About the island

Star-Bulletin

By David Swann, Star-Bulletin

Size: 47 square miles.

Population: About 2,000 living primarily in Hanga Roa, the only town on the island.

Water: From tanks, pools and crater lakes in the island's three extinct volcanoes.

Governed by: Chile.

Points of Interest

By Cliff Wassmann, special to the Star-Bulletin

Polkie Peninsula: Like the rest of the island, the rugged eastern coastal shoreline is barren of trees.

By Cliff Wassmann, special to the Star-Bulletin

Ahu Tongariki: A tidal wave in 1960 destroyed Rapa Nui's largest ahu, washing 15 moai hundreds of feet inland. It took five years to rebuild the site, beginning in 1992.

By Cliff Wassmann, special to the Star-Bulletin

Ahu Tahai: It is thought to be among the earliest ahu structures on the island, dating back to 690.

By Cliff Wassmann, special to the Star-Bulletin

Ahu Vinapu: The stonework on the precisely fitted basalt slabs -- some weighing as much as seven tons -- are the most advanced on the island.

Sources: NOVA Online; World Book Encyclopedia; Polynesian Voyaging Society

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ON THE WEB Hokule'a: Follow the voyage of the Hokule'a at: http://leahi.kcc.hawaii.edu/org/pvs. Easter Island: Photos were provided by Cliff Wassmann, who specializes in documenting sacred sites and ancient civilizations. More of his work can be seen at: http://www.mysteriousplaces.com

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