Fogo Island, Cape Verde Republic Click Image to Enlarge  (JPG) (121,727 bytes) ( 1,154 x 796 )

Cape Verde Republic comprises the Cape Verde Islands in the Atlantic Ocean, due west of the westernmost point of Africa, Cape Verde. The archipelago consists of ten islands, including Fogo. The islands are volcanic in origin, and all but three are mountainous. The highest point, Pico do Cano (2,829 m/9,281 ft) on Fogo, is also the groupÔÇÖs only active volcano. The islands were used by Senegalese fishermen before the first Europeans arrived, about 1456. They were claimed by Portugal in 1460; in 1495 the archipelago was declared a crown possession of Portugal. Independence for Cape Verde finally came on July 5, 1975, ending five centuries of Portuguese rule. The image was acquired on August 27, 2002, and is centered near 14.9 degrees north latitude, 24.4 degrees west longitude. The perspective view was created by draping image data over a DEM derived from ASTER data, and exaggerating the topographic relief by a factor of 2.