World's Most Amazing Islands
Published on 9/21/2007
(Photos to follow this post)
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GUNKANJIMA (Japan): the Ghost (and forbidden) Island
Gunkanjima is one among 505 uninhabited islands in the Nagasaki
Prefecture about 15 kilometers from Nagasaki itself. The island was
populated from 1887 to 1974 as a coal mining facility. The island's
most notable features are the abandoned concrete buildings and the sea
wall surrounding it. It is known for its coal mines and their
operation during the industrialization of Japan. Mitsubishi bought the
island in 1890 and began the project, the aim of which was retrieving
coal from the bottom of the sea. They built Japan's first large
concrete building, a block of apartments in 1916 to accommodate their
burgeoning ranks of workers, and to protect against typhoon
destruction.
In 1959, its population density was 835 people per hectare for the
whole island, or 1,391 per hectare for the residential district, one
of the highest population density ever recorded worldwide. As
petroleum replaced coal in Japan in the 1960s, coal mines began
shutting down all over the country, and Hashima's mines were no
exception. Mitsubishi officially announced the closing of the mine in
1974, and today it is empty and bare, which is why it's called the
Ghost Island. Travel to Hashima is currently prohibited.
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SURTSEY (Iceland): The emerging island
Off the coast of Iceland on the morning of 14 November 1963, the crew
of a lone fishing trawler spotted an alarming sight. Off to the
the water. Concerned that it could be another boat on fire, the
captain directed his vessel towards the scene. Once there, however,
they found not a boat but a series of violent explosions producing
ash. This was an unmistakable indication of a volcanic eruption taking
place underwater, close to the surface. Very aware of the potential
danger but eager to watch, the crew kept their boat nearby. It was
indeed a remarkable event that they would witness a small part of over
the course of that morning: the formation of a brand-new island.
Although now quite visible, the eruption lasted for much, much longer
days, the volcano had broken the water's surface, forming an island
over 500 meters long and 45 meters tall. Even though the rough tides
of the North Atlantic might have soon eroded the new island away, it
was named Surtsey, meaning 'Surtur's island' - Surtur (or Surtr) being
a fire giant of Norse mythology. The island proved to be tenacious,
however. The eruption was ongoing and Surtsey increased in size more
quickly than the ocean could wear it down. In the meantime two other
nearby volcanic eruptions produced the beginnings of islands, but
neither lasted very long. By April 1964, though, the most violent
parts of the eruption were over and Surtsey remained.
It was fairly clear that it was going to be a permanent island - or at
least as permanent as anything can be in geology. The explosions
returned in August 1966, and only stopped when the entire eruption
finally came to an end in June 1967. Since then, the volcano has lain
dormant. The island was left 174 meters tall and about 2.8 square
kilometers in size. At 33 kilometers south of the mainland, it also
marked the new southernmost point of Iceland.
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PALM ISLANDS (Dubai): the palm-shaped man-made island
The Palm Islands in Dubai are the three largest artificial islands in
the world. They are being constructed by Nakheel Properties, a
property developer in the United Arab Emirates, who hired the Dutch
dredging and marine contractor Van Oord, one of the world's
specialists in land reclamation. The islands are The Palm Jumeirah,
The Palm Jebel Ali and The Palm Deira. The Islands are located off the
coast of The United Arab Emirates in the Persian Gulf and will add 520
km of beaches to the city of Dubai.
The first two islands will comprise approximately 100 million cubic
meters of rock and sand. Palm Deira will be composed of approximately
1 billion cubic meters of rock and sand. All materials will be
quarried in the UAE. Between the three islands there will be over 100
luxury hotels, exclusive residential beach side villas and apartments,
marinas, water theme parks, restaurants, shopping malls, sports
facilities and health spas. The creation of The Palm Jumeirah began in
June 2001. Shortly after, The Palm Jebel Ali was announced and
reclamation work began. In 2004, The Palm Deira, which will be almost
as large in size as Paris, was announced. Palm Jumeirah is currently
open for development. Construction will be completed over the next
10-15 years.
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SEALAND (Principality): World's smallest island
The Principality of Sealand is an island and a micronation located on
HM Fort Roughs, a former Maunsell Sea Fort located in the North Sea 10
km (six miles) off the coast of Suffolk, England, in what is claimed
as territorial waters using a twelve-nautical-mile radius.
Since 1967, the installation has been occupied by associates and
family of Paddy Roy Bates, a former radio broadcaster and former
British Army Major, who claims that it is a sovereign and independent
state. Critics, as well as court rulings in the United States and in
Germany, have claimed that Roughs Tower has always remained the
property of the United Kingdom, a view that is disputed by the Bates
family. The population of the facility rarely exceeds ten, and its
habitable area is 550 m2 (5920 sq ft).
Sealand's claims to sovereignty and legitimacy are not recognised by
any country, yet it is sometimes cited in debates as an interesting
case study of how various principles of international law can be
applied to a territorial dispute.
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EASTER ISLAND (Polynesian triangle, Chile): world heritage site and
one of the most isolated inhabited islands in history
Easter Island is one of the world's most isolated inhabited islands.
It is 3,600 km (2,237 miles) west of continental Chile and 2,075 km
(1,290 miles) east of Pitcairn. Nowdays, it is a Chilean-governed
island, and is a world heritage site with much of the island protected
by the Rapa Nui National Park.
First settled by a small party of Polynesians, Easter Island is one of
the youngest inhabited territories on Earth, and for most of its
history it was the most isolated inhabited territory on Earth. Its
inhabitants the Rapanui have endured famines, epidemics, civil war,
slave raids and colonialism; have seen their population crash on more
than one occasion, and created a cultural legacy that has brought them
fame out of all proportion to their numbers.
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MALDIVE ISLANDS: the paradisiac island nation with 1,192 islets
The Maldives is an island nation consisting of a group of atolls in
the Indian Ocean. The Maldives is located south of India's Lakshadweep
islands, and about seven hundred kilometers (435 mi) south-west of Sri
Lanka. The Maldives' twenty-six atolls encompass a territory featuring
1,192 islets, roughly two hundred of which are inhabited by local
communities.
Originally the inhabitants were Buddhist, but Islam was introduced in
1153. It later became a Portuguese (1558), Dutch (1654), and British
(1887) colonial possession. In 1965, the Maldives obtained
independence from Britain (originally under the name "Maldive
Islands"), and in 1968 the Sultanate was replaced by a Republic.
However, in thirty-eight years, the Maldives have seen only two
Presidents, though political restrictions have loosened somewhat
recently. The Maldives is the smallest Asian country in terms of
population. It is also the smallest predominantly Muslim nation in the
world.
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THE WORLD ISLANDS (Dubai): man-made islands in the form of a world map
Ever wish the world was smaller? The World is a man-made archipelago
of 300 islands in the shape of a world map. The World is being built
primarily using sand dredged from the sea. Each island ranges from
will cover an area of 9 km in length and 6 km in width, surrounded by
an oval breakwater. The only means of transport between the islands
will be by boat and helicopter. Prices for the islands will range from
$15-45 million (USD). The average price for an island will be around
$25 million (USD). Dredging started in 2004 and as of March of 2007
The World is around 90% complete. According to the National Geographic
Channel (The Best of Megastructures) the overall price for the World
is $14 Billion US Dollars.
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ALCATRAZ ISLAND (USA): home to the first lighthouse on the Pacific
Coast
Alcatraz Island (sometimes informally referred to as simply Alcatraz
or by its pop-culture name, The Rock) is a small island located in the
middle of San Francisco Bay in California, United States. It served as
a lighthouse, then a military fortification, then a military prison
followed by a federal prison until 1963, when it became a national
recreation area. The first European to discover the island was Juan de
Ayala in 1775, who charted the San Francisco Bay and named the island
"La Isla de los Alcatraces", which means "Island of the Pelicans".
The discovery of gold in California in 1848 brought thousands of ships
to San Francisco Bay, creating an urgent need for a navigational
lighthouse. In response, Alcatraz lighthouse #1 was erected and lit in
the summer of 1853. Because of its natural isolation in the middle of
a bay, surrounded by cold water and strong sea currents, Alcatraz was
soon considered by the U.S. Army as an ideal location for holding
captives. Alcatraz was the Army's first long-term prison, and it was
already beginning to build its reputation as a tough detention
facility by exposing inmates to harsh conditions and iron fisted
discipline. Due to rising operational costs because of its location,
the Military Department decided to close this famous prison in 1934,
and it was subsequently taken over by the Department of Justice and
later became the famous federal prision and finally a recreation area.
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