Pao Pao is an associated commune on the island of Moʻorea, in French Polynesia.[2] It is part of the commune Moʻorea-Maiʻao. According to the census in 2022, it had a population of 4,895. It is the largest village in Moʻorea.
Pao Pao | |
|---|---|
 Moʻorea, the island on which Pao Pao is located | |
  Location within French Polynesia | |
Location of Pao Pao  | |
| Coordinates: 17°30′36″S 149°49′20″W / 17.51000°S 149.82222°W | |
| Country | France |
| Overseas collectivity | French Polynesia |
| Subdivision | Windward Islands |
| Commune | Moʻorea-Maiʻao |
| Population (2022)[1] | 4,895 |
| Time zone | UTC−10:00 |
History
editThe Pao Pao area was first settled by travelers from Asia. They built houses out of branches and hunted fish. When James Cook came to Moʻorea, he made contact with them and continued his journey. That is how Cook's Bay got its name.
Transport
editResidents of Pao Pao often take the Moʻorea Airport to travel to other islands in French Polynesia. The nearby island of Tahiti is a 45-minute ferry ride from Moʻorea,[3] which draws a fair amount of tourism to the area.[4]
Geography
edit
Pao Pao is located at the bottom of Cook's Bay on Moʻorea. It is surrounded by many mountains and flat land is limited.
Climate
editPao Pao has a tropical rainforest climate (Köppen climate classification Af). The average annual temperature in Pao Pao is 26.0 °C (78.8 °F). The average annual rainfall is 2,945.6 mm (115.97 in) with December as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in March, at around 27.2 °C (81.0 °F), and lowest in August, at around 24.5 °C (76.1 °F). The highest temperature ever recorded in Pao Pao was 35.5 °C (95.9 °F) on 23 December 2009; the coldest temperature ever recorded was 14.2 °C (57.6 °F) on 10 August 2008.
| Climate data for Pao Pao (1991−2020 normals, extremes 1997−present) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 34.1 (93.4) |
34.7 (94.5) |
34.8 (94.6) |
34.8 (94.6) |
34.9 (94.8) |
33.0 (91.4) |
31.7 (89.1) |
32.4 (90.3) |
33.2 (91.8) |
34.4 (93.9) |
34.6 (94.3) |
35.5 (95.9) |
35.5 (95.9) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 30.8 (87.4) |
31.1 (88.0) |
31.5 (88.7) |
31.2 (88.2) |
30.2 (86.4) |
29.4 (84.9) |
28.9 (84.0) |
28.8 (83.8) |
29.1 (84.4) |
29.7 (85.5) |
30.4 (86.7) |
30.7 (87.3) |
30.2 (86.4) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 26.8 (80.2) |
27.0 (80.6) |
27.2 (81.0) |
26.9 (80.4) |
26.1 (79.0) |
25.2 (77.4) |
24.7 (76.5) |
24.5 (76.1) |
24.9 (76.8) |
25.5 (77.9) |
26.3 (79.3) |
26.8 (80.2) |
26.0 (78.8) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 22.9 (73.2) |
23.0 (73.4) |
22.9 (73.2) |
22.7 (72.9) |
21.9 (71.4) |
21.1 (70.0) |
20.6 (69.1) |
20.2 (68.4) |
20.7 (69.3) |
21.3 (70.3) |
22.2 (72.0) |
22.8 (73.0) |
21.9 (71.4) |
| Record low °C (°F) | 17.9 (64.2) |
18.1 (64.6) |
18.5 (65.3) |
18.1 (64.6) |
17.3 (63.1) |
16.0 (60.8) |
15.9 (60.6) |
14.2 (57.6) |
16.1 (61.0) |
16.9 (62.4) |
17.5 (63.5) |
19.1 (66.4) |
14.2 (57.6) |
| Average precipitation mm (inches) | 423.1 (16.66) |
363.2 (14.30) |
256.2 (10.09) |
215.5 (8.48) |
183.6 (7.23) |
167.0 (6.57) |
126.8 (4.99) |
119.6 (4.71) |
170.3 (6.70) |
229.9 (9.05) |
267.3 (10.52) |
423.1 (16.66) |
2,945.6 (115.97) |
| Average precipitation days (≥ 1.0 mm) | 16.1 | 14.5 | 13.0 | 13.1 | 12.0 | 10.0 | 9.4 | 9.4 | 10.5 | 13.3 | 14.0 | 17.4 | 152.7 |
| Source: Météo-France[5] | |||||||||||||
Economy
editPao Pao is known for being the home to the Moʻorea Juice Factory, which offers tours on how the juice is made and sells juice in a nearby store. The Supermarché (which is supermarket in French) of Pao Pao is a major store in the village.
References
edit- ^ "Les résultats du recensement de la population 2022 de Polynésie française" [Results of the 2022 population census of French Polynesia] (PDF) (in French). Institut de la statistique de la Polynésie française. January 2023.
- ^ "Map of Paopao, Moorea, French Polynesia." Archived 2013-01-20 at archive.today Collins Maps. Accessed on July 2, 2012.
- ^ Riley, Frank. "Moorea Island is Drawing Its Own Fans." Los Angeles Times, January 3, 1988. Accessed on July 2, 2012.
- ^ Carlisle, Jay. "Traveling in Style: A One-Chicken Eulogy." Los Angeles Times Magazine, October 23, 1988. Accessed on July 2, 2012 from ProQuest.
- ^ "Fiche Climatologique Statistiques 1991-2020 et records" (PDF) (in French). Météo-France. Retrieved August 27, 2022.
External links
edit
 | This French Polynesia-related geography article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |