Roca Redonda
Redonda Rock (Spanish: Roca Redonda, "Round Rock") is a flat-topped, steep-sided islet located roughly 25 km (16 mi) northwest of the island of Isabela in Ecuador's Galápagos Islands. Redonda measures 100 m (330 ft) long and 50 m (160 ft) wide with a maximum elevation of 67 m (220 ft). Its isolation and inaccessibility coupled with its rocky cliffs riddled with crevices and crossed by ledges has made Redonda a haven for nesting seabirds.
This small volcanic island is the remains of a large shield volcano that has vastly eroded away below sea level. Potassium–argon dating of Redonda indicates that the islet is at least 53,000 years old. However, it remains unknown when the last eruption occurred from the shield volcano. Several shallow submarine fumaroles exist around the island and may indicate that the volcano is still active. Herman Melville described the rock in detail in his short story The Encantadas.
See also
Notes
- ^ The name sometimes also appears as Redondo Rock.
References
Citations
- ^ McEwen (1988), p. 235.
- ^ Kitchin, Thomas (1797), "South America", Kitchin's General Atlas..., London: Laurie & Whittle.
- ^ "Roca Redonda". Global Volcanism Program. Smithsonian Institution. Retrieved 2016-09-16.
- ^ Hess, John (2009). The Galápagos: Exploring Darwin's Tapestry. University of Missouri Press. p. 42. ISBN 978-0-8262-1837-7.
- ^ "The emergence of a Galápagos shield volcano, Roca Redonda". Springer-Verlag. Retrieved 1 October 2023.
Bibliography
- McEwen, Alec (July 1988), "The English Place-Names of the Galápagos", The Geographical Journal, vol. 154, London: Royal Geographical Society, pp. 234–242, doi:10.2307/633849, JSTOR 633849.
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