Ravahere
Encyclopedia
Tuamotus
The Tuamotus or the Tuamotu Archipelago are a chain of islands and atolls in French Polynesia. They form the largest chain of atolls in the world, spanning an area of the Pacific Ocean roughly the size of Western Europe...
in French Polynesia
French Polynesia
French Polynesia is an overseas country of the French Republic . It is made up of several groups of Polynesian islands, the most famous island being Tahiti in the Society Islands group, which is also the most populous island and the seat of the capital of the territory...
. It is located 53 km northwest of Nengonengo
Nengonengo
Nengonengo is a small atoll of the Tuamotu Archipelago in French Polynesia. It is located 53 km southeast of Ravahere, its closest neighbor, and 100 km southwest of Hao Atoll....
Atoll and it is separated by a 2 km sound from Marokau
Marokau
Marokau is an atoll of the Tuamotu Archipelago in French Polynesia. It lies 53 km southeast of Hikueru Atoll and it is separated by a 2 km wide sound from Ravahere, its closest neighbor in the south....
Atoll, its closest neighbor to the north.
Marokau and Ravahere form a minor subgroup of the Tuamotus known as the Two Groups Islands
Two Groups Islands
The Two Groups Islands is a minor subgroup of the Tuamotus in French Polynesia. It is formed by the atolls of Marokau and Ravahere.Marokau lies to the north and Ravahere to the south. The two atolls are separated by a wide sound.-History:...
.
Ravahere Atoll is roughly boomerang-shaped. It measures 18 km in length with a maximum width of 7.5 km. The shallow lagoon has a surface of 50 km², but there is no pass to enter it.
Ravahere is permanently uninhabited.
History
The first recorded European who sighted the two neighboring atolls of Marokau and Ravahere was Louis Antoine de BougainvilleLouis Antoine de Bougainville
Louis-Antoine, Comte de Bougainville was a French admiral and explorer. A contemporary of James Cook, he took part in the French and Indian War and the unsuccessful French attempt to defend Canada from Britain...
in 1768.
Administration
Ravahere belongs to the communeCommunes of France
The commune is the lowest level of administrative division in the French Republic. French communes are roughly equivalent to incorporated municipalities or villages in the United States or Gemeinden in Germany...
of Hikueru
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....
, which consists of the atolls of Hikueru, Marokau
Marokau
Marokau is an atoll of the Tuamotu Archipelago in French Polynesia. It lies 53 km southeast of Hikueru Atoll and it is separated by a 2 km wide sound from Ravahere, its closest neighbor in the south....
, Ravahere, Reitoru
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....
and Tekokota
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 0.9 km²....
.