Rossel Island (Yela)

Rossel Island (Yela) is the easternmost island of the Louisiade Archipelago, which itself is part of the Milne Bay Province of Papua New Guinea. The volcanic island measures 34 km east-west, and is up to 11 km wide. With an area of 262.5 km², it is the second largest island of the archipelago, after Vanatinai. In 1978, the population was estimated at 3,000. The main village is Jinjo, on the east coast. Rossel Island is thickly wooded and nearly the whole south coast is a dense forest. The higher parts of the island are almostconstantly cloud capped during the southeast monsoon.

The highest elevation is Mount Rossel, near the eastern end of the island, which rises 838 meters. This precititous peak has steep ridges extending to the north and west, but it descends in more gentle slopes southeast to Cape Deliverance, the eastern end of the island. The southwest ridge has two conspicuous peaks each 549 meters high. The eastern peak, Mount Mo, is flat-topped. The western peak is conical. At the western end of the island is a conspicuous conical peak 347 meters high.

The fringing coral reef encloses the large Rossel Lagoon in the west and a smaller lagoon one in the east. Rossel Lagoon extends almost 40 km from the northwestern point of the island to Rossel Passage at the western end of the fringing reef. The barrier reef encircling this lagoon is narrow and has four passages through it west of the island. The barrier reef on the south side of the island is unbroken east of Rossel Passage. General depths in the lagoon range from 37 to 64 meters, but numerous scattered shoals lie in it. Few of these shoals dry and the larger ones are usually awash. Since the water is so clear the shoals can usually be distinguished in good light.

External Links

* [http://permanent.access.gpo.gov/websites/pollux/pollux.nss.nima.mil/NAV_PUBS/SD/pub164/164sec08.pdf Nautical information]