Caroline Island

Caroline Island is a coral atoll in Kiribati's Line Islands group, formed by roughly 39 small reef islets arranged in a ring around a shallow central lagoon. The landmasses rise only a few meters above the ocean, creating a complex network of narrow water channels and coral formations.

Portuguese navigator Pedro Fernández de Quirós documented the atoll in 1606 during his Pacific voyage, recording it as San Bernardo. The location later became a focus for scientific expeditions studying coral ecosystems and Pacific settlement patterns.

The island preserves archaeological evidence of early Polynesian settlements, including traditional stone structures called marae used for ceremonial gatherings.

Visiting requires advance permission from Kiribati's government authorities, and travelers should prepare for limited supplies and strong ocean winds. The most accessible landing point is through a narrow gap in the reef located at the southern end of the island.

The atoll gained global attention in 1995 when a shift in the International Date Line made it the first inhabited place on Earth to enter the year 2000. This geographic change turned it into a symbolic location for time zone realignment and briefly focused worldwide media coverage on this remote corner of the Pacific.