Aerial view of Salas y Gómez, looking east.

Sala y Gómez

Location of Sala y Gómez Island in the Pacific Ocean

Isla Salas y Gómez,^[1] also known as Isla Sala y Gómez, is a small uninhabited Chilean island in the Pacific Ocean. It is the easternmost point in the Polynesian Triangle. Administratively, it is part of the Easter Island Commune in the Easter Island Province of the Valparaíso Region.

Isla Salas y Gómez and its surrounding waters are a Marine Protected Area called Parque Marino Sala y Gómez, with a surface area of 150.000 km2.^[2]

Geography[link]

Map of Salas y Gómez.

Isla Salas y Gómez is located 3,210 km west of the Chilean mainland, 2,490 km west of Chile's Desventuradas Islands, and 390 km east-northeast of Easter Island, the closest landmass. Salas y Gómez consists of two rocks, a smaller one in the west measuring 4 hectare in area (270 meters north-south, 200 meters east-west), and a larger one in the east measuring 11 ha (500 meters north-south, 270 meters east-west), which are connected by a narrow isthmus in the north, averaging approximately 30 meters in width. The total area is approximately 15 hectares (0.15 km²), and the total length northwest-southeast is 770 meters. Its highest point, 30 meters above sea level, is in the south of the eastern rock, less than 30 meters from the shore, above a 10 meter high cliff. The highest elevation on the western rock is 26 meters.

The island is showered with saltwater, and the shoreline is dotted with countless tidepools. Because the shoreline consists primarily of cliffs, landing on the island is difficult in all but the calmest of conditions.

View of Sala-y-Gómez.

There are no permanent sources of freshwater on the island, but there is an intermittent rainwater pool in a depression on the eastern rock, which often forms a cache of freshwater 75 meters in diameter. This is essential for the survival of the large population of seabirds.

Even when this area appears dry at the surface, the sand is still moist just a few inches below the surface. This flat sandy area is also the only place on the island suitable for landing helicopters.

In 1994, the Chilean Navy installed an automated beacon and a tsunami warning system. The island has since been declared a nature sanctuary.^[1]

History[link]

Human visitation[link]

Position of Sala-y-Gómez relative to Easter Island and the South American mainland

Although there is no evidence that the island has ever been permanently inhabited, Easter Islanders were certainly aware of its existence, as indicated by the pre-European name of the island. Tradition says that the island was occasionally visited to collect fledglings and eggs. The island was said to have been difficult to land upon, because the gods Make-make and Huau protected the seabirds from those who ate their eggs and offspring. Because of these historical connections to Easter Island, Salas y Gómez can be considered part of Polynesia; if so its location makes it the easternmost landmass of Polynesia. The title is usually awarded to Easter Island, 415 km further west.^[2]

The first European to sight the island was José Salas Valdés, a Spanish sailor, on 23 August 1793. Between then and 1917, visits are recorded in at least 1805, 1806, 1817, 1825, 1875, and 1917.^[3]

On October 6, 2010, President Sebastián Piñera announced the creation of the Parque Marino Sala y Gómez, a Marine Protected Area encompassing a total surface area of 150.000 km2.

Name[link]

The Rapa Nui name for the island is Motu Motiro Hiva or Manu Motu Motiro Hiva, meaning (Bird's) Islet on the way to Hiva. Hiva is part of the names of several Polynesian islands, particularly in the Marquesas Islands. In the Rapa Nui language, however, it means "far off lands" and is the name for the mythical original homeland of the Polynesians. From Easter Island, Salas y Gómez is almost the opposite direction to the Marquesas, and the next inhabited territory "behind" Salas y Gómez would be the coast of South America. This was one of the factors that led Thor Heyerdahl to theorize that there was pre-European contact between Polynesia and South America.

The current name, Salas y Gómez, is derived from the name of Spaniards José Salas Valdés and José Manuel Gómez, who made the first detailed description of the island, following a visit beginning 18 October 1805. The island is sometimes also referred to as Isla Sala y Gómez, with "Sala" being a misspelling of Salas. ^[4]

Political situation[link]

Salas y Gómez was claimed by Chile in 1808, and from 1888, was administered by the Chilean Navy. Beginning 1 March 1966, the island was included in the department of Isla de Pascua. On 25 July 1974, the department was reorganized as the Easter Island Province.^[5]

Marine Protected Area[link]

In October 2010, President Sebastián Piñera announced the creation of the Parque Marino Motu Motiro Hiva, a Marine Protected Area, encompassing a total surface area of 150,000 km2.^[3]

During the 2008 Deepsea Coral Symposium^[4], Wellington, the idea of a Marine Protected Area on the submarine ridges of Salas y Gomez and Nazca is launched for the very first time. Then, in February 2009, the World Wildlife Fund, WWF Chile^[5], published a scientific revision in the Latin American Journal of Aquatic Research^[6], giving the scientific background that supported the government report^[7] for the declaration of the non-take MPA Motu Motiro Hiva.

This declaration follows the efforts of Oceana and National Geographic to both study and highlight the ecological value of this area, and to encourage its protection. These organizations are planning additional expeditions to the area in order to draft a conservation plan, and to propose the widening of the protected area to encompass the whole Exclusive Economic Zone around the island.^[8]

Geology[link]

Map of Isla Salas y Gómez

Salas y Gómez is a volcanic high island, consisting of the summit of a large mountain which rises about 3500 metres from the sea bed. Scott Reef (not to be confused with Scott Reefs off Western Australia), 1.5 km further northeast, is another peak of the same mostly submarine mountain, and has a least depth of 25 meters above it. Salas y Gómez is part of the same Salas y Gómez Ridge as Easter Island to the west, these two locations being the only places where the otherwise submarine mountain range extends above sea level. There are several dozen more seamounts in the range, which extends 2232 km eastward until Nazca Seamount at 23°36′S 83°30′W / 23.6°S 83.5°W / -23.6; -83.5, where it joins the Nazca Ridge.^[6]

Salas y Gómez is the fourth youngest mountain in the chain, which is being formed by the Nazca Plate floating over the Easter hotspot. The two youngest mountains in the chain, Pukao and Moai are sea mounts to the west of Easter Island.^{[7] [9]}

Flora[link]

Salas y Gómez and Easter Island form a distinct ecoregion, the Rapa Nui subtropical broadleaf forests. However Salas y Gómez is largely barren with no forests and only four species of terrestrial plants; these include Asplenium obtusatum (or "Spleenwort"), a type of fern which only grows in protected areas at higher elevations.

Fauna[link]

Besides a number of insect species, the only non-aquatic fauna are about a dozen species of seabird, which use the island as a rookery, with the estimated number of adult birds in 1985:

Those numbers may vary considerably from year to year, due to weather conditions, and it has been observed that the overall numbers were much lower in 1986.

Marine fauna includes a large number of littoral crustaceans, echinoidea, etc., as well as a large assortment of reef fishes and a number of species of shark, which swimmers report to be "curious", but not aggressive.

Cultural references[link]

The German poet Adelbert von Chamisso wrote a poem about the island, based on his reflections upon visiting the island in 1816.^[10]

See also[link]

Geography portal

• Desert island
• San Félix y San Ambrosio
• Juan Fernández Islands

Notes[link]

1. ^ Wetlands.org information about the designation of SyG as a wildlife refuge
2. ^ Te Rapa Nui (The Gazette of Easter Island) Vol. 4 No. 8, Summer/Fall 1999
3. ^ The Islands from notes on the Cordell Expeditions. Aug. 1995
4. ^ Revista Española del Pacífico No. 2, 1992. From the Biblioteca Virtual Miguel de Cervantes.
5. ^ Chilian history page outlining history of Rapa Nui province
6. ^ Radiometric Ages for Seamounts from the Easter-Salas y Gomez-Nazca Hotspot Track from Smithsonian/NASA ADS Physics Abstract Service. Duncan, R.A., et al.
7. ^ Preliminary Multibeam Mapping and Dredging Results along the Nazca Ridge and Easter/Salas y Gomez Chain from the 2002 Ocean Sciences Meeting
8. ^ Address by Prime Minister of the Republic of Estonia Siim Kallas (as HTML) from a Eurovision website.

References[link]

• González-Ferrán, Oscar (1995). Volcanes de Chile. Santiago, Chile: Instituto Geográfico Militar. p. 640 pp. ISBN 956-202-054-1.  (in Spanish; also includes volcanoes of Argentina, Bolivia, and Peru)

External links[link]

• National Monuments, Chilean government.
• document with sketch map
• http://www.rapanui.co.cl/numero8/syg.htm
• http://www.gunthar.com/archive/easter_island_95/ei_web_site/islands.html
• http://www.ecole-navale.fr/fr/irenav/cv/poupin/publis/Checklist_Easter_Poupin.pdf
• Adalbert von Chamisso's Salas y Gomez at Gutenberg (in German)
• Parque Marino Sala y Gómez, entry on BlooSee

Coordinates: 26°28′20″S 105°21′45″W / 26.47222°S 105.3625°W / -26.47222; -105.3625

Leonor Varela
Varela
Born	Leonor Varela Palma (1972-12-29) December 29, 1972 (age 39) Santiago, Chile
Occupation	actress, spokesperson, model
Years active	1995 — present

Leonor Varela Palma (born December 29, 1972) is a Chilean actress, and model. She played the character Cleopatra in the 1999 film Cleopatra. She also has actively participated in various ecological causes such as "Save Whales Again".

Early life[link]

Varela was born in Santiago, Chile, the daughter of Leonor, a massage therapist, and Chilean biologist and cognitive neuroscientist Francisco Varela García.^[1] She has a sister, Alejandra, and two brothers, Javier and Gabriel. Her mother, Leonor Palma, was of French, Hungarian and Syrian descent. Varela's family fled to Costa Rica in her early childhood when her homeland was overtaken by a military regime. She subsequently resided in Germany, the U.S., and France. In the early 1990s, her parents moved back to Chile, while she remained in Paris where she studied acting at the Niels Arestrup School, L'École du Passage, and Conservatoire Supérieur de Paris.

Career[link]

Varela's first acting job was in 1995, playing Anette in Pony Trek, a children's film. Filming was in Iceland and Leonor was riding horses for three months. Then, referred to a French filmmaker by her dentist, she played in Shooting Stars (1997). Varela found her popularity on the rise at home when she was cast in the Chilean soap opera Tic Tac.

After appearing in a few more television productions in the late 1990s, Varela was cast in a small role in The Man in the Iron Mask. In 1999, she played the title character in the TV movie Cleopatra. She fell in love with actor Billy Zane (Mark Antony) on the set, but they split up two years later.

Roles in The Tailor of Panama and Texas Rangers (both in 2001) followed shortly thereafter, and as the fanged vampire princess in the action film Blade II. After that came Paraíso B and Pas Si Grave.

Varela also had a short recurring role in the Fox Television series Arrested Development as the original Marta. She was nominated for the Ariel Award in 2005 in the category of Best Actress for Innocent Voices (2004). She also had a non-recurring role in Stargate: Atlantis.^[2]

Her latest projects are Americano, Caleuche: The Call of the Sea, Casas de Cartón and Gigola where she plays feminist Laure Charpentier. She played Jordana in Goal! 2. Jordana was a journalist who had a one-night stand with Santiago Munez (Kuno Becker).

Varela is a marine life activist who is concerned with the welfare of whales.^[3] Leonor is also a vegetarian.^[4]

Filmography[link]

References[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Leonor Varela

External links[link]

• Leonor Varela at the Internet Movie Database
• Leonor Varela at the Fashion Model Directory

Marino Salas Ortega (born February 2, 1981 in Hato Mayor del Rey, Dominican Republic) is a Major League Baseball relief pitcher who is currently a free agent.

He was previously claimed off waivers from the Baltimore Orioles by the Milwaukee Brewers on February 1, 2007. He played for Milwaukee's Double-A and Triple-A clubs, the Huntsville Stars and the Nashville Sounds. On December 7, 2007, Salas was traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates along with Kevin Roberts for Salomon Torres. He became a free agent at the end of the 2008 season. Currently he plays in Italy for BSC Rovigo, as a sterting pitcher

External links[link]

• "Salas Traded to Pittsburgh." Huntsville Stars. 7 December 2007.

This biographical article relating to a Dominican Republic baseball pitcher is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. v t e

Manuel Baquedano
Chief of Government
In office August 29, 1891 – August 31, 1891
Preceded by	José Manuel Balmaceda
Succeeded by	Jorge Montt
Personal details
Born	(1823-01-01)January 1, 1823 Santiago, Chile
Died	September 30, 1897(1897-09-30) (aged 74) Santiago, Chile

Manuel Jesús Baquedano González (January 1, 1823 – September 30, 1897) was a Chilean soldier and Chief of Government, who served as Commander-in-chief of the Army during the War of the Pacific. Manuel Baquedano was of Basque descent.^[1]

Early life[link]

Manuel Baquedano was born in Santiago, the son of Fernando Baquedano and of Teresa González de Labra y Ros. He studied at the school of clergyman Juan Romo and at the Instituto Nacional of Chile. During this time he became lifelong friends with Federico Errázuriz and Eusebio Lillo. Baquedano was only 15 years old and still at school when the War of the Confederation exploded. He then fled his house to join the troops leaving for the War. He participated in the Battle of Yungay in 1839, being promoted on the field to Lieutenant at the age of 16.

Military career[link]

Manuel Baquedano returned to Chile and completed his military training. He was promoted to regular Lieutenant on January 23, 1845, and in January 1850, while holding the Adjutant in the Grenadiers, Baquedano was promoted to full Captain. During the Revolution of 1851 in April 1851, Manuel Baquedano's presence helped the Palace of La Moneda when he played a decisive role in the confrontation with the troops that rebelled, on the 20th day of that month, against the election of Manuel Montt as President. These rebels were commanded by Colonel Pedro Urriola who was supported by young liberals, among whom he counted his friend Eusebio Lillo. The revolution was followed by an armed navy revolt at Concepción by troops controlled by José María de la Cruz. Baquedano was named adjutant of General Manuel Bulnes and participated alongside the government's forces in the battle of Loncomilla, in December 1851. There, he faced his father and brother Eleuterio Baquedano, finishing the battle he requested permission to visit his father, head of the enemy army's General Staff, wounded in battle.

Manuel Montt granted him a promotion for his services to Sergeant Mayor of the government escort in January 1852.

Temporary retirement[link]

In April 1854, he lost his commission as mayor of the city of La Frontera over a confused barracks mutiny incident in which his real involvement was never clarified. Baquedano then resigned from active service, and with his savings acquired the small Santa Teresa hacienda near the city of Los Angeles.

The government did not accept his resignation and so he was named adjutant of the commanding general of the military in Valparaíso in March 1855. Before a petition by himself Baquedano, in April was transferred with equal position to the commander of arms in Arauco, in order to be closer to his home. In August of that year he was designated commander of the civilian militia #3 in Arauco. Between 1855 and 1869 he dedicated himself to transforming his home into a productive agricultural property, and in 5 years this had already brought him a small fortune.

Return to military life[link]

Baquedano returned to military life in 1859, when the government called him to face the revolution that exploded in Concepción; for his services he was promoted to effective sergeant major in June of that year. Seven years later, in October 1866, colonel was promoted to lieutenant again, happening to act as in the city of the Angels, those that combined with their agricultural workings. By the end of 1868 were required again in the Army, to oppose to the indigenous rebellion headed by Quilapán and other caciques. Under the orders of general Jose Manuel Pinto, commander of the forces of the high border, he participated in numerous confrontations in Malleco and Renaico, from January to May 1869. By his services, September of that year, the control of the regiment Cazadores a Caballo (Hunting to Horse) was trusted to him, the same position that his father had held.

The control of the regiment Cazadores a Caballo, was transferred to Santiago. Their military services in Araucanía and his personality opened with the civil world, allowed him to gain a prestige in the liberal governments and the santiaguina population. In July 1870, he was promoted to colonel and two years later effective colonel by the government of Federico Errázuriz Zañartu was named. In 1875, he was designated, in temporary form, chief inspector of Guardia Nacional (National Guard) and commander-in-chief of Arms of the capital city.

War of the Pacific[link]

In 1876, Baquedano was promoted to brigadier general. When War of the Pacific with Peru and Bolivia broke out in April 1879, he was general commander of the cavalry. In November 1879 he disembarked his troops in Pisagua under orders from commander-in-chief General Erasmo Escala. At that stage, the general command was torn by infighting between General Escala and the Minister of War and Navy over who was in charge of operations. The conflict was finally resolved with the resignation of General Escala on March 28, 1880, caused by ...the criminal insults inflicted by Mr. Rafael Sotomayor to his rights and his dignity.

General Escala's resignation left the army in a very vulnerable situation. The soldiers' morale was at a low ebb, being engaged in disputes, gossip and internal rivalries. To solve the problem, the minister Rafael Sotomayor appointed General Baquedano as commander-in-chief, saying ...where Baquedano goes, gossip does not follow.

Soon he followed the campaign on Tacna and Arica, disembarking in February 1880 in Ilo. To the control of a division, faced the Peruvian Army in the Cerro de los Ángeles (the Angels hill) in March of that year. One stood out by his decision for the military resolutions, thus was promoted in June to major general. He participated in the battles of Tacna and Arica.

The military reputation of Baquedano was enhanced by his outstanding direction and participation in the battles of Chorrillos and Miraflores, in January 1881. There, thanks to the efforts of the men under his command, the Peruvian capital was occupied in less than a month. Baquedano returned to Chile when the government of President Aníbal Pinto decided that most of the Army he had to return, due to the high cost of maintaining troops. He arrived at Valparaiso in March 1881 and was received by a large crowd; the celebration was repeated in Santiago.

Later life[link]

Manuel Baquedano on horseback (1891)

He was twice offered a presidential candidacy, but on both occasions the campaign did not prosper. By means of a law passed in August 1881, the government of Domingo Santa María granted - by the rest of his life honors, pays and allowances to him like commander in chief in campaign.

The following month, he was named advisor of State, and was chosen as a senator by Santiago during 2 periods, between 1882 and 1888, and by Colchagua for another 2, between 1888 and 1894. From these positions he participated in the reorganization of the Army and cooperated in the commissions so that the Academy military and the General Staff were based. In April 1889, President José Manuel Balmaceda sent him on a mission to Europe, from which he returned in November 1890.

During the Chilean Civil War, Baquedano did not side with either political party. But, after Balmaceda's forces were overcome and destroyed at the battle of La Placilla, it was clear that the President could no longer hope to find a sufficient strength amongst his adherents to maintain himself in power. On August 29, 1891, Balmaceda officially handed power to General Baquedano, who maintained order in Santiago until the arrival of the congressional leaders on the 30th. He then handed power to Navy captain Jorge Montt on the 31st, and retired definitively to private life.

He died at his home in Santiago, at the age of 74

There is a commemorative statue of him, mounted on his horse, by the Edificio Telefonica in Av Providencia at Santiago.

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official Chilean Army Biography (Spanish)

v t e Presidents of Chile Blanco Encalada Eyzaguirre Freire F. Pinto Vicuña Ovalle Ruiz-Tagle Ovalle Prieto Bulnes M. Montt Pérez Errázuriz Zañartu A. Pinto Santa María Balmaceda J. Montt Errázuriz Echaurren Riesco P. Montt Figueroa Barros Luco Sanfuentes Alessandri Palma Figueroa Ibáñez del Campo Montero Dávila Alessandri Palma Aguirre Cerda Méndez Ríos González Videla Ibáñez del Campo Alessandri Rodriguez Frei Montalva Allende Pinochet Aylwin Frei Ruiz-Tagle Lagos Bachelet Piñera Timeline Presidents of Chile

Andrea Gómez is a pageant titleholder, was born in Mérida, Venezuela on April 13, 1985. She is the Miss Venezuela International titleholder for 2004, and was the official representative of Venezuela to the Miss International 2005 pageant held in Tokyo, Japan, on September 26, 2005, when she classified in the Top 12 semifinalists.^[1]

Gómez competed in the national beauty pageant Miss Venezuela 2004 and obtained the title of Miss Venezuela International. She represented the Distrito Capital.

References[link]

External links[link]

• Miss Venezuela Official Website
• Miss International Official Website