SELECT EDITION
CATEGORIES
◆ COMMUNICATIONS(2 fields)
Note
there is a day beacon near the middle of the west coast
Ports
none; offshore anchorage only--one boat landing area in the middle of the west coast and another near the southwest corner of the island
◆ DEFENSE FORCES(1 fields)
Note
defense is the responsibility of the US; visited annually by the US Coast Guard
◆ ECONOMY(1 fields)
Overview
no economic activity
◆ GEOGRAPHY(14 fields)
Climate
tropical; scant rainfall, constant wind, burning sun
Coastline
8 km
Comparative area
about 7.5 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC
Contiguous zone
12 nm;
Continental shelf
200 m;
Environment
sparse bunch grass, prostrate vines, and low-growing shrubs; lacks fresh water; primarily a nesting, roosting, and foraging habitat for seabirds, shorebirds, and marine wildlife; feral cats
Extended economic zone
200 nm;
Land boundaries
none
Land use
0% arable land; 0% permanent crops; 0% meadows and pastures; 0% forest and woodland; 100% other
Natural resources
guano (deposits worked until late 1800s)
Note
2,090 km south of Honolulu in the South Pacific Ocean, just south of the Equator, about halfway between Hawaii and the Cook Islands
Terrain
sandy, coral island surrounded by a narrow fringing reef
Territorial sea
12 nm
Total area
4.5 km2; land area: 4.5 km2
◆ GOVERNMENT(2 fields)
Long-form name
none (territory of the US)
Type
unincorporated territory of the US administered by the Fish and Wildlife Service of the US Department of the Interior as part of the National Wildlife Refuge System
◆ PEOPLE(2 fields)
Note
Millersville settlement on western side of island occasionally used as a weather station from 1935 until World War II, when it was abandoned; reoccupied in 1957 during the International Geophysical Year by scientists who left in 1958; public entry is by special-use permit only and generally restricted to scientists and educators
Population
uninhabited