Atolls are coral reefs found in the open ocean consisting of an annular rim surrounding a central lagoon. There is a general presumption that atolls have volcanic foundations and some 425 have been recognized around the world (Wiens 1962; McLean and Woodroffe 1994). However, because of similar superficial morphology many shallower water coral reefs have been termed “shelf atolls” (Ladd 1977). In Indonesian waters 55 such reefs have been recognized though many will not have the volcanic foundations of the majority of atolls found in the Pacific and Indian Oceans.
The largest atoll is Kwajalein in the Marshall Islands (120 × 32 km2) followed by Rangiroa in the Tuamotus (79 × 34 km2), though many smaller atolls are only a few kilometers in diameter. In a sample of 99 atolls, Stoddart (1965) indicated a mean area of 272.5 km2, and atolls worldwide are considered to have a total area of 115,000 km2.
The Contribution of Atoll Studies to Marine Geology
Ever since the historic scientific...
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.
Bibliography
Darwin C (1842) The structure and distribution of coral reefs. Smith, Elder and Co, London
Guille G, Goutiere G, Sornein JF, Buiges D, Gachon A, Guy C (1996) The atolls of Mururua and Fangataufa (French Polynesia). I, Geology–Pelrology–Hydrogeology, from volcano to atoll. Musée Oceanographique Monaco
Ladd HS (1977) Types of coral reefs and their distribution. In: Jones OA, Endean R (eds) Biology and geology of coral reefs, vol IV, Geology 2. Academic, New York, pp 1–19
McLean RF, Woodroffe CD (1994) Coral atolls. In: Carter RWG, Woodroffe CD (eds) Coastal evolution: late quaternary shoreline dynamics. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, pp 267–302
Purdy EG (1974) Reef configurations: cause and effect. Society of Economic Paleontologists and Mineralogists, Special publication, vol 18, pp 9–76
Scott GAJ, Rotondo G (1983) A model to explain the differences between Pacific plate island-atoll types. Coral Reefs 1:139–149
Stoddart DR (1965) The shape of atolls. Mar Geol 3:369–383
Wiens HJ (1962) Atoll environment and ecology. Yale University Press, New Haven
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2018 Springer Nature Switzerland AG
About this entry
Cite this entry
Hopley, D. (2018). Atolls. In: Finkl, C., Makowski, C. (eds) Encyclopedia of Coastal Science . Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences Series. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-48657-4_22-2
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-48657-4_22-2
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-48657-4
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-48657-4
eBook Packages: Springer Reference Earth and Environm. ScienceReference Module Physical and Materials ScienceReference Module Earth and Environmental Sciences