Feni Islands
- STS088-706-56
- 05 December 1998
- 03:12 UTC
The Feni Islands lie at the centre of a chain of small islands — that includes the Green, Tanaga, Tabar and Lihir groups — extending northwestwards from Bougainville Island, and running parallel to the island of New Ireland (150 km to the west) — see the New Ireland large size image for a panoramic view of the island arc. The chain of islands are part of an active volcanic arc system. Although the last major volcanic eruption on the islands was over 2,000 years ago, the islands are still active with numerous geysers, hot springs, boiling mud pools and offshore hydrothermal vents. Ambitle, the largest of the islands, contains the eroded remnants of a 3 km wide caldera.
The Feni Islands group (sometimes referred to as the Anir Islands) consists of the two islands of Ambitle (87 km²) and Babase (23 km²), separated from one another by the 100 m wide Salat Strait. The islands are hilly with a rugged and heavily forested terrain.