32

https://www.google.com/maps/@8.8654585,112.8304113,977m/data=!3m1!1e3

There are a number of islands in the South China Sea that don't have names on Google Maps. There's a list of islands here but this is like searching for a needle in a haystack.

I also found another satellite picture from Microsoft, but it was too blurry.

I was hoping somebody could identify the island or at least tell me the purpose of it. There are what look like lighthouses, two fields, a helipad, and some other unusual spherical landmarks.

mysterious island

Rodrigo de Azevedo
  • 854
  • 7
  • 17
zeroPercent
  • 347
  • 1
  • 3
  • 4

2 Answers2

89

This is called Cuarteron Reef in English.

It is one of several reefs in the South China Sea that were enlarged and built up around 2015-2016 as part of a land reclamation project by the People's Republic of China. The structures are apparently of a military nature, including radars and possibly missiles.

The land is also claimed by Taiwan and the Philippines.

It seems unlikely to be a good travel destination at this time.

Nate Eldredge
  • 38,134
  • 11
  • 137
  • 156
55

As a more generic solution, try using Google reverse image search, e.g. in Chrome:

enter image description here

->

enter image description here

If using a web browser other than Google Chrome, go to https://www.google.com/search?tbm=isch and click on the camera icon:

enter image description here

Franck Dernoncourt
  • 60,186
  • 35
  • 215
  • 416