Global InformationAscension Island information
Ascension Island | |
|---|---|
Constituent part of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha | |
 Flag  Coat of arms | |
| Anthem: "God Save the King" | |
 Topographic map of Ascension Island | |
 Location of Ascension Island in the southern Atlantic Ocean | |
| Sovereign state |  United Kingdom |
| British settlement | 1815 |
| Dependency of Saint Helena | 12 September 1922 |
| Current constitution | 1 September 2009 |
| Capital and largest settlement | Georgetown 7°56′S 14°25′W / 7.933°S 14.417°W |
| Official languages | English |
| Government | Devolved locally governing dependency under a constitutional monarchy |
• Monarch | Charles III |
• Governor | Nigel Phillips |
• Administrator | Simon Minshull[1] |
| Legislature | Island Council |
| Government of the United Kingdom | |
• Minister | Vacant |
| Area | |
• Total | 88 km2 (34 sq mi) |
| Highest elevation | 859 m (2,818 ft) |
| Population | |
• 2016 census | 806[2] |
• Density | 9.15/km2 (23.7/sq mi) |
| Currency | Saint Helena pound (£) (SHP) |
| Time zone | UTC±00:00 (GMT) |
| Date format | dd/mm/yyyy |
| Driving side | left |
| Calling code | +247 |
| UK postcode | ASCN 1ZZ |
| ISO 3166 code | SH-AC |
| Internet TLD | .ac |
Ascension Island is an isolated volcanic island, 7°56′ south of the Equator in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is about 1,000 miles (1,600 km) from the coast of Africa and 1,400 miles (2,300 km) from the coast of South America. It is governed as part of the British Overseas Territory of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha,[3] of which the main island, Saint Helena, is around 800 miles (1,300 km) to the southeast. The territory also includes the sparsely populated Tristan da Cunha archipelago, 2,300 miles (3,700 km) to the south, about halfway to the Antarctic Circle.
Ascension Island was discovered by the Portuguese navigator João da Nova in 1501 and named Conception Island, but was rediscovered in 1503 on Ascension Day by Alphonse de Albuquerque and renamed.[4] Ascension Island was garrisoned by the British Admiralty from 22 October 1815 to 1922 and was an important refueling stop for ships and commercial airliners in the days of international air travel by flying boats. During World War II, it was an important naval and air station, especially providing antisubmarine warfare bases in the Battle of the Atlantic.[5]
The island is the location of RAF Ascension Island, which is a Royal Air Force station, a European Space Agency rocket tracking station, a British-American signals intelligence facility and the BBC World Service Atlantic Relay Station. The island was used extensively as a staging point by the British military during the Falklands War. Ascension Island hosts one of four ground antennas that assist in the operation of the Global Positioning System (GPS) navigational system (the others are on Kwajalein Island, Diego Garcia, and Cape Canaveral). NASA operates a Meter Class Autonomous Telescope (MCAT) on Ascension Island for tracking orbital debris, which is potentially hazardous to operating spacecraft and astronauts, at a facility called the John Africano NASA/AFRL Orbital Debris Observatory.[6]
- ^ "The Administrator – Ascension Island Government".
- ^ "Census 2016 – summary report" (PDF). St Helena Government. June 2016. p. 9. Archived (PDF) from the original on 17 October 2016. Retrieved 23 January 2017.
- ^ "The St Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha Constitution Order 2009". Archived from the original on 12 March 2010. Retrieved 26 September 2009.
- ^ "Ascension Island Government". Retrieved 8 May 2023.
- ^ Victory at Sea (Series title), Volume-10 "Beneath the Southern Cross" 1952 production of NBC, (Disc 2 of DVD collection reproduction ca. 2007–08)
- ^ Garcia, Mark (11 August 2016). "Searching for "Space Junk" in Paradise". Archived from the original on 15 August 2016. Retrieved 14 August 2016.