The Kerguelen Islands ( or ; in French but officially , ), also known as the Desolation Islands ( in French), are a group of islands in the southern Indian Ocean constituting one of the two emerged parts of the mostly submerged Kerguelen Plateau. They are among the most isolated places on Earth, located 450 km (280 mi) northwest of the uninhabited Heard Island and McDonald Islands and more than away from the nearest populated location. The islands, along with Adélie Land, the Crozet Islands and the Amsterdam and Saint Paul Islands, are part of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands and are administered as a separate district.