereignty over the island by the United States (under the Guano
   Islands Act) were relinquished in a 1979 "Treaty of Friendship,"
   ratified by the U.S. Senate in 1983.

   The island was briefly inhabited again from 1987 to 1991 by Ron
   Falconer, his wife Anne, and their two children, who developed a
   largely self-sufficient settlement on the atoll. Following a transfer
   of ownership, Falconer was evicted from the island by the Kiribati
   government. A book, Together Alone ( ISBN 1-86325-428-5), written by
   Falconer, documents the story of their residence on Caroline Island.

   In the 1990s, the island was leased to Urima Felix, a French Polynesian
   entrepreneur; he established a small homestead on one of the islets and
   reportedly had plans for development of the atoll. The island is also
   occasionally visited by Polynesian copra gatherers under agreements
   with the Kiribati government in Tarawa.

Time zone realignment

   Following a 1995 time zone realignment, Caroline Island (red dot at far
   east of map) became the easternmost land west of the International Date
   line.
   Enlarge
   Following a 1995 time zone realignment, Caroline Island (red dot at far
   east of map) became the easternmost land west of the International Date
   line.

   On December 23, 1994, the Republic of Kiribati announced a change of
   time zone for the Line Islands, to take effect January 1, 1995. This
   adjustment effectively moved the International Date Line over 1000
   kilometers (600 mi) to the east within Kiribati, placing all of
   Kiribati on the Asian or western side of the date line, despite the
   fact that Caroline's longitude of 150 degrees west corresponds to
   UTC−10 rather than its official time zone of UTC+14. Caroline Island
   now is at the same time as the Hawaiian Islands ( Hawaii-Aleutian
   Standard Time Zone), but one day later. This move made Caroline Island
   both the easternmost land in the earliest time zone (by some
   definitions, the easternmost point on Earth), and one of the first
   points of land which would see sunrise on January 1, 2000 — at 5:43
   a.m., as measured by local time.

   The stated reason for the move was a campaign promise of Kiribati
   President Teburoro Tito to eliminate the confusion of Kiribati
   straddling the Date Line and therefore being constantly in two
   different days. However, Kiribati officials were not reluctant to
   attempt to capitalize on the nation's new status as owners of the first
   land to see sunrise in 2000. Other Pacific nations, including Tonga and
   New Zealand's Chatham Islands, protested the move, objecting that it
   infringed on their claims to be the first land to see dawn in the year
   2000.

   In 1999, in order to further capitalize upon the massive public
   interest in celebrations marking the arrival of the year 2000, Caroline
   Island was officially renamed Millennium Island. Although uninhabited,
   a special celebration was held on the island, featuring performances by
   Kiribati native entertainers and attended by Kiribati president Tito.
   Over 70 Kiribati singers and dancers traveled to Caroline from the
   capital Tarawa, accompanied by approximately 25 journalists. The
   celebration, broadcast by satellite worldwide, had an estimated
   audience of up to one billion viewers. ( Pictures of the celebration.)

   Despite many media and government claims to the contrary, Caroline
   Island was not the first point of land to see sunrise on January 1,
   2000 (local time); that distinction belongs to a point of land between
   Dibble Glacier and Victor Bay on the coast of East Antarctica, at
   66°03′S 135°53′E, where the sun rose 35 minutes earlier.

21st century and future

   As Caroline Island only extends six meters above sea level, it is in
   danger as sea levels rise. The Kiribati government estimates that the
   island may be reclaimed by the sea as soon as 2025, and the United
   Nations has rated Caroline Island as among those most in danger from
   sea level rise.
   Retrieved from " http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caroline_Island"
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