Redonda

Redonda is a very small, uninhabited Caribbean island which is part of Antigua and Barbuda, in the Leeward Islands, West Indies. The island is about 1 mile (1.6 km) long, 0.3 miles (0.48 km) wide, and 971 feet high.

This small island lies between the islands of Nevis and Montserrat 56.2 kilometres (34.9 mi) southwest of Antigua. Redonda is closer to Montserrat than to any other island; it is located at 22.5 kilometres (14.0 mi) northwest of Montserrat, and 32 kilometres (20 mi) southeast of Nevis.

At a distance Redonda resembles one very large rock. It is the remnant of an ancient volcanic core, and the land rises extremely steeply from sea level, mostly as sheer cliffs, especially on the leeward side of the island. At the top of the island there is an area of grassland that slopes fairly steeply to the east. There is no source of fresh water other than rain. Judging by the name he gave the island, to Columbus the island appeared to be rounded, at least in profile. In reality the island is long and narrow. The actual land area of the island is hard to estimate because of the extreme steepness of the slopes, but it is calculated as somewhere between 1.6 square kilometres (400 acres) and 2.6 square kilometres (640 acres). Redonda is uninhabited, except by seabirds and a herd of feral goats that manage to survive on the poor grazing on top of the island. The steepness of the surface and lack of any fresh water source save rainfall makes the island inhospitable to humans.