Maupihaa, Society Islands

Located in the western Leeward islands, some 160 km southwest from Maupiti and 72 km southeast from Manuae, is the small atoll of Maupihaa (also known as Mopelia).

The atoll, measuring 8 km in width, consists of a deep central lagoon of up to 40 m in depth that is largely surrounded by submerged reefs on three sides — the outer reefs being continuous except for a narrow passage on the western side. The leeward side consists of the narrow, thickly vegetated, islet of Maupihaa (8 km in length, 500 m across). A number of smaller islets bring the total land area of Maupihaa to 2.6 km².