Hao (French Polynesia)

Hao (French Polynesia)

Coordinates: 18°04′31″S 140°56′43″W / 18.0753°S 140.9453°W / -18.0753; -140.9453

Hao, or Haorangi, is a large coral atoll in the central part of the Tuamotu Archipelago. Because of its shape, French explorer Louis Antoine de Bougainville named it Harp Island.

Hao is located 920 km (575 mi.) to the east of Tahiti and is 55 km (34.5 mi) in length. The lagoon is one of the longest in French Polynesia and has only one navigable passage, at Kaki, on the north end of the atoll.

The chief town is the village of Otepa, where the main economic activity is the cultivation of pearls.