Sand Cay, Namyit Island, and Gaven Reef, Tizard Bank, and Discovery Great Reef, Spratly Islands
Updated August 26, 2024
South of Loaita Bank and within the triangle created by China's three military islands, we find Tizard Bank. Tizard Bank is busy, containing Taiping Island (Republic of China military island), an inhabited Sand Cay, Gavin Reef (Chinese militarized island), and one other Vietnamese island. Tizard Bank is seeing significant land reclamation efforts.
Namyit Island is completely reformed, enlarged about 10x from its prior size. We see this as a significant island under development, now fully at shape with a large, enclose rectangular protected bay.
Just west of Tizard Bank are two atolls, Flora Temple (submerged and untouched), and Great Discovery Reef (which is long and thin, and has reclamation infrastructure present). Flora Temple is 100% submerged and natural.
We will start with Great Discovery Reef, then explore Tizard Bank (excluding ROC islands of Taiping and Zhengzhou Reef).
South of Loaita Bank and within the triangle created by China's three military islands, we find Tizard Bank. Tizard Bank is busy, containing Taiping Island (Republic of China military island), an inhabited Sand Cay, Gavin Reef (Chinese militarized island), and one other Vietnamese island. Tizard Bank is seeing significant land reclamation efforts.
Namyit Island is completely reformed, enlarged about 10x from its prior size. We see this as a significant island under development, now fully at shape with a large, enclose rectangular protected bay.
Just west of Tizard Bank are two atolls, Flora Temple (submerged and untouched), and Great Discovery Reef (which is long and thin, and has reclamation infrastructure present). Flora Temple is 100% submerged and natural.
We will start with Great Discovery Reef, then explore Tizard Bank (excluding ROC islands of Taiping and Zhengzhou Reef).
Discovery Great Reef is 9.3 miles long, and travels in a straight line from North to South. In 2020, we found an reclamation infrastructure station, complete with helipad, at the SE corner at location: 10°01'38"N 113°50'50"E. Satellite imagery date: 5/13/2020. It is two pieces of infrastructure, a helipad, and a building, along with a small sandy outcropping. The four structures are connected by a wide bridge.
Coming back in 2024, we see a fully developed island to the south, and a reclamation under-way in the north on that reef.
Maxar Xpress shows three reclamations underway on the island, including one with a helipad at Dao Da Lon A, but no island, on August 29, 2024.
Great Discovery Reef is 96 km east by northeast from Fiery Cross Reef, a primary PRC militarized island in the Spratly Islands (one of three). Location: 10°01'24"N 113°51’17”E.
On the West side of the reef, we see two structures connected by a bridge. I wonder if these are dredging structures, or if they serve some other purpose. The two images below are from the South, then the North of the atoll.
Coming back in 2024, we see a fully developed island to the south, and a reclamation under-way in the north on that reef.
Maxar Xpress shows three reclamations underway on the island, including one with a helipad at Dao Da Lon A, but no island, on August 29, 2024.
Great Discovery Reef is 96 km east by northeast from Fiery Cross Reef, a primary PRC militarized island in the Spratly Islands (one of three). Location: 10°01'24"N 113°51’17”E.
On the West side of the reef, we see two structures connected by a bridge. I wonder if these are dredging structures, or if they serve some other purpose. The two images below are from the South, then the North of the atoll.
Great Discovery Reef shows significant development in two locations, in recent 8/8/2024 satellite imagery from Sentinel-2 L2A, in false color. They are not as easy to see in normal or 'true' color. A measurement of the southern development finds a length of 2.0 km, and the line stretches another 2.3 km. That could be a floating pipe to bring in sand, or it could be the beginnings of a protected cove for ships. Finally, as it spans the atoll from one edge to another, it could be the basis for a much larger island development that is as wide as the atoll. We also notice building at the southern edge of the island, and an enclosed bay with one access in. This is a fantastic, new development which was not visible in Google Earth 2020 imagery.
Tizard Bank and Eldad Reef
These two underwater, coral formations are adjacent and we consider them as a single formation. They stretch 37.2 miles long, and the Tizard Bank section is approximately 13 miles wide. We identified six formations within the atoll. We start at the North Gaven Reef (in the Southwest) and move clockwise to end at South Gaven Reef (underwater).
These two underwater, coral formations are adjacent and we consider them as a single formation. They stretch 37.2 miles long, and the Tizard Bank section is approximately 13 miles wide. We identified six formations within the atoll. We start at the North Gaven Reef (in the Southwest) and move clockwise to end at South Gaven Reef (underwater).
Gaven Reef
Gaven Reef, a.k.a., Nanxun Island, China is a well-structured island built into a fortress.
Tizard Bank 1
Location: 10°12'05"N 114°14’13, is a small man-made island, rectangular, with two wide arms forming a wide protected bay. It has two blue radomes, and what appear to be 32 storage sheds or corrugated metal buildings. There is one large building with four raised turrets at the corners (might be anti-aircraft cannons on two or three of them. This is the same architecture I saw on other islands, where there is a ramp leading into the building, but there are no cars on the island. We also see the blue rectangular shape by the pier that we have seen on other PRC militarized islands. There is a helipad on the southern arm.
From Sentinel-2 imagery on 7/31/2024, we can still see the same shape of the man-made fortress as it appeared in Google Earth on 10/27/2023.
According to Wikipedia, the island is occupied and controlled by the PRC and administered as part of Sansha. It is also claimed by ROC, the Philippines and Vietnam. The island is called Nanxun Jiao in Chinese, Burgos Reefs in Filipino, and Da Ga Ven in Vietnamese.
We have new satellite imagery of the island from 10/27/2023. The previous imagery is on the left and the new imagery is on the right. Finally, there is a reddish-brown man-made structure just to the west of the island, but still within the coral reef, and to the northwest of that is a navigation aid.
Gaven Reef, a.k.a., Nanxun Island, China is a well-structured island built into a fortress.
Tizard Bank 1
Location: 10°12'05"N 114°14’13, is a small man-made island, rectangular, with two wide arms forming a wide protected bay. It has two blue radomes, and what appear to be 32 storage sheds or corrugated metal buildings. There is one large building with four raised turrets at the corners (might be anti-aircraft cannons on two or three of them. This is the same architecture I saw on other islands, where there is a ramp leading into the building, but there are no cars on the island. We also see the blue rectangular shape by the pier that we have seen on other PRC militarized islands. There is a helipad on the southern arm.
From Sentinel-2 imagery on 7/31/2024, we can still see the same shape of the man-made fortress as it appeared in Google Earth on 10/27/2023.
According to Wikipedia, the island is occupied and controlled by the PRC and administered as part of Sansha. It is also claimed by ROC, the Philippines and Vietnam. The island is called Nanxun Jiao in Chinese, Burgos Reefs in Filipino, and Da Ga Ven in Vietnamese.
We have new satellite imagery of the island from 10/27/2023. The previous imagery is on the left and the new imagery is on the right. Finally, there is a reddish-brown man-made structure just to the west of the island, but still within the coral reef, and to the northwest of that is a navigation aid.
There are storage sheds on the west side of the island. This island has a helipad and a dock facility with crane. Finally, there is a ramp that seems to lead from the southern tip of the island into the sea, but elevated well above the sea.
The Northern and Southern 'arms' also appear to have a buildings on them. We also notice a blue 'tarp' or roof in a perfectly rectangular shape, and it is not very tall compared to the buildings adjacent to it.
We see a significant number of boats in both sets of satellite imagery.
The Northern and Southern 'arms' also appear to have a buildings on them. We also notice a blue 'tarp' or roof in a perfectly rectangular shape, and it is not very tall compared to the buildings adjacent to it.
We see a significant number of boats in both sets of satellite imagery.
Sand Cay, Son Ca, Vietnam
Sand Cay a.k.a., Bailan Island (Philippines), Son Ca Island (Vietnamese) and Dunqian Shazhou (Chinese).
This is an inhabited island with signs of significant, recent land reclamation effort underway. Our most recent image is dated 10/19/2023, and shows ships in the area, and reclamation shapes to the west of the island. This island has grown at least 4x from where we see established greenery, with more to fill in. Sentinel-2 and Maxar Xpress show streets extending into the water, likely due to more recent reclamation work.
This is a developed teardrop island, that has been doubled in size, and has a set of sea lanes carved in the reef and built into paths into the water. This is a new feature, vehicle-ready paths build on the reef. This reef appears to have room to grow. We see a helipad, a lighthouse, and a very tall communication tower. Also, we see some solar panels.
This looks like a spot for significant habitation and fishing over time. We see boats in the vicinity in this satellite photo.
Location: 10°22'34"N 114°28’24”E. The original island is 0.26 miles long, and is now 0.64 miles long including areas enclosed but needing to be filled in. This is still a small island in the South China Sea, and likely too small for an airport.
These Vietnamese islands may be solely for fishing support, as Vietnam gains much of its protein, and its export revenue from ocean fishing. This provides fisherman safety in a storm, and the piers, helipads, docks and buildings allow for habitation and resupply for those who wish to remain on the islands?
The image on the top is newer than the image on the bottom, and this is the same location. We can see the significant development north and east with the additional land reclaimed on the coral reef.
Sand Cay a.k.a., Bailan Island (Philippines), Son Ca Island (Vietnamese) and Dunqian Shazhou (Chinese).
This is an inhabited island with signs of significant, recent land reclamation effort underway. Our most recent image is dated 10/19/2023, and shows ships in the area, and reclamation shapes to the west of the island. This island has grown at least 4x from where we see established greenery, with more to fill in. Sentinel-2 and Maxar Xpress show streets extending into the water, likely due to more recent reclamation work.
This is a developed teardrop island, that has been doubled in size, and has a set of sea lanes carved in the reef and built into paths into the water. This is a new feature, vehicle-ready paths build on the reef. This reef appears to have room to grow. We see a helipad, a lighthouse, and a very tall communication tower. Also, we see some solar panels.
This looks like a spot for significant habitation and fishing over time. We see boats in the vicinity in this satellite photo.
Location: 10°22'34"N 114°28’24”E. The original island is 0.26 miles long, and is now 0.64 miles long including areas enclosed but needing to be filled in. This is still a small island in the South China Sea, and likely too small for an airport.
These Vietnamese islands may be solely for fishing support, as Vietnam gains much of its protein, and its export revenue from ocean fishing. This provides fisherman safety in a storm, and the piers, helipads, docks and buildings allow for habitation and resupply for those who wish to remain on the islands?
The image on the top is newer than the image on the bottom, and this is the same location. We can see the significant development north and east with the additional land reclaimed on the coral reef.
From the older satellite imagery of Sand Cay, we see a ship and a vehicle, a tall radio tower and a helipad. The focus this time around is the number and type of construction vehicles and equipment (e.g., cranes) on the island and working.
We see significant reclamation activity on the island. In this last photo, we see a boat docked at one of the reef ‘footpaths’ tethered to the shore in three points, along with a vehicle that also seems tethered to the ship.
The land mass has more than doubled (our estimate) and the diameter of the island is now 0.65 miles. Notice the new land on the north, east and south of the island, although the south appears to be under continued development.
We see significant reclamation activity on the island. In this last photo, we see a boat docked at one of the reef ‘footpaths’ tethered to the shore in three points, along with a vehicle that also seems tethered to the ship.
The land mass has more than doubled (our estimate) and the diameter of the island is now 0.65 miles. Notice the new land on the north, east and south of the island, although the south appears to be under continued development.
Tizard 5 - Small spit of sand. Tizard 5 Eldad Reef is a tiny bit of sand at the northeastern corner of the atoll labeled Dao Da Thi, connecting two sturdy structures and a walkway.
We pass East past Petley Reef (underwater), three unnamed reefs, and Eldad Reef which has a tiny sand outcropping at its NorthEast corner. In fact, this location is the Northeast anchor for this set of reefs. Location: 10°21'58"N 114°42’58”E. The satellite is dated 03/12/2019, so it is 3.5 years old.
We confirm the same, small sandy spit at the northeast corner of Eldad Reef, measuring 162 meters long, in Sentinel-2 L2A True Color satellite imagery from 7/31/2024.
We pass East past Petley Reef (underwater), three unnamed reefs, and Eldad Reef which has a tiny sand outcropping at its NorthEast corner. In fact, this location is the Northeast anchor for this set of reefs. Location: 10°21'58"N 114°42’58”E. The satellite is dated 03/12/2019, so it is 3.5 years old.
We confirm the same, small sandy spit at the northeast corner of Eldad Reef, measuring 162 meters long, in Sentinel-2 L2A True Color satellite imagery from 7/31/2024.
Namyit Island, Dao Nam Yet, Vietnam
Namyit Island (occupied by Vietnam) has undergone significant land reclamation between 6/10/2020 and 10/27/2023, and through 7/31/2024. It is now 2.52km in length, up from a prior length of 700 meters.
It was formerly a long, thin island that measured 0.43 miles in diameter, and now rectangular, with a diameter of 1.05 miles. That includes the to be 'filled in' areas on the western side of the island. There is still continued construction underway. The protected bay is rectangular and sturdy.
We see numerous reclamation shapes, ships, cranes, and two different colors of construction sand (orange/red and grey/black). There is a small sand spit extending from the north of the island, so there may be continued work being performed there. The west of the bay is a full-on land reclamation project, and we see numerous reclamation shapes in stages of use, and empty to be filled with sand/rock.
We see a large protected cove or bay with what looks to be significant pier access, measurements 0.25 miles x 0.29 miles.
Namyit Island is a fully developed island with two large, elevated radomes, a navigational light, a helipad, and continued reclamation efforts on the west of the island. This satellite photo is dated 06/10/2020. We see a significant number of buildings, and some of which look very old. There is a navigation light. The diameter of the island measured 0.53 miles in 2020, although it measures smaller today at 0.43 miles.
We also notice many set defensive installations on the island on the south waterfront of the old town by the radomes that look like anti-aircraft cannons. These are fairly close together, and may have been moved from the north of the old town that is now inland. Moving east we see additional anti-aircraft cannons, and what look to be round, fortified, gun emplacements. Finally, the satellite imagery appears to be a little bent or distorted.
This has a very small dock on the Southern middle section. The buildings have an interesting shape on their roofs, which is either solar panels, or open air roofs. Also, we do not see clear roads on the island, which leads us to believe the roads are covered with trees, or the residents travel by foot or bicycle. Normally we can see the roads.
Latest Satellite imagery from Google Earth dated 10/27/2023.
2020 Location: 10°10'46"N 114°21’55"E.
2023 Location: 10°11'00"N 114°21'37"E
Namyit Island (occupied by Vietnam) has undergone significant land reclamation between 6/10/2020 and 10/27/2023, and through 7/31/2024. It is now 2.52km in length, up from a prior length of 700 meters.
It was formerly a long, thin island that measured 0.43 miles in diameter, and now rectangular, with a diameter of 1.05 miles. That includes the to be 'filled in' areas on the western side of the island. There is still continued construction underway. The protected bay is rectangular and sturdy.
We see numerous reclamation shapes, ships, cranes, and two different colors of construction sand (orange/red and grey/black). There is a small sand spit extending from the north of the island, so there may be continued work being performed there. The west of the bay is a full-on land reclamation project, and we see numerous reclamation shapes in stages of use, and empty to be filled with sand/rock.
We see a large protected cove or bay with what looks to be significant pier access, measurements 0.25 miles x 0.29 miles.
Namyit Island is a fully developed island with two large, elevated radomes, a navigational light, a helipad, and continued reclamation efforts on the west of the island. This satellite photo is dated 06/10/2020. We see a significant number of buildings, and some of which look very old. There is a navigation light. The diameter of the island measured 0.53 miles in 2020, although it measures smaller today at 0.43 miles.
We also notice many set defensive installations on the island on the south waterfront of the old town by the radomes that look like anti-aircraft cannons. These are fairly close together, and may have been moved from the north of the old town that is now inland. Moving east we see additional anti-aircraft cannons, and what look to be round, fortified, gun emplacements. Finally, the satellite imagery appears to be a little bent or distorted.
This has a very small dock on the Southern middle section. The buildings have an interesting shape on their roofs, which is either solar panels, or open air roofs. Also, we do not see clear roads on the island, which leads us to believe the roads are covered with trees, or the residents travel by foot or bicycle. Normally we can see the roads.
Latest Satellite imagery from Google Earth dated 10/27/2023.
2020 Location: 10°10'46"N 114°21’55"E.
2023 Location: 10°11'00"N 114°21'37"E
South Gaven Reef
We finish the survey by viewing South Gaven Reef at the Southwest corner of this set of reefs, but it is submerged with no man-made structures.
One of the things we notice is that some of the roofs are either broken or open air on purpose. We have seen this in Puerto Rico after a storm, where buildings are damaged, water and mold set in, and it is expensive and slow to repair buildings. We saw significant number of buildings abandoned in Puerto Rico once water damage sets in after a storm, and wonder if this island shows the same type of effects from a storm.
We finish the survey by viewing South Gaven Reef at the Southwest corner of this set of reefs, but it is submerged with no man-made structures.
One of the things we notice is that some of the roofs are either broken or open air on purpose. We have seen this in Puerto Rico after a storm, where buildings are damaged, water and mold set in, and it is expensive and slow to repair buildings. We saw significant number of buildings abandoned in Puerto Rico once water damage sets in after a storm, and wonder if this island shows the same type of effects from a storm.
Area
Name 1
Nearest Land
Distance from Land (miles)
Location (latitude & longitude)
Diameter (miles)
Date of Satellite Imagery
Airport Present?
Helipad Present?
Port / Dock Facility Present?
Buildings Present?
Defensive Infrastructure Present?
Athletic Facilities Present?
Hospital Present?
Sand Only Island?
Dredging Infrastructure Only?
Spratly Islands
Great Discovery Reef
Philippines and Vietnam
275 and 318
10°01'24"N 113°51'16"E
9.3
5/13/2020
No
Yes
No
No
No
No
No
Yes
Yes
Spratly Islands
Tizard Bank (6 islands)
Philippines and Vietnam
228 and 363
10°12'05"N 114°14’13
37.2
10/27/2023
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
No
Yes (on some)
No
Name 1
Nearest Land
Distance from Land (miles)
Location (latitude & longitude)
Diameter (miles)
Date of Satellite Imagery
Airport Present?
Helipad Present?
Port / Dock Facility Present?
Buildings Present?
Defensive Infrastructure Present?
Athletic Facilities Present?
Hospital Present?
Sand Only Island?
Dredging Infrastructure Only?
Spratly Islands
Great Discovery Reef
Philippines and Vietnam
275 and 318
10°01'24"N 113°51'16"E
9.3
5/13/2020
No
Yes
No
No
No
No
No
Yes
Yes
Spratly Islands
Tizard Bank (6 islands)
Philippines and Vietnam
228 and 363
10°12'05"N 114°14’13
37.2
10/27/2023
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
No
Yes (on some)
No