Anuanurunga is an

atoll An atoll () is a ring-shaped island, including a coral rim that encircles a lagoon partially or completely. There may be coral islands or cays on the rim. Atolls are located in warm tropical or subtropical oceans and seas where corals can gr ...

in French Polynesia,

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the contin ...

. It is part of the

Duke of Gloucester Islands The Duke of Gloucester Islands (french: Îles du Duc de Gloucester) is a subgroup of the Tuamotu group in French Polynesia. They are located southeast of Tahiti and south of the main Tuamotu atoll cluster and are rather isolated. Atolls The Duke ...

, a subgroup of the

Tuamotu The Tuamotu Archipelago or the Tuamotu Islands (french: Îles Tuamotu, officially ) are a French Polynesian chain of just under 80 islands and atolls in the southern Pacific Ocean. They constitute the largest chain of atolls in the world, extendin ...

group. Anuanurunga's nearest neighbor is

Nukutepipi Nukutepipi, or Nuku-te-pipi is an atoll in French Polynesia, Pacific Ocean. It is part of the Duke of Gloucester Islands, a subgroup of the Tuamotu group. Nukutepipi's nearest neighbor is Anuanurunga, which is located about 22 km to the W ...

, which is located about to the ESE. Anuanurunga is a very small atoll. It is ring-shaped, measuring approximately in diameter with a total area of . Its reef is quite broad, enclosing completely the small lagoon. There are four relatively large islands on its reef, as well as a few small motu. Anuanurunga Atoll is currently uninhabited.

History

First sighting recorded by Europeans was by the Spanish expedition of

Pedro Fernández de Quirós Pedro is a masculine given name. Pedro is the Spanish, Portuguese, and Galician name for '' Peter''. Its French equivalent is Pierre while its English and Germanic form is Peter. The counterpart patronymic surname of the name Pedro, meaning ...

on 4 February 1606. With the other three atolls of the Duke of Gloucester Islands they were named ''Cuatro Coronas'' (Four Crowns in Spanish). British naval officer and explorer

Philip Carteret Rear-Admiral Philip Carteret, Seigneur of Trinity (22 January 1733, Trinity Manor, Jersey – 21 July 1796, Southampton) was a British naval officer and explorer who participated in two of the Royal Navy's circumnavigation expeditions in 176 ...

visited it in 1767. He named this atoll ''Four Crowns''.

Administration

Administratively the four atolls of the Duke of Gloucester Islands, including the uninhabited ones of Anuanuruga,

Anuanuraro Anuanuraro is an atoll in French Polynesia, Pacific Ocean. It is part of the Duke of Gloucester Islands, a subgroup of the Tuamotu group. Anuanuraro's nearest neighbor is Anuanurunga, which is located about 29 km to the southeast. Anuanura ...

and

, belong to the

commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...

Hereheretue Hereheretue or Hiri-oro is an atoll in French Polynesia, Pacific Ocean. It is the northernmost island of the Duke of Gloucester Islands group, or Îles du Duc de Gloucester, a subgroup of the Tuamotu group. Hereheretue's nearest neighbour is ...

, which is associated to the Hao commune.

References

Oceandots

External links

Atolls of the Tuamotus {{FrenchPolynesia-geo-stub