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.

Vanavana is a small oval-shaped atoll. It measures approximately 5 km in length and has a maximum width of 3.2 km. Its reef encloses completely the deep lagoon, which is 61 km2. There is one hook-shaped large island in the north and another in the south of its reef.

Vanavana Atoll is uninhabited. Although, the 27 Oct 2005 imagery available in Google Earth clearly shows about 20 buildings arranged in an orderly fashion on the north end of the island.

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History

The first recorded European to arrive to Vanavana was British mariner Captain Frederick Beechey in 1826. He named this atoll "Barrow Island", after Sir John Barrow.

Administration

Administratively Vanavana Atoll belongs to the commune of Tureia, which includes the atolls of Tureia, Fangataufa, Moruroa, Tematangi and Vanavana.

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