All
About Atolls
According to Darwin, an atoll is formed when a volcano becomes extinct
and is gradually eroded into the sea. He found it necessary to add a footnote
in the case of the Maldives. There, the 19 main atolls are too large for
his theory to apply. They seem to have been built up by coral, which,
as it spread outwards towards oxygenated waters, left a dying core that
was slowly worn away to sand and sank. When the coral wall was broken
by the sea and fresh salt water entered, new, small atolls formed inside
the ring.
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Male' Atoll is where it all began and what holds it all together. Located in the center of the Maldives atoll chain, Male' Atoll is where the first Maldivian tourists opened and where the capital island Male' is located. Although the principal atoll, a surprisingly small number of the islands are locally inhabited.
Baa
Atoll |
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Being situated next to Male' Atoll, Ari Atoll became the obvious second choice for tourism expansion. Ari Atoll is one of the biggest atolls in the Maldives and has some of the best dive sites in the country. This atoll also has the highest concentration of tourist resorts but with a large number of uninhabited islands still to be found in this large atoll, the possibility of feeling overcrowded is none existent. The development of more resorts in this atoll in the future is highly unlikely as tourism expansion has now moved on towards the atolls further away from the center.
Faafu
Atoll |
