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Diego Garcia

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: Geography of Asia

                                              Location map of Diego Garcia
                                                                   Enlarge
                                              Location map of Diego Garcia

                               Overhead view of Diego Garcia,looking south
                                                                   Enlarge
                                            Overhead view of Diego Garcia,
                                                             looking south

   Diego Garcia ( 7°19′S 72°25′E) is an atoll located in the heart of the
   Indian Ocean, some 1,000 miles (1,600 kilometres) south of India's
   southern coast. Diego Garcia is the largest atoll by land area of the
   Chagos Archipelago. It is part of the British Indian Ocean Territory
   (BIOT), a British overseas territory. Since the depopulation of Diego
   Garcia in the years leading up to 1973, it has been used as a military
   base by the United States. Diego Garcia hosts one of three ground
   antennas (others are on Kwajalein and Ascension Island) that assist in
   the operation of the Global Positioning System ( GPS) navigational
   system.

   The atoll is now covered in luxuriant tropical vegetation, with little
   sign left of the copra and coconut plantations that once covered it.
   The island is 37 miles (60 km) long, with a maximum elevation of 22
   feet (7 m), and nearly encloses a lagoon some 12 miles long (19 km) and
   up to 5 miles (8 km) wide. Depths in the lagoon range from 65 to 98
   feet (20-30 m), while numerous coral heads extend toward the surface
   and form hazards to navigation. Shallow reefs surround the island on
   the ocean side as well as within the lagoon. The channel and anchorage
   area are dredged, while the old turning basin can also be used if its
   depth is sufficient for the ship.

Geography

   The atoll forms a nearly complete rim of land around a lagoon,
   following 90 percent of its perimeter, with an opening only in the
   north. The main island is the largest of some sixty islands which form
   the Chagos Archipelago. Besides the main islands, there are three small
   islets at the mouth of the lagoon in the north:
    1. West Island (3.4 ha)
    2. Middle Island (6 ha)
    3. East Island (11.75 ha)

   The total area of the atoll measures 170 km², of which 30 km² are land
   area, 17 km² peripheral reef and 124 km² lagoon.

Climate

   Eclipse Point, Diego Garcia
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   Eclipse Point, Diego Garcia

   Annual rainfall averages 102 inches (260 cm) with the heaviest
   precipitation occurring from October to February, though even the
   driest month (August) averages 4.2 inches (10 cm). Temperatures are
   generally close to 30 °C (high 80s Fahrenheit) by day, falling to the
   low 20s °C (70°F) by night. Humidity is high throughout the year.
   However the almost constant breezes keep conditions reasonably
   comfortable.

   Diego Garcia is at risk from tropical cyclones. The surrounding
   topography is low and does not provide an extensive wind break. However
   since the 1960s, the island has not been seriously affected by a severe
   tropical cyclone, even though it has often been threatened. The maximum
   sustained wind associated with a tropical cyclone in the period
   1970-2000 at Diego Garcia has been approximately 40 knots (75 km/h).
   Sunset at Cannon Point
   Enlarge
   Sunset at Cannon Point

   The island and base were unaffected by the tsunami caused by the 2004
   Indian Ocean earthquake. Service personnel on the island reported only
   a minor increase in wave activity. The island was protected by its
   favourable ocean topography. East of the atoll lies the 400-mile (650
   km) long Chagos Trench, an underwater canyon plunging more than 16,000
   feet (4,900 m). The depth of the trench and its grade to the shore
   makes it difficult for tsunami to build before passing the atoll. In
   addition, undersea coral reefs may have dissipated much of the waves'
   impact.

   On November 30, 1983 a magnitude 7 earthquake 34 miles (55 km)
   northwest of the island spawned a small tsunami resulting in a 5 foot
   (1.5 m) rise in wave height in the Diego Garcia lagoon, causing some
   damage to buildings, piers and the runway.

History

   Coconut Plantation, East Point(former main settlement)
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   Coconut Plantation, East Point
   (former main settlement)

   Portuguese explorers discovered Diego Garcia in the early 1500s. The
   island's name is believed to have come from either the ship's captain
   or the navigator on that early voyage of discovery. The islands
   remained uninhabited until the 18th century when the French established
   copra plantations with the help of slave labor. Diego Garcia became a
   possession of the United Kingdom after the Napoleonic wars, and from
   1814 to 1965, it was a dependency of Mauritius.

   In 1965, the Chagos Islands, which include Diego Garcia, were detached
   from Mauritius to form part of the British Indian Ocean Territories
   (BIOT). In 1966, the crown bought the islands and plantations, which
   had been under private ownership and which had not been profitable with
   the introduction of new oils and lubricants. In 1971, the plantations
   were closed because of the agreement between the United Kingdom and the
   United States to make Diego Garcia available to the U.S. as a military
   base. No payment was made as part of this arrangement, although it has
   been claimed that the United Kingdom received a US$14 million discount
   on the acquisition of Polaris missiles from the United States. This
   agreement also forbade any other economic activity on the island.

   Until 1971, Diego Garcia had a native population, known as the Ilois
   (or Chagossians), which was composed of the descendants of East Indian
   workers and African slaves who had been brought to the island in the
   eighteenth and nineteenth centuries to work on the coconut and copra
   plantations. They lived in three settlements: East Point (the main
   settlement on the eastern rim of the atoll), Minni Minni (4.5 km north
   of East Point), and Pointe Marianne (on the western rim). The islanders
   were transferred off Diego Garcia to Seychelles and then Mauritius amid
   allegations of starvation and intimidation tactics by the U.S. and UK
   governments, including the alleged killing of island dogs by American
   soldiers. Ever since their expulsion, the Ilois have continually
   asserted their right to return to Diego Garcia. In April 2006, 102
   Chagossians were allowed to visit Diego Garcia for a week, to tend to
   graves and visit their birthplaces.
   Diego Garcia Police Station
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   Diego Garcia Police Station

   Now, Diego Garcia is home to a military base jointly operated by the
   United States and the United Kingdom, although in practice it is
   largely run as a U.S. base, with only a small number of British forces
   and Royal Overseas Police Officers (ROPOs). The base serves as a naval
   refuelling and support station. It has an airbase that supports the
   largest of modern aircraft. B-52s and other bombers have been deployed
   from Diego Garcia on missions to Iraq during the 1990 Gulf War, to
   Afghanistan during Operation Enduring Freedom, and to Iraq again during
   the 2003 invasion. High-tech portable shelters to support the B-2
   bomber were built on the island before the 2003 invasion of Iraq, and a
   fleet of B-52s, B-1s and B-2s from Diego Garcia also led the shock and
   awe attacks on Baghdad on March 22, 2003, dropping 4,200 lb. bunker
   busters on the city. Diego Garcia is also a regular deployment site for
   US Navy P-3C Orion patrol and anti-submarine aircraft.

   The base is part of the U.S. Space Surveillance Network, with a 3
   telescope GEODSS station, and is a NASA Space Shuttle emergency landing
   site.

   Neither the U.S. nor the UK recognises Diego Garcia as being subject to
   the African Nuclear Weapons Free Zone Treaty, even though the rest of
   the Chagos Archipelago is included, suggesting the U.S. and/or U.K.
   wishes to maintain the freedom to base nuclear weapons there.

   The agreement between the UK and U.S. for the U.S. to use the island as
   a military base was made in 1966. It specifies that the agreement runs
   until 2036, but that either government can opt out of the agreement in
   2016.

   Construction and maintenance of the base's communications equipment,
   fuel facilities and military hardware is done strictly by military
   contractors, and inventories of that weaponry is classified. With no
   family members or other civilians allowed, Diego Garcia may be the most
   remote military outpost in the world. In 2001, the US Department of
   Defense said that there were more buildings on Diego Garcia (654) than
   military personnel.

Politics

   Detailed map of Diego Garcia
   Enlarge
   Detailed map of Diego Garcia

   In 2000, the High Court granted the islanders the right to return to
   the Archipelago and granted them UK citizenship. In 2002, the islanders
   and their descendants, now numbering 4,500, returned to court claiming
   compensation, after what they said were two years of delays by the
   British Foreign Office. However, on June 10, 2004, the British
   government made two Orders-in-Council banning the islanders from
   returning home, reversing the 2000 court decision. Some of the Ilois
   are making return plans to turn Diego Garcia into a sugarcane and
   fishing enterprise as soon as the defense agreement expires (possibly
   as early as 2016, but almost certainly in 2036 – unless the agreement
   is renewed). A few dozen other Ilois are still fighting to be housed in
   the UK.

   On May 11, 2006, the British High Court ruled that the 2004
   Orders-in-Council were unlawful, and consequently that the Ilois were
   entitled to return to the Chagos Archipelago. It remains to be seen
   whether the British Government will appeal, and when or how the
   judgment might be implemented in practice.

   Human rights groups claim that the military base is used by the U.S.
   government for the controversial " extraordinary rendition" of
   prisoners. The former British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw stated in
   parliament that U.S. authorities have repeatedly assured him that no
   detainees have passed in transit through Diego Garcia or have
   disembarked there.

Strategic importance

   During the Cold War era, the United States was keen on establishing a
   military base in the Indian Ocean. Because of Diego Garcia's proximity
   to India, a potential ally of the Soviet Union, the United States saw
   the island as a strategically important one. U.S. military activities
   in Diego Garcia have caused friction between India and U.S. in the
   past. During the Cold War era, various political parties in India
   repeatedly demanded the U.S. to dismantle the military base. However,
   after the end of the Cold War, relations between India and U.S. have
   improved dramatically. Diego Garcia was the site of several naval
   exercises between the US and Indian Navy held between 2001 and 2004.
   B-1 Bombers on Diego Garcia
   Enlarge
   B-1 Bombers on Diego Garcia

   Diego Garcia has several current missions. U.S. Air Force bombers and
   AWACS surveillance planes operate from the 12,000 foot (3,650 m)
   runway, and the USAF Space Command has built a satellite tracking
   station and communications facility. It is also likely that the
   National Security Agency has a listening post on the island.

   The atoll also shelters the 14 ships of Marine Prepositioning Squadron
   Two. These ships carry the equipment and supplies to support a major
   armed force with light tanks, armored personnel carriers, munitions,
   fuel, spare parts and even a mobile field hospital. This equipment
   showed its necessity during the Persian Gulf War, when the Squadron
   quickly delivered its equipment to Saudi Arabia. There, soldiers flown
   on air transports from U.S. and European bases quickly unloaded and
   deployed the pre-positioned material.

   The ships stationed at Diego Garcia in 2001 included:

   Five maritime pre-positioning ships: MV Baugh, MV Hauge, MV Bonnyman,
   MV Phillips and MV Anderson. Each ship carried enough Marine Corps
   cargo to support a Marine Air/Ground Task Force for 30 days.

   Four combat pre-positioning force ships : MV Jeb Stuart, MV American
   Cormorant, SS Green Valley and SS Green Harbour. These ships provided
   quick-response delivery of US Army equipment for ground troops. Jeb
   Stuart, Green Valley and Green Harbour are LASH ships carrying Army
   ammunition in non-powered lighters (or barges) that can be ferried to
   shore.

   Five logistics pre-positioning ships - MV Buffalo Soldier, SS Potomac,
   MV Green Ridge, USNS Henry J. Kaiser, and MV Fisher. These ships
   service the rapid delivery needs of the US Air Force, US Navy and
   Defense Logistics Agency. Buffalo Soldier and Fisher are container
   ships carrying Air Force ammunition, missiles and spare parts. Green
   Ridge carries a 500-bed Navy hospital used to support Fleet and Marine
   Forces engaged in combat operations ashore. Henry J. Kaiser is one of
   three tankers assigned to MSC in support of the Defense Logistics
   Agency's requirement to pre-position fuel afloat. SS Potomac is an
   offshore petroleum discharge system (OPDS) tanker.

   Smaller prepositioned squadrons exist at Guam and in the Persian Gulf.

Popular culture

   In the science fiction first-person shooter video game Halo 2, which is
   set in the 26th century, Diego Garcia is the launch base for a
   defensive strike against an alien invasion off the East coast of
   Africa.

   In some military themed movies and TV shows, Diego Garcia is referenced
   as a place to send military personel who have displeased their C.O.s in
   some way.

   Retrieved from " http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diego_Garcia"
   This reference article is mainly selected from the English Wikipedia
   with only minor checks and changes (see www.wikipedia.org for details
   of authors and sources) and is available under the GNU Free
   Documentation License. See also our Disclaimer.
