02

Geography

Main article: Geography of the Cook Islands

The Cook Islands are in the South Pacific Ocean, northeast of New Zealand, between French Polynesia and American Samoa. There are 15 major islands spread over 2,200,000 km² (849,425 sq mi) of ocean, divided into two distinct groups: the Southern Cook Islands and the Northern Cook Islands of coral atolls.^[11]
The islands were formed by volcanic activity; the northern group is older and consists of six atolls, which are sunken volcanoes topped by coral growth. The climate is moderate to tropical.

Tapuaetai (One Foot Island) in the southern part of Aitutaki Atoll

The Cook Islands consist of 15 islands and two reefs.