Lake Taupo from Taupo

The Earth Moving (Rapidly Upward)

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August 3rd 2009
Mused upon by me at some point, the frequency (around 1 a day) of earthquakes in New Zealand. Naturally, most of them are too small to worry about in any capacity, but the small set of islands in the midst of the South Pacific also is home to an incredibly violent geological past. Lake Taupo, for instance, the giant bullet hole in the centre of the North Island, was created by a gigantic explosion ... read more

Oceania » New Zealand » North Island » Taupo

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The Polynesian Maori reached New Zealand in about A.D. 800. In 1840, their chieftains entered into a compact with Britain, the Treaty of Waitangi, in which they ceded sovereignty to Queen Victoria while retaining territorial rights. In that same year... ... read more