Roncador Reef

Roncador Reef is a reef in the Solomon Islands, south of Ontong Java Atoll and north of Santa Isabel Island.

Roncador Reef
Landsat image of Roncador Reef
Roncador Reef
Geography
LocationSolomon Islands,
Malaita Province
Pacific Ocean
Coordinates6°13′S 159°22′E
ArchipelagoGeographic group of three atolls

This submerged reef forms a small geographic group together with Nukumanu and Ontong Java, the two nearest atolls located further north.[1]

History

This reef was first sighted by Europeans at the time of the Spanish expedition of Álvaro de Mendaña and Pedro Sarmiento de Gamboa on 1 February 1558. It was charted as Bajos de la Candelaria (shoals of Our Lady of Candlemas in Spanish).[2]

Its sighting was also reported by Spanish naval officer Francisco Mourelle de la Rúa on 22 January 1781 on board of frigate La Princesa. He charted this reef as Peregrino Roncador (Snoring Pilgrim in Spanish).[3]

References
  1. Remote Atolls and Offshore Islands of PNG and the Solomons
  2. Sharp, Andrew The discovery of the Pacific Islands Oxford 1960, p.148
  3. Landin Carrasco, Amancio Mourelle de la Rúa, explorador del Pacífico Madrid, 1971, p.79.


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