Ahunui

Ahunui
NASA picture of Ahunui Atoll
Ahunui
Geography
LocationPacific Ocean
Coordinates19°37′S 140°23′W / 19.617°S 140.383°W / -19.617; -140.383
ArchipelagoTuamotus
Area34 km2 (13 sq mi)(lagoon)
5.4 km2 (2 sq mi) (above water)
Width6.5 km (4.04 mi)
Administration
France
Overseas collectivityFrench Polynesia
Administrative subdivisionÎles Tuamotu-Gambier
CommuneHao
Demographics
PopulationUninhabited (2012)

Ahunui or Nga-taumanga is a small atoll of the eastern Tuamotu Archipelago in French Polynesia. It is located 55 km SSE of Paraoa Atoll and 120 km WSW of Vairaatea.

Ahunui Atoll is roughly circular in shape and measures 6.5 km in diameter. It has a land area of approximately 5.4 km2 and a lagoon area of 34 km2. Its lagoon is totally encircled by the reef, so that it is not connected to the ocean by a pass. The islands have coconut plantations on them.

Ahunui Atoll is permanently uninhabited, but it is visited occasionally by neighboring islanders. The rarer pipi oysters (Pinctada maculata) are found in its lagoon.