Ono-i-Lau

{{Short description|Island group in Fiji}}

{{Infobox islands

| name = Ono-i-Lau

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| image_name = Ono i lauISS002-E-9864.PNG

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| image_caption = NASA picture of Ono-i-Lau

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| elevation_m = 113

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| country = Fiji

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| country_area_km2 = 7.9

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Ono-i-Lau is a group of islands within a barrier reef system in the Fijian archipelago of Lau Islands (ono means "six" in the Fijian language). There are four central volcanic islands: Onolevu, Doi (or Ndoi) Lovoni and Ndavura, the uppermost parts of the volcanic edifice rising from the Lau Ridge slightly more than {{convert|1,000|m|ft|abbr=off}} below sea level and on which the reef and other islands are built. There are also three clusters of coral limestone islets, Yanuya (50 islets) and Mana (46 islets) on the barrier reef and Niuta (7 tiny islets). A sand cay, Udui, is not counted as one of the six “islands”.

The group forms one of the southernmost of the Lau Islands; it is located at 20.80° South and 178.75° West, and occupies an area of {{convert|7.9|km2|sqmi|1|abbr=off}}. It has a maximum elevation of {{convert|113|m|ft|abbr=off}}. It is {{convert|90|km|abbr=out}} south-southwest of Vatoa, the nearest largish island; the only land further south in the Lau Group is in the two small Tuvana islands of coral limestone and sand.

There are four villages in the group – Nukuni and Lovoni adjacent and Matokana on Onolevu, the largest island, and Doi on Doi.

History

The group was the location of the first recorded communication between Fijians and Europeans – Captain William Oliver and men of the Matavy, tender to HMS Pandora, in June 1791.Rogers, G. 1983. The first recorded contact between Fijians and Europeans. Domodomo 1983 (1) : 72–77.

Climate

{{Weather box|width=auto

|metric first=y

|single line=y

|collapsed = Y

|location = Ono-i-Lau (1991–2020 normals)

|Jan high C = 30.0

|Feb high C = 30.5

|Mar high C = 30.1

|Apr high C = 28.9

|May high C = 27.4

|Jun high C = 26.1

|Jul high C = 25.3

|Aug high C = 25.3

|Sep high C = 25.9

|Oct high C = 27.0

|Nov high C = 28.3

|Dec high C = 29.5

| year high C = 27.9

|Jan low C = 24.1

|Feb low C = 24.5

|Mar low C = 24.4

|Apr low C = 23.6

|May low C = 22.0

|Jun low C = 21.0

|Jul low C = 20.0

|Aug low C = 20.0

|Sep low C = 20.3

|Oct low C = 21.3

|Nov low C = 22.5

|Dec low C = 23.6

| year low C = 22.3

|unit precipitation days = 0.1 mm

|Jan precipitation days = 11.6

|Feb precipitation days = 11.2

|Mar precipitation days = 13.4

|Apr precipitation days = 11.2

|May precipitation days = 9.2

|Jun precipitation days = 9.5

|Jul precipitation days = 7.2

|Aug precipitation days = 8.2

|Sep precipitation days = 8.3

|Oct precipitation days = 6.5

|Nov precipitation days = 7.0

|Dec precipitation days = 9.5

|year precipitation days = 112.8

|source 1 = World Meteorological Organization{{cite web

| url = https://www.nodc.noaa.gov/archive/arc0216/0253808/1.1/data/0-data/Region-5-WMO-Normals-9120/Fiji/CSV/OnoILau_91699.csv

| title = World Meteorological Organization Climate Normals for 1991–2020

| publisher = World Meteorological Organization

| access-date = 19 October 2023}}

}}

References

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