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Pitcairn Island was sighted on 3 July 1767 by the crew of the British sloop HMS Swallow, commanded by Captain Philip Carteret.The island was named after Scottish midshipman Robert Pitcairn, a fifteen-year-old crew member who was the first to sight the island.
The Pitcairn Islands form the southeasternmost extension of the geological archipelago of the Tuamotus of French Polynesia, and consist of four islands: Pitcairn Island, Oeno Island (atoll with five islets, one of which is Sandy Island), Henderson Island and Ducie Island (atoll with four islets).
In 1938, the three islands, along with Pitcairn, were incorporated into a single administrative unit called the Pitcairn Group of Islands. By the 1930s and 1940s, diminished shipping and tourism to the island resulted in the residents selling many of the pre-European cultural items and Bounty -related paraphernalia to private individuals for ...
The island is of volcanic origin, with a rugged cliff coastline. Unlike many other South Pacific islands, it is not surrounded by coral reefs that protect the coast. The only access to the island is via a small pier on Bounty Bay. Adamstown is the sole settlement. Pawala Valley Ridge is the island's highest point at 346 m above sea level.
The descendants of the Bounty mutineers include the modern-day Pitcairn Islanders as well as a little less than half of the population of Norfolk Island. Their common ancestors were the nine surviving mutineers from the mutiny on HMS Bounty which occurred in the south Pacific Ocean in 1789. Their descendants also live in New Zealand, Australia ...
When Fiji became independent in 1970, Pitcairn Island was placed under the authority of the British high commissioner (ambassador) to New Zealand. In practice, partly due to its isolation, Pitcairn has effectively had internal self-government throughout this period. From 1790 to 1829, the local head of government was known simply as the leader.
Henderson Island is an uninhabited island in the south Pacific Ocean.It is part of the Pitcairn Island Group, together with Pitcairn, Oeno, and Ducie Islands. Measuring 9.6 by 5.1 kilometres (6.0 mi × 3.2 mi), it has an area of 37.3 km 2 (14.4 sq mi) and is located 193 km (104 nmi; 120 mi) northeast of Pitcairn Island, which is the only inhabited island of the group.
The Pitcairn Islands have a maritime tropical rainforest climate (Af according to the Köppen climate classification), with the climate being warm and humid year-round, with no dry season. The warmest month in Adamstown is February, with a mean of 23.8 °C (74.8 °F), while the coolest month is August, with a mean of 18.5 °C (65.3 °F).