Düne

Düne
	Aerial view of Düne
	Düne
Geography
Location	German Bight
Coordinates	54°11′5″N 7°54′44″E / 54.18472°N 7.91222°E / 54.18472; 7.91222
Archipelago	Heligoland
Area	0.7 km2 (0.27 sq mi)
Administration
	Germany
State	Schleswig-Holstein
District	Pinneberg district
Municipality	Heligoland
Demographics
Population	unpopulated
Additional information
Official website	helgoland.de

Düne (Danish: Dynen, North Frisian: de Halem) is one of two islands in the German Bight that form the Archipelago of Heligoland, the other being Heligoland proper.

Geography

The small island of Düne is part of the German State of Schleswig-Holstein. Situated 1.6 kilometres (1 mi) to the east of the main island Heligoland, Düne is part of the Heligoland protected natural area. The island measures 1.26 kilometres (0.78 mi) in length and 0.85 kilometres (0.53 mi) in width. The island is separated from Heligoland proper by the Rede strait.

History

Until the 17th century, Düne was connected to Heligoland. On New Year's Eve 1721 a big storm surge separated the dunes from Heligoland. Therefore, the island that arose was called Düne (English: Dune). In 1935 the size of the island was 10 hectares (25 acres). In 1940 the Nazi government increased the size of the island to 40 hectares (99 acres). This increase was for use as a military airfield. The Heligoland Airfield is still used today and has three runways, of which the longest is 480 metres (1,570 feet).

External links

Düne at the website of Heligoland municipality

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