Kiritimati Atoll

Kiritimati Atoll

also called  Christmas Atoll  

      coral island in the Northern Line Islands, part of Kiribati, in the west-central Pacific Ocean. It is the largest island of purely coral formation in the world, having a circumference of about 100 miles (160 km). Kiritimati Atoll was sighted on Christmas Eve in 1777 by the English navigator Capt. James Cook (Cook, James). (Kiritimati is the Gilbertese spelling of Christmas.) Although claimed by the United States under the Guano Act of 1856, the atoll was annexed by Britain (British Empire) in 1888 and was incorporated into the Gilbert and Ellice Islands Colony in 1919. British sovereignty was challenged by the United States in 1936, and ownership remained in dispute until 1979, when Kiritimati became a part of independent Kiribati. The atoll has port facilities, an airfield, and a large government-owned copra plantation. The island was an operation base for nuclear weapons tests by the British in 1957–58 and by the United States in 1962. Parts of the island remain desolate because of the tests. Kiritimati's position near the Equator made its surrounding waters a favoured site for sea launches of Earth satellites beginning in the late 1990s. Kiritimati was designated a wildlife sanctuary in 1975. Area 150 square miles (388 square km). Pop. (2005 prelim.) 5,115.

* * *


Universalium. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем решить контрольную работу

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Kiritimati — For the island in the Indian Ocean, see Christmas Island. Kiritimati   Atoll   Photograph from the International Space S …   Wikipedia

  • Kiritimati — Satellitenbild von Kiritimati Gewässer Pazifischer Ozean Archipel Line Islands …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Kiritimati —   [kɪrɪs maːs], früher Christmas Island [ krɪsməs aɪlənd, englisch], Weihnachts|insel, eine der nördlichen Linieninseln, Kiribati, im Westen des Pazifischen Ozeans, Atoll von 575 km2 (Landfläche: 388 km2), 2 500 Einwohner; Kokospalmenplantagen;… …   Universal-Lexikon

  • Kiritimati — Île Christmas (Kiribati) Pour les articles homonymes, voir Île Christmas. Île Christmas Kiritimati (gil) …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Atoll — Das aus mehr als 40 Motus bestehende Atoll Atafu Ein Atoll ist ein ringförmiges Korallenriff, das eine Lagune umschließt. Das Wort „Atoll“ leitet sich von atolhu ab, dem entsprechenden Begriff in der maledivischen Sprache (Dhivehi). Das… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Atoll — For other senses of this word, see atoll (disambiguation). Satellite picture of the Atafu atoll in Tokelau in the Pacific Ocean. An atoll ( …   Wikipedia

  • Tabuaeran Atoll — ▪ atoll, Kiribati formerly called  Fanning Atoll  or  Fanning Island   coral formation of the Northern Line Islands, part of Kiribati, in the west central Pacific Ocean. Discovered in 1798 by an American trader and explorer, Edmund Fanning, the… …   Universalium

  • Kiritimati — or Christmas geographical name island (atoll) in the Line Islands; largest atoll in the Pacific area 234 square miles (608 square kilometers), population 674 …   New Collegiate Dictionary

  • Kiritimati — Ki•riti•mati [[t]kəˈrɪs məs[/t]] n. geg one of the Line Islands belonging to Kiribati, in the central Pacific: largest atoll in the Pacific. 1737; ab. 220 sq. mi. (575 sq. km) Formerly, Christmas Island 2) …   From formal English to slang

  • Kiritimati — /kəˈrɪsmʌs/ (say kuh rismus) noun an island in the western Pacific, one of the Line Islands that form part of Kiribati; the largest atoll in the world. Formerly (until 1981), Christmas Island. Usage: In the language of Kiribati, the sequence t +… …  

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”