Sandy Island (New Caledonia)

Sandy Island

Île de Sable
Landsat satellite image showing the island's supposed location.
Sandy Island
Geography
Coordinates	19°13′S 159°56′E / 19.22°S 159.93°E / -19.22; 159.93Coordinates: 19°13′S 159°56′E / 19.22°S 159.93°E / -19.22; 159.93
Length	24 km (14.9 mi)
Width	5 km (3.1 mi)
Administration
France (New Caledonia)
Demographics
Population	0

Sandy Island (sometimes labelled in French Île de Sable, and in Spanish Isla Arenosa) is a non-existent island that was charted for over a century as being located near the French territory of New Caledonia between the Chesterfield Islands and Nereus Reef in the eastern Coral Sea. The island was included on many maps and nautical charts from as early as the late 19th century, and gained wide media and public attention in November 2012 when the R/V Southern Surveyor, an Australian surveyor ship, passed through the area and "undiscovered" it. The island was quickly removed from many maps and data sets, including those of the National Geographic Society and Google Maps.

In 14–15 September 1774, Captain James Cook charted a "Sandy I." snaking between 19°–20° S latitudes and 163°50'–164°15' E longitude off the tip of New Caledonia. The associated map, titled "Chart of Discoveries made in the South Pacific Ocean…", was published in 1776. The depiction is part of the existing Grand Terre reef encasing New Caledonia, with coordinates of the area generally true to within 20 miles, despite Cook's use of dead reckoning.

The whaling ship Velocity reported the fictitious island in the year 1876, as was noted on various late-19th-century maps, including an 1881 German map and 1895 British Admiralty chart. After returning from a voyage in the Pacific, the Velocity's master reported two unusual features. The first was a series of "heavy breakers", the second some "Sandy Islets", or Sandy Island. Both then appeared in an Australian maritime directory for 1879. It noted the islets extended north and south "along the meridian 159° 57′ E" and "between lat 19° 7′ S and 19° 20′ S". Until 1876–79 (and in reality), the nearest charted land or reef was the Chesterfield Islands 100 kilometres (62 miles) westwards on the Bellona Plateau. At the time when the chart was created, it was standard practice for all potential navigation hazards to be listed on such charts as a precaution.