located_on_terrain_feature raiatea
Captain James Cook ( 7 November 172814 February 1779 ) was a British explorer , navigator , cartographer , and captain in the Royal Navy . Cook made detailed maps of Newfoundland prior to making three voyages to the ___MASK63___ , during which he achieved the first recorded European contact with the eastern coastline of Australia and the Hawaiian Islands , and the first recorded circumnavigation of New Zealand . The ___MASK63___ is the largest of the Earth ' s oceanic divisions . It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean ( or , depending on definition , to Antarctica ) in the south and is bounded by Asia and Australia in the west and the Americas in the east . ___MASK49___ is the largest island in the Windward group of French Polynesia ; this overseas collectivity of the French Republic is sometimes referred to as an overseas country . The island is located in the archipelago of the Society Islands in the central Southern ___MASK63___ , and is divided into two parts : The bigger , northwestern part " ___MASK49___ Nui " and the smaller , southeastern part " ___MASK49___ Iti ". The island was formed from volcanic activity and is high and mountainous with surrounding coral reefs . The population is 183 , 645 inhabitants ( 2012 census ), making it the most populous island of French Polynesia and accounting for 68 . 5 percent of its total population . The ___MASK86___ includes a group of islands in the South ___MASK63___ . It is , politically and legally , part of French Polynesia . The archipelago is believed to have been named by Captain James Cook during his first voyage in 1769 , supposedly in honour of the Royal Society , the sponsor of the first British scientific survey of the islands ; however , Cook , himself , stated in his journal that he called the islands " Society " " as they lay contiguous to one another ." The President , Council and Fellows of the Royal Society of ___MASK52___ for Improving Natural Knowledge , commonly known as the Royal Society , is a learned society for science and is possibly the oldest such society still in existence . Founded in November 1660 , it was granted a royal charter by King Charles II as " The Royal Society ". The Society is the United Kingdom ' s and Commonwealth of Nations ' Academy of Sciences and fulfills a number of roles ; promoting science and its benefits , recognising excellence in science , supporting outstanding science , providing scientific advice for policy , fostering international and global cooperation , education and public engagement . The society is governed by its Council , which is chaired by the Society ' s President , according to a set of statutes and standing orders . The members of Council and the President are elected from and by its Fellows , the basic members of the society , who are themselves elected by existing Fellows . As of 2016 , there are about 1 , 600 fellows , allowed to use the postnominal title FRS ( Fellow of the Royal Society ), with up to 52 new fellows appointed each year . There are also royal fellows , honorary fellows and foreign members , the last of which are allowed to use the postnominal title ForMemRS ( Foreign Member of the Royal Society ). The Royal Society President is Venkatraman Ramakrishnan , who took up the post on November 30 , 2015 . French Polynesia is an overseas collectivity of the French Republic ; " ( COM )", sometimes unofficially referred to as an overseas country ; " ( POM )". It is composed of 118 geographically dispersed islands and atolls stretching over an expanse of more than in the South ___MASK63___ . Its total land area is . An archipelago , sometimes called an island group or island chain , is a chain , cluster or collection of islands . The word " archipelago " is derived from the Greek "  -  arkhi -" (" chief ") and "   pélagos " (" sea ") through the Italian " arcipelago ". In Italian , possibly following a tradition of antiquity , the Archipelago ( from medieval Greek "*  " and Latin " archipelagus ") was the proper name for the ___MASK47___ and , later , usage shifted to refer to the Aegean Islands ( since the sea is remarkable for its large number of islands ). It is now used to refer to any island group or , sometimes , to a sea containing a small number of scattered islands . Polynesia ( from " poly " " many " + " nsos " " island ") is a subregion of Oceania , made up of over 1 , 000 islands scattered over the central and southern ___MASK63___ . The indigenous people who inhabit the islands of Polynesia are termed Polynesians and they share many similar traits including language family , culture , and beliefs . Historically , they were experienced sailors and used stars to navigate during the night . The French overseas collectivities ( or " COM "), like the French regions , are first - order administrative divisions of ___MASK5___ . The COMs include some former French overseas territories and other French overseas entities with a particular status , all of which became COMs by constitutional reform on 28 March 2003 . The COMs should not be confused with the overseas regions and overseas departments which have no particular status . As integral parts of ___MASK5___ , overseas collectivities are represented in the National Assembly , Senate and Economic and Social Council . Only one COM , Saint Martin , is part of the European Union and can vote to elect members of the European Parliament ( MEP ). The Pacific COMs use the CFP franc , a currency pegged to the euro , whereas the Atlantic COMs use the euro directly . As of 31 March 2011 , there were five COMs : Ra ' itea , is the second largest of the ___MASK86___ , after ___MASK49___ , in French Polynesia . The island is widely regarded as the ' centre ' of the eastern islands in ancient Polynesia and it is likely that the organised migrations to Hawai ' i , Aotearoa and other parts of East Polynesia started at Ra ' itea . A traditional name for the island is believed to be Havai ' i . Situated on the south east coast is the historical Taputaputea which was established by 1000AD . The main township on Ra ' itea is ' Uturoa , the administrative centre for the Leeward Islands ( French Îles Sous - le - vent ) . There are also colleges which serve as the main educational location for secondary schools for students from the regional islands of Pora Pora , Taha ' a , Huahine and Maupiti .