Fangataufa
Encyclopedia
Coral
Corals are marine animals in class Anthozoa of phylum Cnidaria typically living in compact colonies of many identical individual "polyps". The group includes the important reef builders that inhabit tropical oceans and secrete calcium carbonate to form a hard skeleton.A coral "head" is a colony of...
atoll
Atoll
An atoll is a coral island that encircles a lagoon partially or completely.- Usage :The word atoll comes from the Dhivehi word atholhu OED...
in the eastern side of the Tuamotu Archipelago. Along with its neighboring atoll, Moruroa
Moruroa
Moruroa , also historically known as Aopuni, is an atoll which forms part of the Tuamotu Archipelago in French Polynesia in the southern Pacific Ocean...
, it has been the site of approximately 200 nuclear bomb tests.
Access to the lagoon is through a pass lying 0.5 mile SW of the northernmost point of the atoll; the channel has a width of about 60m and a dredged depth of 6.5m. A 12m long quay, in 2.5m of water, is situated in the NE part of the lagoon; another quay, 50m long in 5m of water, and landing ramps, were constructed in its E part. The access channel is marked, on each side, by two beacons. There is an abandoned airfield, built to accommodate medium size transport aircraft, on the NE coast of the atoll. It is reported that the pass of Fangataufa is obstructed by a chain boom. This boom can be moved by agreement with the local military authority.
History
The first recorded European to arrive to Fangataufa Atoll was Frederick William BeecheyFrederick William Beechey
Frederick William Beechey was an English naval officer and geographer. He was the son of Sir William Beechey, RA., and was born in London.-Career:...
in 1826. This atoll was inhabited well into the 20th century.
Fangataufa was the site of France's
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
first two-stage
Nuclear weapon design
Nuclear weapon designs are physical, chemical, and engineering arrangements that cause the physics package of a nuclear weapon to detonate. There are three basic design types...
thermonuclear test, code named Canopus
Canopus (nuclear test)
Canopus was the code name for France's first two-stage thermonuclear test, conducted on August 24, 1968 at Fangataufa atoll...
, detonated on August 24, 1968. The nuclear explosion
Nuclear explosion
A nuclear explosion occurs as a result of the rapid release of energy from an intentionally high-speed nuclear reaction. The driving reaction may be nuclear fission, nuclear fusion or a multistage cascading combination of the two, though to date all fusion based weapons have used a fission device...
had a yield of 2.6 megatons. The atoll was also the location of 3 other atmospheric nuclear tests as well as several underground nuclear tests. Today, Fangataufa serves as a wildlife sanctuary for various species of birds.
Fangataufa is permanently uninhabited. It is classified as a Common Military Zone. The zone includes the lagoon areas enclosed by the atoll and by baselines linking the closet points emerging from the reef on both sides of the channel. Entry is prohibited without authorization.
Administration
Administratively Fangataufa Atoll is part of the commune of TureiaTureia
Tureia is an atoll in the Tuamotu Archipelago in French Polynesia.Tureia atoll is 15 km long and has a maximum width of 8 km. A very long island covers completely its eastern reef. The lagoon has no entrance....
, which includes the atolls of Tureia
Tureia
Tureia is an atoll in the Tuamotu Archipelago in French Polynesia.Tureia atoll is 15 km long and has a maximum width of 8 km. A very long island covers completely its eastern reef. The lagoon has no entrance....
, Moruroa
Moruroa
Moruroa , also historically known as Aopuni, is an atoll which forms part of the Tuamotu Archipelago in French Polynesia in the southern Pacific Ocean...
, Tematangi
Tematangi
Tematangi or Tematangui is an atoll in the southeastern area of the Tuamotu Archipelago, French Polynesia. Tematangi's nearest neighbor is Mururoa, which is located 161 km to the ESE....
and Vanavana
Vanavana
Vanavana, Kurataki, or Huataki is an atoll in the southeastern area of the Tuamotu Archipelago, French Polynesia. Vanavana's nearest neighbor is Tureia, which is located 58 km to the east....
. It was ceded to France for nuclear tests in 1964.
See also
- Bengt DanielssonBengt DanielssonBengt Emmerik Danielsson was an anthropologist and a crew member on the Kon-Tiki raft expedition from South America to French Polynesia in 1947. Danielsson was born in Sweden in 1921, obtained a Ph.D...
, a member of Kon-TikiKon-TikiKon-Tiki was the raft used by Norwegian explorer and writer Thor Heyerdahl in his 1947 expedition across the Pacific Ocean from South America to the Polynesian islands. It was named after the Inca sun god, Viracocha, for whom "Kon-Tiki" was said to be an old name...
crew; an outspoken critic of nuclear testing - force de frappeForce de frappeThe Force de Frappe is the designation of what used to be a triad of air-, sea- and land-based nuclear weapons intended for dissuasion, and consequential deterrence...
- FOSTFoštFošt is a settlement at the foothills of the Pohorje range to the west if Slovenska Bistrica municipality in northeastern Slovenia. The area is part of the traditional region of Lower Styria. It is now included with the rest of the Slovenska Bistrica municipality into the Podravje statistical...
Archives sur le Centre d'Expérimentations Nucléaires du Pacifique (C.E.P.) à Mururoa, Hao et Fangataufa - France finally agrees to pay damages to nuclear test victims