Wake Island

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Introduction - Wake Island:
Country	Wake Island


Background	The US annexed Wake Island in 1899 for a cable station. An important air and naval base was constructed in 1940-41. In December 1941, the island was captured by the Japanese and held until the end of World War II. In subsequent years, Wake was developed as a stopover and refueling site for military and commercial aircraft transiting the Pacific. Since 1974, the islands airstrip has been used by the US military, as well as for emergency landings. All operations on the island were suspended and all personnel evacuated in August 2006 with the approach of super typhoon IOKE (category 5), which struck the island with sustained winds of 250 kph and a 6 m storm surge inflicting major damage. A US Air Force assessment and repair team returned to the island in September and restored limited function to the airfield and facilities. The future status of activities on the island will be determined upon completion of the survey and assessment.


Location - Wake Island:
Location	Oceania, atoll in the North Pacific Ocean, about two-thirds of the way from Hawaii to the Northern Mariana Islands

Geographic coordinates	19 17 N, 166 39 E

Map references	Oceania

Area	total: 6.5 sq km land: 6.5 sq km water: 0 sq km

Area comparative	about 11 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC

Land boundaries	0 km

Coastline	19.3 km

Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm

Climate	tropical

Terrain	atoll of three low coral islands, Peale, Wake, and Wilkes, built up on an underwater volcano; central lagoon is former crater, islands are part of the rim

Elevation extremes	lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location 6 m

Natural resources	none

Land use	arable land: 0% permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2005)

Irrigated land	0 sq km

Natural hazards	occasional typhoons

Environment current issues	NA

Geography note	strategic location in the North Pacific Ocean; emergency landing location for transpacific flights

People - Wake Island:
Population	no indigenous inhabitants note: since super typhoon IOKE, a small military contingent along with 75 contractor personnel have returned to the island to conduct clean-up and restore basic operations on the island (July 2007 est.)

Dependency status	unorganized, unincorporated territory of the US; administered from Washington, DC, by the Department of the Interior; activities in the atoll are currently conducted by the US Air Force

Transportation note	there are no commercial or civilian flights to and from Wake Island, except in direct support of island missions; emergency landing is available

Government - Wake Island:
Country name	conventional long form: none conventional short form: Wake Island

Legal system	the laws of the US, where applicable, apply

Flag description	the flag of the US is used

Economy - Wake Island:
Economy overview	Economic activity is limited to providing services to military personnel and contractors located on the island. All food and manufactured goods must be imported.

Electricity production	NA kWh

Communications - Wake Island:
Telephone system	general assessment: satellite communications; 2 DSN circuits off the Overseas Telephone System (OTS) domestic: NA international: NA

Radio broadcast stations	AM 0, FM 0, shortwave 0 (Armed Forces Radio/Television Service (AFRTS) radio service provided by satellite (2005)

Television broadcast stations	0 (2005)

Transportation - Wake Island:
Airports	1 (2006)

Airports with paved runways	total: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 (2006)

Ports and terminals	none; two offshore anchorages for large ships

Military - Wake Island:
Military note	defense is the responsibility of the US; the US Air Force is responsible for overall administration and operation of the island; the launch support facility is administered by the US Missile Defense Agency (MDA)