Marokau is an atoll of the

Tuamotu Archipelago 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 ...

in French Polynesia. It lies 53 km southeast of

Hikueru Hikueru, Tiveru, or Te Kārena, is one of the Central Tuamotu atolls. The closest land to Hikueru is Tekokota Atoll, located 22 km to the north. Hikueru Atoll's shape is roughly oval and it is 15 km in length and 9.5 km in width. ...

Atoll and it is separated by a 2 km wide sound from

Ravahere Ravahere is an atoll of the Tuamotu Archipelago in French Polynesia. It is located 53 km northwest of Nengonengo Atoll and it is separated by a 2 km sound from Marokau Atoll, its closest neighbor to the north. Marokau and Ravahere fo ...

, its closest neighbor in the south. Marokau and Ravahere form a minor subgroup of the Tuamotus known as the

Two Groups Islands The Two Groups Islands (french: Îles Deux Groupes) is a minor subgroup of the Tuamotus in French Polynesia. It is formed by the atolls of Marokau to the north (populated by 100 people) and the uninhabited Ravahere to the south. The two atolls ar ...

. Marokau Atoll is roughly triangular. The islands on its reef have a combined land area of 14.7 km². The shallow lagoon has a surface of 215.6 km². Marokau has 91 inhabitants. Most live in Vaiori, the main village, located on an island at its northern end. The locals collect copra from the numerous coconut palms planted on the islands and motus. There is another small village called Topitike in its south-eastern corner.

History

The first recorded European who sighted the two neighboring atolls of Marokau and Ravahere was

Louis Antoine de Bougainville Louis-Antoine, Comte de Bougainville (, , ; 12 November 1729 – August 1811) was a French admiral and explorer. A contemporary of the British explorer James Cook, he took part in the Seven Years' War in North America and the American Revolutio ...

in 1768. Marokau Atoll was one of the main locations in the Tuamotu lagoons at which pearls were collected from the nineteenth century up to 1965. The atoll was heavily hit by a cyclone in 1903 which caused the death of 95 people .

Administration

Marokau Atoll belongs 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 ...

of Hikueru, which consists of the atolls of Marokau, Hikueru, Ravahere,

Reitoru Reitoru, or Te Pirehi, is a small atoll of the Tuamotu Archipelago in French Polynesia. It is located in center of the archipelago, 50 km southwest of Hikueru. The inner lagoon is closed and is inaccessible from the ocean. The total surfa ...

and

Tekokota Tekokota is one of the Central Tuamotu atolls, located close to the geographic center of the archipelago. Tekokota Atoll is one of the smallest atolls of the Tuamotus. Its islands have a total land mass of only . Tekokota's shape is roughly ova ...

Additional images

File:Marokau Atoll.jpg, Marokau and Ravahere Atolls File:MarokauISS009-E-6065.PNG,

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil List of government space agencies, space program ...

picture of Marokau Atoll; note Ravahere's northern tip on the lower right corner.

References

External links

Atoll list (in French)

Atolls of the Tuamotus {{FrenchPolynesia-geo-stub