The Island That Keeps Disappearing
In Tonga, an island has appeared and vanished again and again. It was claimed, mapped and named, then sank back under the waves.
What was reported
Fonuafoʻou, 'new land', also called Falcon Island, is in the Tonga islands of the South Pacific. Sailors first reported shoals there in 1865. In the following decades, an island appeared, grew, then was washed away, then reappeared, several times. At one point it was over 100 metres high and 2 kilometres across.
Tonga claimed it, and stamps were even issued for it. Each time, it eventually vanished beneath the sea.
Explanations offered
Fonuafoʻou is the top of an underwater volcano. When it erupts, it piles up ash and rock above sea level, but this loose material is quickly worn down by waves. Several such 'ghost islands' exist in the Pacific.
- When
- Seen and lost since 1865
- Where
- Fonuafoʻou, Tonga
- Witnesses
- Sailors and scientists
- Status
- Explained
Famous cases are real, widely reported events. Each file sets out what witnesses said and the explanations that have been offered, without taking a side.
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