OCEANIA, the smallest continent, is one of the most diverse and fascinating areas on the planet.

A large percentage of geography experts now consider the long-established continent of Australia to be more accurately defined as Australia/Oceania.

Collectively it then combines all of Australia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, as well as the thousands of coral atolls and volcanic islands of the South Pacific Ocean, including the Melanesia and Polynesia groups.

Oceania also includes Micronesia, a widely scattered group of islands that run along the northern and southern edges of the Equator.

(Hawaii, Johnson Atoll and Midway Islands are located for reference only, and are not a part of Oceania.)

Melanesia includes the independent countries of Fiji and Vanuatu, as well as the Solomon Islands and New Caledonia.

Micronesia islands are all part of the same volcanic zone, and include the Marshall Islands, the nations of Micronesia (FSM), Palau, Kiribati and Nauru. In addition, it includes Guam, Saipan, the Northern Mariana Islands, as well as Wake Island.

Polynesia contains numerous island groups, including all of French Polynesia and the Austral, Gambier, Marquesas, Society and Tuamoto islands. In addition, the Cook Islands, Easter Island, Niue, the Pitcairn Islands, Tuvalu, and Wallis and Futuna.