Clipperton Island (French: Île de Clipperton or Île de la Passion) is an uninhabited 9 km2 (3.5 sq mi) coral atoll in the eastern Pacific Ocean, south-west of Mexico and west of Costa Rica, at 10°18′N 109°13′W / 10.3°N 109.217°W / 10.3; -109.217 (Clipperton Island)Coordinates: 10°18′N 109°13′W / 10.3°N 109.217°W / 10.3; -109.217 (Clipperton Island). It is an overseas possession of France under direct authority of the Minister of Overseas France.
Clipperton Island is low-lying and largely barren, save for scattered grasses and a few clumps of coconut palms. A small volcanic outcrop rising to 29 m (95 ft) on its south-east side is referred to as "Clipperton Rock". The atoll has been occupied at various times by guano miners, would-be settlers or military personnel, mostly from Mexico, which formerly claimed it until international arbitration awarded it to France in 1931. However, Clipperton has had no permanent inhabitants since 1945. It is still visited on occasion by fishermen, French Navy patrols, scientific researchers, film crews, and shipwreck survivors. It has also proven a popular site for transmissions by ham radio operators.
Famous quotes containing the word island:
“I ... would rather be in dependance on Great Britain, properly limited, than on any nation upon earth, or than on no nation. But I am one of those too who rather than submit to the right of legislating for us assumed by the British parliament, and which late experience has shewn they will so cruelly exercise, would lend my hand to sink the whole island in the ocean.”
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