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Egmont Islands
Egmont Islands (also known as Egmont Atoll, or Six Iles) is an uninhabited atoll administered by the United Kingdom. They are one of the few emerged coral atolls that make up the Chagos Archipelago, British Indian Ocean Territory. This small atoll lies less than 10km south of the southwestern rim of the Great Chagos Bank submerged coral reef. Its total size is 29km², including the lagoon and the fringing coral reef. The land area totals about 4km². The nearest island is Danger Island on the Great Chagos Bank, less than 30km due north. There are two passages into the lagoon along the Northern Rim, Fausse Passe in the northeast and a wider passage in the northwest. The Egmont Islands are one of the favorite anchoring spots for itinerant yachtsmen passing through the Chagos. Islands The largest island is "Île Sud-Est" (Eastern Egmont), where the settlement was located, with an area of 1.5km². While "Île Lubine" is similar in size, the other islets are smaller. All islands ar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Coconut
The coconut tree (''Cocos nucifera'') is a member of the palm tree family ( Arecaceae) and the only living species of the genus ''Cocos''. The term "coconut" (or the archaic "cocoanut") can refer to the whole coconut palm, the seed, or the fruit, which botanically is a drupe, not a nut. The name comes from the old Portuguese word '' coco'', meaning "head" or "skull", after the three indentations on the coconut shell that resemble facial features. They are ubiquitous in coastal tropical regions and are a cultural icon of the tropics. The coconut tree provides food, fuel, cosmetics, folk medicine and building materials, among many other uses. The inner flesh of the mature seed, as well as the coconut milk extracted from it, form a regular part of the diets of many people in the tropics and subtropics. Coconuts are distinct from other fruits because their endosperm contains a large quantity of clear liquid, called ''coconut water'' or ''coconut juice''. Mature, ripe coconut ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The World Factbook
''The World Factbook'', also known as the ''CIA World Factbook'', is a reference resource produced by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) with almanac-style information about the countries of the world. The official print version is available from the Government Publishing Office. The ''Factbook'' is available in the form of a website that is partially updated every week. It is also available for download for use off-line. It provides a two- to three-page summary of the demographics, geography, communications, government, economy, and military of each of 267 international entities including U.S.-recognized countries, dependencies, and other areas in the world. ''The World Factbook'' is prepared by the CIA for the use of U.S. government officials, and its style, format, coverage, and content are primarily designed to meet their requirements. However, it is frequently used as a resource for academic research papers and news articles. As a work of the U.S. government, it is i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
RFA Stromness
RFA ''Stromness'' (A344) was a fleet stores ship which served the Royal Fleet Auxiliary until sold to the U.S. Navy's Military Sealift Command in 1983. While in the service of British forces, it saw service in the Falklands War. After the sale to the United States, it was renamed USNS ''Saturn'' (T-AFS-10) and acted as a combat stores ship until it was deactivated in 2009; it was able to supply two other ships at once. In 2010, it was sunk in an exercise by the U.S. Carrier Strike Group Two off the coast of North Carolina. Construction Originally known as RFA ''Stromness'' (A344), the vessel was built at Swan Hunter & Wigham Richardson Ltd, Wallsend as Yard Nr 2017, United Kingdom, for the Royal Navy. She was laid down on 5 October 1965 and launched on 16 September 1966. RFA operational history In 1973 she brought the expedition members of the Joint Services Egmont Islands Expedition (JSEI) from the Egmont Atoll back to Gan, Addu Atoll after their mission was over. Led ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
RFA Gold Ranger
RFA ''Gold Ranger'' (A130) was a Ranger-class fleet support tanker of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary which first served in World War II. In December, 1949, she supported Operation Corkscrew by providing aviation fuel at Deception Island for aircraft which helped relieve men of the Falkland Islands Dependencies Survey at Base E on Stonington Island. She later served in the Korean War, and in support of the atomic tests at Mauro Atoll. She was later employed as a support ship for minesweepers during the Indonesian Confrontation. In 1972 she brought the expedition members of the Joint Services Egmont Islands Expedition (JSEI) from Gan, Addu Atoll to the Egmont Atoll. Led by Sqn Leader "Dickie" Bird RAF, it was the first scuba diving expedition in the Chagos Archipelago The Chagos Archipelago () or Chagos Islands (formerly the Bassas de Chagas, and later the Oil Islands) is a group of seven atolls comprising more than 60 islands in the Indian Ocean about 500 kilometres (310&nbs ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gan, Addu Atoll
Gan ( Div: ގަން) is the southernmost island of Addu Atoll (also known as Seenu Atoll), as well as the southernmost island of the Maldives. It is relatively large by Maldive standards. The origin of the word "Gan" is in the Sanskrit word "Grama", meaning "village". Gan is the second largest island of the atoll, after Hithadhoo, and measures in area. Gan was formerly inhabited, but its inhabitants were moved to neighbouring islands after the British naval and airbase was built. It has had continuous human habitation since very ancient times. There were large cultivated fields of yams, manioc and coconut trees on this island. A former '' havitta'' at island's east end had to be removed to build the runway. Gan has now a hotel catering for tourists and is connected by causeways to the neighbouring islands of Feydu, Maradu and Hithadhoo. This island is not to be confused with two other Maldive islands called "Gan": Gan (Huvadhu Atoll) and Gan (Laamu Atoll). Archaeology ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Coral Reef
A coral reef is an underwater ecosystem characterized by reef-building corals. Reefs are formed of colonies of coral polyps held together by calcium carbonate. Most coral reefs are built from stony corals, whose polyps cluster in groups. Coral belongs to the class Anthozoa in the animal phylum Cnidaria, which includes sea anemones and jellyfish. Unlike sea anemones, corals secrete hard carbonate exoskeletons that support and protect the coral. Most reefs grow best in warm, shallow, clear, sunny and agitated water. Coral reefs first appeared 485 million years ago, at the dawn of the Early Ordovician, displacing the microbial and sponge reefs of the Cambrian. Sometimes called ''rainforests of the sea'', shallow coral reefs form some of Earth's most diverse ecosystems. They occupy less than 0.1% of the world's ocean area, about half the area of France, yet they provide a home for at least 25% of all marine species, including fish, mollusks, worms, crustaceans, echinoderms, sp ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
David Bellamy
David James Bellamy (18 January 1933 – 11 December 2019) was an English botanist, television presenter, author and environmental campaigner. Early and personal life Bellamy was born in London to parents Winifred May (née Green) and Thomas Bellamy on 18 January 1933. He was raised in a Baptist family and retained a strong Christian faith throughout his life. As a child, he had hoped to be a ballet dancer, but he concluded that his rather large physique regrettably precluded him from pursuing the training. Bellamy went to school in south London, attending Chatsworth Road Primary School in Cheam, Cheam Road Junior School, and Sutton County Grammar School, where he initially showed an aptitude for English literature and history; he then found his vocation because of an inspirational science teacher, studying zoology, botany, physics, and chemistry in the sixth form. He gained an honours degree in botany at Chelsea College of Science and Technology (now part of King's College ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Joint Services
The British Armed Forces, also known as His Majesty's Armed Forces, are the military forces responsible for the defence of the United Kingdom, its Overseas Territories and the Crown Dependencies. They also promote the UK's wider interests, support international peacekeeping efforts and provide humanitarian aid. Since the formation of the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707 (later succeeded by the United Kingdom), the British Armed Forces have seen action in a number of major wars involving the world's great powers, including the Seven Years' War, the American Revolutionary War, the Napoleonic Wars, the 1853–1856 Crimean War, the First World War, and the Second World War. Britain's victories in most of these decisive wars, allowed it to influence world events and establish itself as one of the world's leading military and economic powers. As of October 2022, the British Armed Forces consist of: the Royal Navy, a blue-water navy with a fleet of 72 commissioned ships, together ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ilois
The Chagossians (also Îlois or Chagos Islanders) are a currently exiled Creole ethnic group native to the Chagos Islands, specifically Diego Garcia, Peros Banhos, and the Salomon island chain, as well as other parts of the Chagos Archipelago, from the late 18th century until the middle of 20th century. Most Chagossians now live in Mauritius and the United Kingdom after being forcibly removed by the British government in the late 1960s and early 1970s so that Diego Garcia, the island where most Chagossians lived, could serve as the location for a United States military base. Today, no Chagossians are allowed to live on the island of Diego Garcia, as it is now the site of the military base dubbed Camp Thunder Cove. The Chagossian people's ancestry is mostly African, particularly from Madagascar, Mozambique and other African nations including Mauritius. There is also a significant proportion of Indian and Malay ancestry. The French brought some to the Chagos Islands as slaves fr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chagossians
The Chagossians (also Îlois or Chagos Islanders) are a currently exiled Creole ethnic group native to the Chagos Islands, specifically Diego Garcia, Peros Banhos, and the Salomon island chain, as well as other parts of the Chagos Archipelago, from the late 18th century until the middle of 20th century. Most Chagossians now live in Mauritius and the United Kingdom after being forcibly removed by the British government in the late 1960s and early 1970s so that Diego Garcia, the island where most Chagossians lived, could serve as the location for a United States military base. Today, no Chagossians are allowed to live on the island of Diego Garcia, as it is now the site of the military base dubbed Camp Thunder Cove. The Chagossian people's ancestry is mostly African, particularly from Madagascar, Mozambique and other African nations including Mauritius. There is also a significant proportion of Indian and Malay ancestry. The French brought some to the Chagos Islands as slaves ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Robert Moresby
Robert Moresby (15 June 1794 – 15 June 1854Some sources mention that he is thought to have died in 1863.) was a captain of the East India Company's Bombay Marine/Indian Navy who distinguished himself as a hydrographer, maritime surveyor and draughtsman. As a Lieutenant under Commander Thomas Elwon, Moresby was part of a two-ship exercise engaged (from 1829 to 1832) in charting the dangerous waters of the Red Sea. Later, he also charted some coralline archipelagoes of the Indian Ocean, such as the Maldives, Laccadives and Chagos in the 1820s and '30s. This work ensured that the route from Europe to the East Indies became viable for the new steam vessels. Robert Moresby was a son of Mr Fairfax Moresby of Lichfield, Staffs, late of India, where Fairfax Moresby had practised as a lawyer. Fairfax Moresby and his wife Mary Rotten had 6 boys and 3 girls, the eldest of whom was Sir Fairfax Moresby, Admiral of the British Fleet, and Commander in Chief, Channel Squadron and Pacifi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
