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Ascension Island / Sat Mar 23

Today we arrived at Ascension Island - an isolated volcanic island located between Africa and Brazil just south of the equator.

The British garrisoned the island in 1815 to prevent a rescue of Napoleon from Saint Helena. During World War II, the UK permitted the US to construct an airfield to support trans-Atlantic flights to Africa and anti-submarine operations in the South Atlantic. In the 1960s the island became an important space tracking station for the US. In 1982, Ascension was an staging area for British forces during the Falklands War.   


The island's airport is operated by the US. Its runway was once the longest in the world because it was designed to accommodate the Space Shuttle. NASA tracked the Apollo Moon landings from the island and the European Space Agency monitors rocket launches from here. Hilltops across the island are filled with aerial arrays and satellite dishes but no one is willing to say who is listening or what they're listening to.


Unfortunately we were weren't able to get on to the island. The large waves near the dock made it impossible for the tenders to land. We took pictures of the island as we sailed away. 




We have several days at sea until we get to our next stop which is Dakar, Senegal.

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