Native name: an Tiaracht | |
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Geography | |
Location | Atlantic Ocean |
Coordinates | 52°4′32.4″N10°39′4.6″W / 52.075667°N 10.651278°W [1] |
Archipelago | Blasket Islands |
Area | 57 acres (23 ha) |
Highest elevation | 254 m (833 ft) |
Administration | |
Ireland | |
Province | Munster |
County | Kerry |
Demographics | |
Population | 0 (2016) |
Pop. density | 0/km2 (0/sq mi) |
Tearaght Island or Inishtearaght [1] (Irish : An Tiaracht, [2] meaning "the westerly") is an uninhabited steep rocky island west of the Dingle Peninsula in County Kerry, Ireland.
At longitude 10° 39.7' Tearaght is the westernmost of the Blasket Islands, and thus the westernmost island of Ireland. It is also one of the westernmost points in Europe after Iceland, [3] and Azores. However, there are some exposed rocks further west: Tearaght Rocks, Tearaght Rocks West (10° 41.0'), and Foze Rocks (10° 41.3'). [4] [5]
An Tiaracht is about a kilometre from east to west, and 500 metres (1,600 feet) from north to south. The island is divided into two sections, a larger eastern part (254 metres (833 feet) high) and a western part that rises to 116 metres (381 feet). A narrow neck of rock, with a natural tunnel through it, joins the two parts. [6]
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Source: Central Statistics Office. "CNA17: Population by Off Shore Island, Sex and Year". CSO.ie. Retrieved 12 October 2016. |
Like the other Blasket Islands, Tiaracht holds large numbers of seabirds, with internationally important populations of Manx shearwater and European storm-petrel. Leach's storm-petrels have also been found there (but not proved to be breeding) in recent years. The number of auks, especially puffins, has apparently fluctuated greatly, though early records are not always reliable.[ citation needed ]
A lighthouse was established on the island in 1870, and automated in 1988. [1] The lighthouse, maintained by the Commissioners of Irish Lights, has a tower 17 metres (56 feet) high and the focal height is at 84 metres (276 feet) above sea level, it has a range of 19 nautical miles (35 kilometres; 22 miles). [1] The light was served by the steepest funicular rail track in Europe [7] from 1913 until automation. [1]
Skellig Michael, also called Great Skellig, is a twin-pinnacled crag 11.6 kilometres (7.2 mi) west of the Iveragh Peninsula in County Kerry, Ireland. The island is named after the archangel Michael, with "Skellig" derived from the Irish language word sceilig, meaning a splinter of stone. Its twin island, Little Skellig, is smaller and inaccessible. The two islands rose c. 374–360 million years ago during a period of mountain formation, along with the MacGillycuddy's Reeks mountain range. Later, they were separated from the mainland by rising water levels.
The Blasket Islands are an uninhabited group of islands off the west coast of the Dingle Peninsula in County Kerry, Ireland. The last island to hold a significant population, Great Blasket Island, was abandoned in 1954 due to population decline and is best known for a number of Irish language writers who vividly described their way of life and who kept alive old Irish folk tales of the land.
Dursey Island lies at the southwestern tip of the Beara Peninsula in the west of County Cork in Ireland. Dursey Island is 6.5 kilometres long and 1.5 kilometres wide. The island is separated from the mainland by a narrow stretch of water, Dursey Sound, which has a very strong tidal race, with the submerged Flag Rock close to the centre of the channel.
Skokholm or Skokholm Island is an island 2.5 miles (4.0 km) off the coast of Pembrokeshire, Wales, south of the neighbouring island of Skomer. The surrounding waters are a marine reserve and all are part of the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park. Both islands are listed as Sites of Special Scientific Interest.
The Bishop Rock is a skerry off the British coast in the northern Atlantic Ocean known for its lighthouse. It is in the westernmost part of the Isles of Scilly, an archipelago 45 kilometres off the southwestern tip of the Cornish peninsula of Great Britain. The Guinness Book of Records lists it as the world's smallest island with a building on it.
Ballycotton is a coastal village in County Cork, Ireland, situated about 25 miles (40 km) east of Cork city. It is a fishing village that sits on a rocky ledge overlooking Ballycotton Bay and has a sandy beach that stretches for about 25 kilometres (16 mi) east to Knockadoon Head. The current village is actually a re-settlement of an older village which is now entirely underwater. Ballycotton experiences severe coastal erosion with metres of land crumbling into the sea every few years. It is a site of international research interest on coastal erosion.
Fastnet Lighthouse is a 54-metre-tall (177 ft) lighthouse situated on the remote Fastnet Rock in the Atlantic Ocean. It is the most southerly point of Ireland and lies 6.5 kilometres (4.0 mi) southwest of Cape Clear Island and 13 kilometres (8.1 mi) from County Cork on the Irish mainland. The current lighthouse is the second to be built on the rock and is the tallest in Ireland.
The Commissioners of Irish Lights, often shortened to Irish Lights or CIL, is the body that serves as the general lighthouse authority for Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland and their adjacent seas and islands. As the lighthouse authority for the island of Ireland it oversees the coastal lights and navigation marks provided by the local lighthouse authorities, the county councils and port authorities.
Skerryvore is a remote island that lies off the west coast of Scotland, 11 nautical miles southwest of Tiree. Skerryvore Lighthouse is located on these rocks, built with some difficulty between 1838 and 1844 by Alan Stevenson.
Inishvickillane or Inishvickillaun is one of the Blasket Islands of County Kerry, Ireland.
The Great Blasket is the principal island of the Blaskets, County Kerry, Ireland. It was home to a small fishing community of Irish speakers until the island was abandoned in 1954 when living there became unsustainable.
Inishtrahull is the most northerly island of Ireland. It has an area of 34 hectares and lies about ten kilometres northeast of Malin Head, County Donegal, and just over fifty kilometres southwest of the island of Orsay, in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland. The most northerly landfall of Ireland, the Tor Beg rock, is another kilometre to the north. Inishtrahull is home to Ireland's northernmost lighthouse. The island had a resident community until 1929 and the lighthouse was staffed until 1987. Today it is uninhabited and has been designated a protected area due to its wildlife.
Round Island Lighthouse, in the Isles of Scilly was designed by William Tregarthen Douglass for Trinity House and completed in 1887. At the time of building it was one of three lights in the Isles of Scilly, the others being the Bishop Rock and St Agnes lighthouse. The light was modernised in 1966, automated in 1987 and the island designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in 1995. It is now managed by the Isles of Scilly Wildlife Trust, and except for the maintenance of the Grade II listed lighthouse, landing is not allowed.
Rockabill is a pair of islands in the western Irish Sea about 6 kilometres east-north-east of Skerries, County Dublin, Ireland.
Tuskar Rock is a group of rocks topped by a lighthouse 11 kilometres off the southeast coast of County Wexford, Ireland. The rocks have probably destroyed more ships than any other Irish coastal feature. One hundred and seventy-six wrecks are listed for the Tuskar Rock area at Irish Wrecks Online.
The Maidens or Hulin Rocks are two islets and several skerries in the North Channel off County Antrim in Northern Ireland. The Eastern Maiden or Southern Rock lies about 9 km from the coast at Ballygalley, or 13 miles from Larne. The West Maiden or Northern Rock is about half a mile further out. Lighthouses were built on both rocks; the West Maiden was abandoned in 1903 and the East Maiden was automated in 1977.
The Western Rocks are a group of uninhabited skerries and rocks in the south–western part of the Isles of Scilly, United Kingdom, and are renowned for the numerous shipwrecks in the area and the nearby Bishop Rock lighthouse. In 1971, the rocks and islands were designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest for their breeding sea birds. Landing on the islands is both difficult and discouraged and there are few published records of visits by naturalists.
The Norrard (Northern) Rocks are a group of small uninhabited granite rocks in the north–western part of the Isles of Scilly, to the west of Bryher and Samson. In 1971 they were designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) for their breeding seabird colonies and they are permanently closed to landings from boat passengers. The vegetation on the islands is limited by the extreme exposure and only six species of flowering plants have been recorded.
The Maidens lighthouses, on the Maidens in North Channel off County Antrim in Northern Ireland, date from 1829 and were built at the request of merchants and a Royal Navy officer. Lighthouses were built on both rocks; the West Maiden was abandoned in 1903 and the East Maiden was automated in 1977.
Topgallant Islands is an island group in the Australian state of South Australia located in the Investigator Group about 22 kilometres south west of Cape Finniss on the west coast of Eyre Peninsula. The group was discovered and named by Matthew Flinders on 13 February 1802. The island group has enjoyed protected area status since the 1960s and since 2011, it has been part of the Investigator Group Wilderness Protection Area.
Great Foze Rock lies about 3 miles SSW of Tearaght Island