This astronaut photograph depicts Apataki Atoll, an atoll in the Tuamotu Islands in the south Pacific. Atolls are ring-like coral islands that nearly or entirely enclose a lagoon. The atoll traces the perimeter of what was once the coastline of a volcanic island. In 1722, Dutch navigator Jakob Roggeveen became the first European to see the Apataki Atoll. It was later visited by Captain Cook in 1774.
Published Mar 6, 2006
Located just north of the equator, this classically shaped atoll is part of the Caroline Islands, which stretch northeast of Papua New Guinea in the western Pacific. Nukuoro Atoll is one of 607 islands that make up the Federated States of Micronesia.
Published Jul 10, 2006
The ring shape is the result of coral reefs building up around a former volcanic island in the South Pacific.
Published Apr 6, 2009
This astronaut photograph shows Mataiva Atoll, the westernmost atoll of the Tuamotu Archipelago.
Published Aug 30, 2010
One of the larger islands in the remote Cook Island chain of the Central Pacific has the classic features of a coral atoll.
Published Nov 9, 2015
The only atoll in the South Atlantic Ocean is part of Brazil’s Fernando de Noronha archipelago.
Published Feb 29, 2020
The Dry Tortugas are a group of islands located approximately 75 miles west of Key West, Florida; they form the western end of the Florida Keys in the Gulf of Mexico. This astronaut photograph highlights three islands in the group: Bush Key, Hospital Key, and Garden Key, which is the site of Fort Jefferson, a Civil War-era fort.
Published Aug 18, 2008
In one frame International Space Station astronauts were able to capture the evolution of fringing reefs to atolls. As with the Hawaiian Islands, these volcanic hot spot islands become progressively older to the northwest. As these islands move away from their magma sources they erode and subside.
Published Feb 16, 2003
Coral, rock, silt, sand, rubble, sponges, and seaweed all contribute to the architecture of the Cocos (Keeling) Islands.
Published Dec 27, 2011
