EVS-Islands

Iles de Los - Landsat Image N-28-05_2000 (1:62,500)

Iles de Los - Marplot Map (1:62,500)

Outside of Conakry, Guinea is this group of islands. They were home to British colonialists back in the late 19th century. Now it is home to tourists and the Guinean entrepreneur. At World 66 are a couple of images of Iles de Los beaches.

The red in the Landsat image is where people live.  And what's the big deal, you say.  Well, they are living on the edges of a volcano.  I don't care if it is dorminant, it is still the edge of a volcano.  Okay for a visit, but a bad choice for a home.

The islands were used by slavers back during the time of slaves and slavers.

Iles de Los - SRTM Contours 20-m Intervals

This is the SRTM image (N09W014.hgt.zip) that I used for contour generation. It loads into Global Mapper and contour generation is an easy operation.

Enjoy!

Labels: Africa, Atlantic, EVS, Guinea, island, Landsat, map, Marplot

Posted by Mr Minton at 12/23/2006 12:31:00 AM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

I will include an article from the Finisterre about Isla Monserrat.

"Highlight on Isla Monserrat: Monserrat is just south of Isla Carmen and Puerto Escondido. Some of the mountains are serrated along the top, giving the island its name. The anchorage is exposed to winds from the northern quadrant, which had been non-existent for quite awhile. Some cruiser friends from Puerto Escondido were anchored there when we arrived. There was space for a number of boats and we tucked in the eastern corner of the bay. The beach of sandstone and volcanic cliffs, dry creek outlets and glistening sand stretched from where we anchored to the western tip of the island. One evening our friends called to us to get in our dingy and as the evening light darkened we zipped around trying to see more of a 30 foot long whale shark. The anchorage and offshore twin islets: Las Gallettas were teeming with life. One sheltered a sea lion haul out with gregarious and noisy sea lions fishing and barking. The other was a treasure trove of things to see when snorkeling. We saw many brilliant fish, an eel, huge sea urchins and numerous starfish of blue, red, many rays, 5-6 rays…. On the way back, Mike got to try out his dingy mounted fish finder and caught two fish one right after the other.

Monserrat was especially beautiful and once again we had a nominee for favorite anchorage. Mainly, it was the changing light and the views back toward Islas Carmen and Danzante. One of the special events of every day at anchor in the Sea of Cortes is the evening and nighttime sky. Monserrat is a special place for skywatching. The gradual changes of color can go on for hours after the sun sets behind the rugged mountains of Baja. The sky goes from yellows to pinks to reds to purples and then fades into semi-darkness with the first stars. Everywhere we have traveled away from large cities we have always been able to see at night because the light of so many stars, even without moonlight, makes the night light up. There are other lightshows to watch as well. The phosphorescence in the water from numerous small plankton and other sea creatures sparkles in the water around the dark hull of the boat, then the stars reflect down into the sea, so that you lose track of the horizon where the sea meets the sky. When you are on a boat this happens all around you and it is not a static show, for at night the creatures in the sea get active, the breeze ripples the reflections, you see silhouettes of other boats, their anchor lights and reflections, sometimes a shooting star and the constellations rotate behind the mountains as you watch. This is the most magnificent show!

Monserrat was a great place to hike up high and one of the most interesting things we heard was the repeated slap of a manta ray way down in the sea below us. The silence is golden and when a sound happens you hear it with great clarity. We were able to see our next destination, Agua Verde from the top of our climb. We had heard there were over 1,000 kinds of cactus in Baja and we saw many more kinds we had not seen before on Monserrat as we hiked back down through the abundant cactus fields along the mesas of the island. This lovely island anchorage is one place you won’t find in the cruising guides."

This is a repost of a previous effort.  I have mapped a number of Baja islands, most of them located in the Sea of Cortez.  This is one of the many off-shore islands that are desert isles.  A number of them have been set aside as protected areas.

Enjoy!

Labels: EVS, island, Landsat, map, Marplot, Mexico, Pacific

Posted by Mr Minton at 12/22/2006 07:45:00 AM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

The main island, along with it's smaller neighbors, is situated to the south of Da Nang VN. The islands are covered with thick forests. The small population makes their living from the sea.

The name of the main island carries the moniker of the Cham people that once claimed this mainland area as part of their empire.  This empire existed up until the 1400's, when it was finally overrun by the Sinicized Vietnamese.  Originally, the Cham people of the kingdom of Champa were highly influenced by "Mother India".  They were a Hindu people that in the later years slowly converted to the Muslim faith.  About 1,000,000 of the Cham people live scattered throughout Vietnam, Cambodia and Hainan Island.

During a search on the Internet for sites about Cu Lao Cham I came across a site entitled SOG Paradise Island.  It is sponsered by an individual that served on the island between December 1966 to December 1967.  That was the same time I served.  I was stationed in Da Nang, just to the north.  I never heard of this group or their mission, even though I carried a Top Secret Clearance.  I had no need to know, so I didn't know.  Some bad stuff apparently took place on this island involving prisoners and interegation.  I am please that this island is now a tourist attraction and part of a recently established Marine and Nature Reserve. This is a much better use of these islands than some military purpose.

This is a repost and a reconstruction of the original shoreline.  I have also added the vegetation layer for all of the islands in the group.  The digitizing was fast and simple.  I work at 1:12,500 when I digitize from the Landsat base imagery.  If necessary, I work on certain areas at 1:6,250.  The area identified as EVS Land Bare is most likely a rocky shore.  The western shore of Cu Lao Cham appears to have sand beaches.  They are identified as EVS Land Sand.

Enjoy!

Labels: EVS, island, Landsat, map, Marplot, Pacific, Vietnam

Posted by Mr Minton at 12/22/2006 07:40:00 AM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

Pulau Bankobankoang - Landsat Image S-50-05_2000

Pulau Bankobankoang - Marplot Map

I will post Sailing Directions information and any Internet information on this island later. I just wanted to get the project posted. The real breakthrough on this image and map is the ability to more accurately digitize and map the EVS Reef Deep layer.

Pulau Bankobankoang - Landsat Image with Color Dodge Effect

The solid yellow in the above image is the hidden reef layer, which I have labeled as EVS Reef Deep. There is an even more subtle area that is defined by scattered yellow dots. This is most likely an even deeper reef layer.

Enjoy!

Labels: atoll, EVS, Indonesia, island, Landsat, map, Marplot, Pacific, reef

Posted by Mr Minton at 12/22/2006 07:35:00 AM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

Taiwan - Landsat Image N-50-20_2000 & N-51-20_2000

Located in the Taiwan Straits between mainland China and Taiwan is the group of islands called the Peng-hu Tao (aka The Fisherman Islands).

Peng-hu Tao - Landsat Image N-50-20_2000 & N-51-20_2000

They are low lying islands peppered with coral reefs throughout. A couple of the southern islands are uplifted rocks. All of the others are merely meters above the water. Today they are destinations for tourists from all over the world. They offer the appeal of the Chinese culture and the escape of an island.

I had posted images and maps of these islands earlier, but I thought I would repost them all at a consistent scale (1:150,000). The maps are rendered in my EVS Shoreline style which shows mapping of traditional shorelines only.

Peng-hu Tao (Southern Group) - Landsat Image N-50-20_2000 & N-51-20_2000

Peng-hu Tao (Southern Group) - Marplot Map

Peng-hu Tao (Middle Group) - Landsat Image N-50-20_2000 & N-51-20_2000

Peng-hu Tao (Middle Group) - Marplot Map

Peng-hu Tao (Northern Group) - Landsat Image N-50-20_2000 & N-51-20_2000

Peng-hu Tao (Northern Group) - Marplot Map

Enjoy!

Labels: atoll, EVS, island, Landsat, map, Marplot, Pacific, Taiwan

Posted by Mr Minton at 12/22/2006 07:25:00 AM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

Motu One - Landsat Image N-07-05_2000

Motu One - Marplot Map

Motu One - ISS Image ISS009-E-5227

The mystery island of the Marquesas. Now you see it! Now you don't!

In the early days of sailing this reef, with it's small motu, was often misplotted, mischarted and mistaken. With the advent of Landsat images and Shuttle photography the mystery island is now precisely located northeast of Eiao (30-km) and Hatutu Islands (15-km). It's reef outline is based on shuttle imagery. I believe that a few hardy sailors have explored this reef both on land, scant tho' it be, and under the sea along it's extensive reefs.

Enjoy!

Labels: atoll, EVS, Global Mapper, island, Landsat, map, Marplot, Marquesas, Pacific, Polynesia, Tuamotus

Posted by Mr Minton at 12/21/2006 01:50:00 PM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

Tepoto Island - Landsat Image S-07-10_2000

Tepoto Island - ISS Image ISS002-E-8862

Tepoto Island - Marplot Map

Tepoto Island (14˚03'S., 141˚25'W.) about 10 miles NW of Napuka, is about 18.3m high to the top of the trees; it is the NW island of the Iles du Desappointement. Landing is practicable, with assistance of the natives, on the W side of the island. (SD Pub-126)

From Wikipedia: Tepoto, a coral island, is the northwesternmost of the Disappointment Islands, in the Tuamotu Archipelago, located at 14° 8' S lat and 141° 24' W long. The island is sometimes called Tepoto Nord in French, to avoid confusion with the Tepoto atolls 400 km (240 mi.) to the southwest in the Raeffsky Islands of central Tuamotu. According to the 2002 census, its population was 54 inhabitants. The primary village is Tehekega.

From IRD: Northern Tepoto which is one of the North-Eastern Tuamotu islands, is situated 16°48' south and 144°19' west, 16 km to the north-west of Napuka. This is one of the high atolls, or "makateas", with a dry lagoon: the solid ground thus forms an island 2.6 km long and 800 m wide. Tepoto. is surrounded by a barrier reef. There is a road 5m wide running round the whole atoll. The village of Tehekega in the nord-west of the atoll can be reached by taking one of the whale-boats which call in at a jetty 28 m long and 4.5 m wide. This atoll has an area of 400 hectares.

Northern Tepoto, which was discovered by John Byron in 1765, has had very few contacts with the Western world. In 1988, the population of the island consisted of only 62 inhabitants (there were 67 in 1983).

Northern Tepoto belongs to the commune of Napuka

From UNEP: Tepoto Nord [1761] Group: Centre West Group Archipelago: Tuamotu Archipelago Country: France - French Polynesia - Tuamotu Is. Region: Oceania 18 Lat: 14.º S Long : 141.33º W Area: 2.05 sq. km Altitude: 18.3 m (to tree tops) Depth to nearest land: 3000 m Nearest island: 16.5 km (110º) Napuka Group: 420 km Nearest continent: South America Distance: 6100 km Isolation Index: 102 ISLAND TYPE: atoll Natural Protection Indicator: 2 CLIMATE: wet tropical CATASTROPHIC THREATS: cyclones Threat Indicator: 1 ECOSYSTEMS: Windward and leeward atoll reefs, open lagoon Number of Ecosystems - Terrestrial: 1 Marine: 3 Percent shoreline: Coral Reef: 99% Mangrove: 0% HUMAN OCCUPATION: Inhabited Population: 54 (2002 Census) Density: 26.3 persons/sq. km Percent population in agr/mining/fishing: 17% Human Threat Indicator: 1 Gross Domestic Product: $ 7236 per capita Economic Pressure Indicator: 4 DATA RELIABILITY: Data Rel. Indicator: 1 HUMAN IMPACT INDEX HI: 5 CONSERVATION IMPORTANCE INDEX CI-Terrestrial: 5 Low CI-Marine: 5 Moderate Last updated: 25/02/89

Looking at the island image and the type of vegetation scattered about, it is difficult to image 54 people living on this small island. Are they primarily fishermen? Do they grow gardens? Do they go shopping at Napuka (10 miles SE)?

Enjoy!

Labels: atoll, EVS, Global Mapper, island, ISS Image, Landsat, map, Marplot, Pacific, Polynesia, Tuamotus

Posted by Mr Minton at 12/21/2006 01:30:00 PM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

Vahitahi Atoll - Landsat Image S-07-15_2000

Vahitahi Atoll - Marplot Map

Vahitahi Atoll (138 50'W 18 35'S) is an atoll located about 29 miles N of Nukutavake. The lagoon is not accessible from the sea. The shores of Vahitahi are steep-to except the S part, which should not be approached within 0.3 mile. A village lies on the atoll's W end. (SD Pub-126)

Vahitahi Atoll is located in the eastern part of the Tuamotu Archipelago, about 50 kilometres to the north of Nukutavake, and historically the most densely settled atoll in the eastern part of the archipelago.

250 hectares in area, Vahitahi is just under 5 kilometres from west and east, and 1½ kilometres from north to south. Apart from its southern side, where there is a low reef, the atoll has little vegetation.

It has a shallow lagoon with coral above sea level in many places and no entrance to the sea. It was this feature of the atoll that led to Cook naming it 'Lagoon Island'.

The first Europeans to see the atoll were the voyagers commanded by Louise-Antoine de Bougainville (1729-1811) in March 1768.

Today the atoll has around 70 inhabitants and is part of the Commune of Nukutavake in the Tuamou-Gambier administrative subdivision of French Polynesia.

http://nla.gov.au/nla.cs-ss-biogs-P000330

Vahitahi Atoll - Marplot Map Outline

And finally, here is an outline map of the island. It also shows the various reefs. My favorite is the outline map. I suspect that the reader would prefer the color map or the image. The outline is the ultimate map. As an end user, I can take it and add my own unique information. In my opinion, it offers the greatest flexibility.

Enjoy!

Labels: atoll, EVS, Global Mapper, island, Landsat, map, Marplot, Pacific, Polynesia, Tuamotus

Posted by Mr Minton at 12/21/2006 01:20:00 PM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post

Clipperton Island - Marplot Map Landsat Image from N-12-10_2000

It has been some time since I was able to post a completed island. It seems that Blogger is running a bit on the slow side. Anyway, here goes a new post. Clipperton Island is known as a great sport fishing destination. It is also home to a weird tale about a king and his unwilling court. You can find out about that story at other places on the Internet.

The map was a challenge to create. Using MARPLOT and non-copyright images, I was able to create the map. The Landsat image was very course. In addition, cloud cover obscured parts of the island. Through mapping dilligence and keen eyesight, I was able to complete the above project. I think it looks just fine.

Enjoy!

Labels: atoll, EVS, France, Global Mapper, island, map, Marplot, Pacific

Posted by Mr Minton at 12/21/2006 08:45:00 AM | Permalink | Comments | links to this post