Ambrym is a

volcanic A volcano is a rupture in the crust of a planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface. On Earth, volcanoes are most often found where tectonic plates a ...

island An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...

in Malampa Province in the

archipelago An archipelago ( ), sometimes called an island group or island chain, is a chain, cluster, or collection of islands, or sometimes a sea containing a small number of scattered islands. Examples of archipelagos include: the Indonesian Arc ...

Vanuatu Vanuatu ( or ; ), officially the Republic of Vanuatu (french: link=no, République de Vanuatu; bi, Ripablik blong Vanuatu), is an island country located in the South Pacific Ocean. The archipelago, which is of volcanic origin, is east of no ...

. Volcanic activity on the island includes

lava lake Lava lakes are large volumes of molten lava, usually basaltic, contained in a volcanic vent, crater, or broad depression. The term is used to describe both lava lakes that are wholly or partly molten and those that are solidified (someti ...

s in two craters near the summit.

Etymology

Ambrym (also known as ''Ambrin'', ''"ham rim"'' in the Ranon language) was allegedly named by

Captain Cook James Cook (7 November 1728 Old Style date: 27 October – 14 February 1779) was a British explorer, navigator, cartographer, and captain in the British Royal Navy, famous for his three voyages between 1768 and 1779 in the Pacific Ocean and ...

, who is said to have anchored off there in 1774. In fact, his expedition never touched Ambrym.

Geography

Located near the center of the

an archipelago, Ambrym is roughly triangular in shape, about wide. With of surface area, it is the fifth largest island in the country. The summit at the centre of the island is dominated by a desert-like

caldera A caldera ( ) is a large cauldron-like hollow that forms shortly after the emptying of a magma chamber in a volcano eruption. When large volumes of magma are erupted over a short time, structural support for the rock above the magma chamber is ...

, which covers an area of . With the exception of human settlements, the rest of the island is covered by a dense jungle.

Important Bird Area

The western part of the island, comprising 17,605 ha of forest, together with gardens around habitation, has been recognised as an Important Bird Area (IBA) by BirdLife International because it supports populations of

Vanuatu megapode The Vanuatu megapode or Vanuatu scrubfowl (''Megapodius layardi'') is a species of bird in the family Megapodiidae. It was formerly known as the New Hebrides scrubfowl. It is found only in Vanuatu. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical ...

s, Tanna fruit doves,

red-bellied fruit dove The red-bellied fruit dove (''Ptilinopus greyi'') is a species of bird in the family Columbidae. It is found in lowland forest in New Caledonia, Santa Cruz Islands ( Solomons), and Vanuatu Vanuatu ( or ; ), officially the Republic of Vanu ...

grey-eared honeyeater The grey-eared honeyeater (''Lichmera incana''), also known as the dark-brown honeyeater, is a passerine bird of the honeyeater family which is found in Vanuatu and New Caledonia in the south-west Pacific. It is sometimes known as the silver-eare ...

cardinal myzomela The cardinal myzomela (''Myzomela cardinalis'') is a species of bird in the honeyeater family Meliphagidae. It is named for the scarlet color of the male. It is found in American Samoa, New Caledonia, Samoa, Solomon Islands, and Vanuatu, as ...

fan-tailed gerygone The fan-tailed gerygone (''Gerygone flavolateralis'') is a species of bird in the family Acanthizidae. It is found in New Caledonia and Vanuatu. The Rennell gerygone (''G. citrina'') of the Solomon Islands Solomon Islands is an island ...

long-tailed triller The long-tailed triller (''Lalage leucopyga'') is a species of bird in the family Campephagidae. It is found in New Caledonia, Solomon Islands, and Vanuatu. The Norfolk Island subspecies of the long-tailed triller, the Norfolk triller, has becom ...

streaked fantail The streaked fantail (''Rhipidura verreauxi'') is a species of bird in the family Rhipiduridae. ''Rhipidura verreauxi'' has precedence over ''Rhipidura spilodera'' (Dickinson & Watling 2006). It is found in Fiji, New Caledonia, and Vanuatu. It ...

Melanesian flycatcher The Melanesian flycatcher (''Myiagra caledonica'') is a species of bird in the monarch-flycatcher family Monarchidae. The species is found on islands in Melanesia. Taxonomy and systematics It is closely related to the Vanikoro flycatcher. Alte ...

buff-bellied monarch The buff-bellied monarch (''Neolalage banksiana'') is a species of bird in the family Monarchidae. It is monotypic within the genus ''Neolalage''. It is endemic to Vanuatu, where its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland fores ...

s and

Vanuatu white-eye The Vanuatu white-eye or yellow-fronted white-eye (''Zosterops flavifrons'') is a small passerine bird belonging to the genus ''Zosterops'' in the white-eye family Zosteropidae. It is endemic to Vanuatu, where it is one of the most common birds. ...

Volcanology

Ambrym is a large

basaltic Basalt (; ) is an aphanitic (fine-grained) extrusive igneous rock formed from the rapid cooling of low-viscosity lava rich in magnesium and iron (mafic lava) exposed at or very near the surface of a rocky planet or moon. More than 90% of a ...

volcano with a 12-km-wide caldera, and is one of the most active volcanoes of the

New Hebrides New Hebrides, officially the New Hebrides Condominium (french: link=no, Condominium des Nouvelles-Hébrides, "Condominium of the New Hebrides") and named after the Hebrides Scottish archipelago, was the colonial name for the island group ...

volcanic arc. The caldera is the result of a huge Plinian eruption, which took place around

AD 50 __NOTOC__ AD 50 ( L) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time it was known in Europe as the Year of the Consulship of Vetus and Nerullinus (or, less frequently, year 803 ...

. Its explosive force is rated 6, the third highest in the

Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums and education and research centers, the largest such complex in the world, created by the U.S. government "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge". Founded ...

's Volcanic Explosivity Index ranks of the largest volcanic explosions in recent geological history. While at higher elevations cinder cones predominate, the western tip of the island is characterized by a series of

tuff Tuff is a type of rock made of volcanic ash ejected from a vent during a volcanic eruption. Following ejection and deposition, the ash is lithified into a solid rock. Rock that contains greater than 75% ash is considered tuff, while rock ...

rings, of which the largest is about in diameter. These were produced by

phreatic eruptions A phreatic eruption, also called a phreatic explosion, ultravulcanian eruption or steam-blast eruption, occurs when magma heats ground water or surface water. The extreme temperature of the magma (anywhere from ) causes near-instantaneous evapo ...

when

magma Magma () is the molten or semi-molten natural material from which all igneous rocks are formed. Magma is found beneath the surface of the Earth, and evidence of magmatism has also been discovered on other terrestrial planets and some natural sa ...

contacted the

water table The water table is the upper surface of the zone of saturation. The zone of saturation is where the pores and fractures of the ground are saturated with water. It can also be simply explained as the depth below which the ground is saturated. T ...

and water-saturated sediments along the coast. The massive, 1900-year-old, × caldera is the site of two active volcanic cones, Benbow and Marum (also spelled Maroum). Mount Benbow was named after English Admiral

John Benbow Vice-Admiral John Benbow (10 March 16534 November 1702) was an English officer in the Royal Navy. He joined the navy aged 25 years, seeing action against Algerian pirates before leaving and joining the merchant navy where he traded until the ...

(1653–1702) by Captain Cook. Several times a century, Ambrym volcano has destructive eruptions. Mount Benbow last erupted explosively in 1913, destroying the mission hospital at Dip Point. Volcanic gas emissions from this volcano are measured by a Multi-Component Gas Analyzer System, which detects pre-eruptive degassing of rising magmas, improving

prediction of volcanic activity Prediction of volcanic activity, or volcanic eruption forecasting, is an interdisciplinary monitoring and research effort to predict the time and severity of a volcano's eruption. Of particular importance is the prediction of hazardous eruptions t ...

. In March 2017, Google added Marum crater with its lava lakes to

Google Streetview Google Street View is a technology featured in Google Maps and Google Earth that provides interactive panoramas from positions along many streets in the world. It was launched in 2007 in several cities in the United States, and has since expan ...

. Since the last fissure eruption on 16 Dec 2018, the lava lake has disappeared.

Demographics

With the neighbouring island of Malakula and a few smaller islands, Ambrym forms Malampa Province. The population of 7,275 inhabitants lives mainly off coconut

plantations A plantation is an agricultural estate, generally centered on a plantation house, meant for farming that specializes in cash crops, usually mainly planted with a single crop, with perhaps ancillary areas for vegetables for eating and so on. Th ...

in the three corners of the island. Ambrym woodcarver

Languages

Like many islands in Vanuatu, Ambrym has its own Austronesian languages. In the north: * Fanbyak * North Ambrym language In the southeast: * Vatlongos In the southwest: * Daakie * Daakaka * Dalkalaen * Lonwolwol * Raljago

Towns and villages

Southwest

* Fali, Craig Cove, Baiap, Sesivi, Port Vato, Bwele, Lalinda, Tow, Yaotilie, Sanesup, Emiotungan, Maranata and Pelibetakever

Southeast

* Maat, Paamal, Toak, Uléi, Utas, Tavéak, Asé, Pawé, Saméo, Endu, Pahakol and Benebo

North

* Ranuetlam, Ranon, Olal,

Fanla Fanla is a small village situated in the north of Ambrym Island, in the archipelago of Vanuatu in Melanesia, in the province of Malampa. The original name of this place was ''Saanembur Lonbato''. This is a Kastom Village, which represents the ...

, Linboul, Wilit, Lonwara, Fona, Nebul and Megham

Tourism

Tourists are attracted by Ambrym's active volcanoes, tropical vegetation, and the customs of the local villagers. They stay in traditional bungalows, as there are no hotels on the island.

Transportation

The island is served by two airports, Ulei Airport in the southeast and

Craig Cove Airport Craig Cove Airport is an airport in Craig Cove on Ambrym Island in Vanuatu Vanuatu ( or ; ), officially the Republic of Vanuatu (french: link=no, République de Vanuatu; bi, Ripablik blong Vanuatu), is an island country located in the S ...

in the southwest.

Popular culture

Ambrym is featured in the 2016

Werner Herzog Werner Herzog (; born 5 September 1942) is a German film director, screenwriter, author, actor, and opera director, regarded as a pioneer of New German Cinema. His films often feature ambitious protagonists with impossible dreams, people with u ...

documentary, '' Into the Inferno''.

References

External links

* * * * {{Authority control Islands of Vanuatu Malampa Province Shield volcanoes of Vanuatu Mountains of Vanuatu Subduction volcanoes Active volcanoes VEI-6 volcanoes Calderas of Oceania Pyroclastic shields Lava lakes Important Bird Areas of Vanuatu