Our Hawaii cruise ship visited Fanning Island in the Republic of Kiribati, 1000 miles south of Hawaii. This 9 mile by 6 mile atoll with a huge central lagoon averaged 10 feet above sea level!
Our Hawaii cruise ship visited Fanning Island in the Republic of Kiribati, 1000 miles south of Hawaii. This 9 mile by 6 mile atoll with a huge central lagoon averaged 10 feet above sea level!
Pacific Islands generally move east-west with the Pacific Plate. This means that newer formed volcanic islands — ones that are generally higher out of the water — are to located to the east and gradually erode & subside as they slide westward toward the subduction zone in the vicinity of the Marianas Trench.
If you just look at the Hawaiian Island Chain the big-island has the active volcano and is getting larger & higher, but the further west you go in the chain the smaller the islands — until you get to Midway and there your dealing with a low-lying coral atoll.
We must have been on the same ship. Norwegian Cruise Lines - not being a US ship, they have to touch a non-US port before returning to the cruise around the Hawaiian Islands.
My shock on that cruise was when we were 700 miles from land, a USCG helicopter begins flying around the ship! Hey! There’s no land anywhere near here - and we are way beyond the range of that chopper! How did it get here???????
A nearby USCG ship - of course.....