Oroluk Atoll 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 ...

belonging to

Pohnpei State Pohnpei State (IPA: pɔ:n peɪ) is one of the four states of the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM). The other states are, from east to west, Kosrae State, Chuuk State, and Yap State. The state's main island is Pohnpei. History The pre-colonia ...

in the

Micronesia Micronesia (, ) is a subregion of Oceania, consisting of about 2,000 small islands in the western Pacific Ocean. It has a close shared cultural history with three other island regions: the Philippines to the west, Polynesia to the east, and ...

Description

Oroluk Atoll stretches from the northwest to the southeast with a length of about and an average width of . The

lagoon A lagoon is a shallow body of water separated from a larger body of water by a narrow landform, such as reefs, barrier islands, barrier peninsulas, or isthmuses. Lagoons are commonly divided into ''coastal lagoons'' (or ''barrier lagoons'') a ...

's surface is roughly . The more than 25 sandy islets and banks, predominantly on the eastern rim of the atoll, have been washed away by

cyclone In meteorology, a cyclone () is a large air mass that rotates around a strong center of low atmospheric pressure, counterclockwise in the Northern Hemisphere and clockwise in the Southern Hemisphere as viewed from above (opposite to an anti ...

s through the years. Only one island remains, Oroluk Island in the very northwest corner of the atoll. Oroluk Atoll is believed to have been first discovered and named by navigators from Namoluk Island in the Mortlock Islands. The inhabitants of Oroluk are only between five and ten in number. They come mainly from Sector 4 of the Kapinga Village in

Kolonia Kolonia is a coastal town and the capital of Pohnpei State in the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM). It was also the former FSM capital before being replaced by Palikir in 1989, located nearby to the southwest in the municipality of Sokehs ...

, Pohnpei, and tend to the plantations of bananas and taro. A supply ship generally calls into the lagoon once every 6 months. The island can be contacted by SSB on the frequency 7876.5 daily at 0600Z for a period of 15 minutes.

Municipality

Oroluk Oroluk waas one of the administrative divisions of Pohnpei State, Federated States of Micronesia. In 1985, it became part of Sokehs Municipality. Description Oroluk municipality included Oroluk Atoll and Minto Reef. This municipality is uninh ...

municipality, which includes Oroluk Atoll and Minto Reef is one of the twelve municipalities of Pohnpei State.

History

Oroluk atoll It was discovered by Spanish navigator

Alonso de Arellano Alonso de Arellano was a 16th-century Spanish explorer who commanded one ship that was part of the fleet that re-discovered the Philippines after the Magellan and López de Villalobos expeditions. Biography Arellano was captain of the ''San Luca ...

in 1565 on board of the

patache A patache (occasionally "patax" or "''pataje''") is a type of sailing vessel with two masts, very light and shallow, a sort of cross between a brig and a schooner, which originally was a warship, being intended for surveillance and inspection ...

''San Lucas'', who charted it as ''Mira Cómo Vas'' (''Look how you're going'' in Spanish). It was also later visited by the Spanish naval officer Felipe Tompson on 7 April 1773, who charted it as the ''Bajo Triste'' (the ''Sad Shoal'' in Spanish) due to its "horrible aspect" in his own words. Oroluk Island was charted by Tompson as ''San Agustín''.Espinosa y Tello, Josef ''Memorias sobre las observaciones astronomicas hechas por los navegantes españoles en distintos lugares del globo'' t.II, Madrid, 1809, p.17.

References

External links

Heinrich Schnee
''

Deutsches Kolonial-Lexikon ''Deutsches Kolonial-Lexikon'' is the German title for the ''Encyclopedia of German colonies'' which was published in 1920. The text had been finished by 1914 before World War I but was not printed due to the war. Thus it gives a wide range of in ...

''. Quelle & Meyer, Leipzig 1920, Band II, S. 684
Havarie der Norna (1861)

Pohnpei (Islas Carolinas Orientales) 3ª parte
Oroluk and Ngatik atolls (Spanish) Atolls of the Federated States of Micronesia Pohnpei {{Micronesia-geo-stub