Earth:Ta‘ū
Ta‘ū is the largest island in the Manu‘a Group and the easternmost volcanic island of the Samoan Islands.[1] Ta‘ū is part of American Samoa. In the early 19th century, the island was sometimes called Opoun.
Ta‘ū is well known as the site where the American anthropologist Margaret Mead conducted her dissertation research in Samoa in the 1920s, where she published her findings in Coming of Age in Samoa. Ta’u is also home to the highest mountain in American Samoa, Mount Lata. It is home to 21 square kilometers (8.3 sq mi) of National Park lands and 3.9 km2 (1.5 sq mi) of waters separated by some of the tallest sea cliffs in the world.[2]
On the western coast of Ta‘ū are the conterminous villages of Lumā and Siufaga, commonly jointly called Ta‘ū village.[3] The village of Ta‘ū has been named the capital of the Manu'a Islands. Fitiuta is another Ta‘ū village, located on the northeast side of the island.[4]
Geography
The island is the eroded remnant of a hotspot shield volcano with a caldera complex or collapse feature (Liu Bench) on the south face. The summit of the island, called Lata Mountain, is at an elevation of 931 m (3,054 ft), making it the highest point in American Samoa. The last known volcanic eruption in the Manu‘a Islands was in 1866, on the submarine ridge that extends west-northwest towards nearby Ofu-Olosega.[5]
The largest airport in the Manu‘a Islands is on the northeast corner of Ta‘ū at Fiti‘uta. There is also a private airport. A boat harbor is located at Faleāsao at the northwestern corner of the island. A roadway along the north coast connects all of the several inhabited villages between Ta‘ū on the west and Fiti‘uta.
All of the southeastern half of Ta‘ū—including all of the rainforest on top of Lata Mountain and within the caldera—the southern shoreline, and associated coral reefs are part of the National Park of American Samoa. The park includes the ancient, sacred site of Saua, considered to be the birthplace of the Polynesian people.
Administratively, the island is divided into three counties: Faleasao County, Fitiuta County, and Ta'u County. Along with Ofu and Olosega islands, Ta‘ū Island comprises the Manua District of American Samoa. The land area of Ta‘ū Island is 44.31 km2 (17.11 sq mi) and it had a population of 873 persons as of the 2000 census and of 790 persons in the 2010 census.
In 2000, a subsea volcano 48 km (30 mi) from Ta‘ū Island was discovered by scientists. Rockne Volcano has formed an undersea mountain which is 4,300 m (14,000 ft) tall. Its peak is 5,500 m (18,000 ft) below the ocean surface.[6]
Anthropological research
Ta‘ū is where the 23-year-old anthropologist Margaret Mead conducted her dissertation research in Samoa in the 1920s, published in 1928 as Coming of Age in Samoa. In her work, she studied adolescent teenage girls and compared their experience to those of Western societies. She concluded that adolescence was a smooth transition, not marked by the emotional or psychological distress, anxiety, or confusion seen in the United States.[7]
Electricity
Until 2016, being a small and isolated island, the island relied on costly and polluting diesel generators to supply electricity. However, with the construction of a solar array, battery storage system, and microgrid, the island's power relies almost 100% from the sun.[8][9] The solar array was built by SolarCity and now includes sixty Tesla Powerpacks. The system should be a more reliable source of energy and was designed to power the entire island for three days without sunlight and fully recharge in seven hours.[10]
References
- ↑ Hills, J.W. (2010). O upu muamua i le Tala i le Lalolagi mo e ua faatoa a'oa'oina u lea mataupu: Elementary Geography. Nabu Press. Page 62. ISBN:9781147952896.
- ↑ https://www.esrl.noaa.gov/gmd/obop/smo/smoinfo.html
- ↑ Gray, John Alexander Clinton (1980). Amerika Samoa. Arno Press. Page 121. ISBN:9780405130380.
- ↑ Hills, J.W. (2010). O upu muamua i le Tala i le Lalolagi mo e ua faatoa a'oa'oina u lea mataupu: Elementary Geography. Nabu Press. Page 63. ISBN:9781147952896.
- ↑ "Ta'u". Smithsonian Institution. https://volcano.si.edu/volcano.cfm?vn=244001.
- ↑ Sunia, Fofo I.F. (2009). A History of American Samoa. Amerika Samoa Humanities Council. Page 355. ISBN:9781573062992.
- ↑ Mead, Margaret (1928). Coming of Age in Samoa. William Morrow Paperbacks. pp. XIII-XV. ISBN 978-0688050337. https://archive.org/details/comingofageinsam00mead. Retrieved 3 October 2014.
- ↑ https://www.engadget.com/2016/11/22/tesla-runs-island-on-solar-power/
- ↑ http://www.americansamoa.gov/aspa-solar
- ↑ Heathman, Amelia. "This island is powered entirely by solar panels and batteries thanks to Solarcity". https://www.wired.co.uk/article/island-tau-solar-energy-solarcity. Retrieved 23 November 2016.
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