Azores inhabitants. The nine islands that compose the archipelago occupy a surface area of , that includes both the main islands and many islets located in their vicinities. Each of the islands has its own distinct geomorphological characteristics that make them unique: Corvo (the smallest island) is a crater of a major Plinian eruption; Flores (its neighbor on the North American Plate) is a rugged island carved by many valleys and escarpments; Faial characterized for its shield volcano and caldera (Cabeço Gordo); Pico, is the highest point, at , in the Azores and continental Portugal; Graciosa is known for its active
History of the Azores fact in Christopher Columbus' notes, and it was one reason why Columbus presumed that India was on the other side of the ocean. In "A History of the Azores", written by Thomas Ashe in 1813, the author talks of the discovery of the islands by Joshua Vander Berg of Bruges, who landed there during a storm on his way to Lisbon. This claim is generally discredited among academics today. As were local stories of a mysterious equestrian statue and coins with Carthaginian writing that were purportedly discovered on island of Corvo, or the strange inscriptions found along the coast of