West Island ( Malay: Pulau Panjang,

Cocos Malay Cocos Malay is a post-creolized variety of Malay, spoken by the Cocos Malays of Home Island, Christmas Island, and those originally from the Cocos Islands currently living in Sabah. Cocos Malay derives from the Malay trade languages of the 19 ...

: Pulu Panjang), part of the South Keeling Islands, is the capital of the

Cocos (Keeling) Islands ) , anthem = "''Advance Australia Fair''" , song_type = , song = , image_map = Australia on the globe (Cocos (Keeling) Islands special) (Southeast Asia centered).svg , map_alt = Location of the Cocos (Keeling) Islands , map_caption = ...

, an Australian external territory in the

Indian Ocean The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or ~19.8% of the water on Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia to the east. To the south it is bounded by ...

. The population is roughly 120, making it the third smallest capital in the world, and consists mainly of Europeans. It is less populous than

Home Island Home Island, also known locally as Pulu Selma, is one of only two permanently inhabited islands of the 26 islands of the Southern Atoll of the Cocos (Keeling) Islands, an Australian external territory in the central-eastern Indian Ocean. Des ...

, the only other inhabited island. West Island was part of the Clunies-Ross plantation and an airstrip was built here during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. As well as all the government buildings, it contains the airport, a general store and tourist accommodation. In November 2013 it was revealed that the

Australian Signals Directorate Australian Signals Directorate (ASD), formerly the Defence Signals Directorate (DSD) is the federal statutory agency in the Australian Government responsible for foreign signals intelligence, support to military operations, cyber warfare, and i ...

operates a

listening station A radio listening station (also: listening post, radio intercept station or wireless intercept station, W/T station for wireless telegraphy) is a facility used for military reconnaissance, especially telecommunications reconnaissance (also kno ...

on West Island.

Education

Cocos Islands District High School , latin_name = , logo = Cocos Islands District High School logo.jpeg , logo_size = , logo_alt = , seal_image = , seal_size = , seal_alt ...

operates a primary and secondary campus on West Island. Most of the students of that campus originate from the Australian continent.

Heritage listings

West Island contains a number of heritage-listed sites, including: * Morea Close: Administration Building Forecourt * Air Force Road: Direction Island Houses * Qantas Close: Government House * Sydney Highway: Qantas Huts * RAAF Memorial * Air Force Road: Type 2 Residences * William Keeling Crescent: Type T Houses Precinct * Orion Close: West Island Elevated Houses * Air Force Road: West Island Housing Precinct * Alexander Street:

West Island Mosque The West Island Mosque is a heritage-listed mosque at Alexander Street, West Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, West Island, of the Cocos (Keeling) Islands, an States and territories of Australia#Comparative terminology, external territory of Aus ...

Climate

West Island experiences a

tropical rainforest climate A tropical rainforest climate, humid tropical climate or equatorial climate is a tropical climate sub-type usually found within 10 to 15 degrees latitude of the equator. There are some other areas at higher latitudes, such as the coast of southe ...

(

Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (born 1951), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author and ...

: ''Af'',

Trewartha Trewartha and Andrewartha are Cornish family names (and placename, Dexter). There are places called Trewartha in the parishes of Merther, St Agnes, St Neot and Veryan. According to the ''Handbook of Cornish Names'' by G. Pawley White, "Tre ...

: ''Aral''), with hot and humid conditions experiences year round. The islands experience two seasons that often overlap: the trade wind season from May/June to September/October, and the calmer doldrum season from November through to May. Precipitation is moderate to high year round, thanks to its position at the southern edge of the equatorial low pressure belt. North-west monsoons deliver rain during the doldrum, while the southeastern trade winds also give rain for much of the year. Cyclones have the potential to seriously effect the flora and fauna on the island. The 1989-90 South-West Indian Ocean cyclone season caused damage to the islands, with Tropical Cyclone Walter hitting the island around the 13th of March 1990. Extreme temperatures, however, are subdued by the influence of the Indian Ocean. Extremes only range from 32.8 °C (91.0 °F) on 23 February 2017 to 20.4 °C (68.7 °F) on 27 December 2018.

References

Populated places in the Cocos (Keeling) Islands Capitals in Asia {{Cocos-geo-stub

Education

Heritage listings

Climate

See also

References