Santorini is an island in the southern Aegean Sea, about 200 km (120 mi) southeast of Greece's mainland. It is the largest island of a small, circular archipelago which bears the same name and is the remnant of a volcanic caldera.
Santorini is essentially what remains after an enormous volcanic eruption that destroyed the earliest settlements on a formerly single island, and created the current geological caldera. A giant central, rectangular lagoon, which measures about 12 by 7 km (7.5 by 4.3 mi), is surrounded by 300 m (980 ft) high, steep cliffs on three sides.
The main island slopes downward to the Aegean Sea. On the fourth side, the lagoon is separated from the sea by another much smaller island called Therasia; the lagoon is connected to the sea in two places, in the northwest and southwest. The depth of the caldera, at 400m, makes it possible for all but the largest ships to anchor anywhere in the protected bay.
The capital, Fira, clings to the top of the cliff looking down on the lagoon.Fira is a city of white-washed houses built on the edge of the 400 metres high caldera on the western edge of the semi-circular island of Thera. The two main museums of interest are the Archaeological Museum of Thera, 30 metres (98 feet) east of the cable car entrance, and the Museum of Prehistoric Thera at the southeast corner of the White Orthodox Cathedral of Ypapanti, built on the site of an earlier church destroyed in the 1956 earthquake.
Access to Fira is mainly by roads on its eastern side, climbing from its port via the Z-shaped footpath on foot or on donkeys, or by riding the steep cable car from its lower terminal by the port. The central square of Fira is called Plateia Theotokopoulou, with a bus and taxi station, banks and pharmacies. From Fira there is a panoramic view of the 18 kilometres (11 miles) long caldera from southern Cape Akrotiri to northern Cape Ag. Nikolaos, plus the volcanic island Nea Kameni at the center with Thirassia Island in the Aegean.
Santorini was named by the Latin Empire in the thirteenth century, and is a reference to Saint Irene, from the name of the old cathedral in the village of Perissa - the name Santorini is a contraction of the name Santa Irini. Before then, it was known as Kallístē or Thēra. The name Thera was revived in the nineteenth century as the official name of the island and its main city, but the colloquial name Santorini is still in popular use. During the Ottoman Empire's domination of the Aegean Sea, the Turkish exonym for the island was "Santurin" or "Santoron".
Santorini and Anafi are the only locations in Europe to feature a hot desert climate according to the Köppen climate classification system.Santorini generally experiences two seasons. April to October is the warm and dry season and the cold and rainy season lasts from November to March.Total rainfall averages about 15 inches per year.
The expansion of tourism has resulted in the growth of the economy and population. The major settlements include Fira (Phira), Oia, Emporio, Kamari, Perissa, Imerovigli, Pyrgos, and Therasia. Akrotiri is a major archaeological site, with ruins from the Minoan era. Santorini's primary industry is tourism, particularly in the summer months. In 2007, the cruise ship MS Sea Diamond ran aground and sank inside the caldera. The island's pumice quarries have been closed since 1986, in order to preserve the caldera. Santorini was ranked the world's top island for many other magazines and travel sites, including the Travel+Leisure Magazine, the BBC, as well as the US News.
