1993 Edition
CIA World Factbook 1993 (Project Gutenberg)
Geography
Area
total area: 2.8 km2 land area: 2.8 km2 comparative area: about 4.7 times the size of the Mall in Washington, DC
Climate
tropical, but generally dry; consistent northeast trade winds with little seasonal temperature variation
Coastline
10 km
Environment
some low-growing vegetation
International disputes
none
Irrigated land
0 km2
Land boundaries
0 km
Land use
arable land: 0% permanent crops: 0% meadows and pastures: 0% forest and woodland: 0% other: 100%
Location
in the North Pacific Ocean, 1,430 km west-southwest of Honolulu, about one-third of the way between Hawaii and the Marshall Islands
Map references
Oceania
Maritime claims
contiguous zone: 24 nm continental shelf: 200 m or depth of exploitation exclusive economic zone: 200 nm territorial sea: 12 nm
Natural resources
guano (deposits worked until about 1890)
Note
strategic location in the North Pacific Ocean; Johnston Island and Sand Island are natural islands; North Island (Akau) and East Island (Hikina) are manmade islands formed from coral dredging; closed to the public; former nuclear weapons test site; site of Johnston Atoll Chemical Agent Disposal System (JACADS)
Terrain
mostly flat with a maximum elevation of 4 meters
People and Society
Population
no indigenous inhabitants; note - there are 1,400 US Government personnel and contractors
Government
Capital
none; administered from Washington, DC
Digraph
JQ
Diplomatic representation in US
none (territory of the US)
Flag
the flag of the US is used
Names
conventional long form: none conventional short form: Johnston Atoll
Type
unincorportated territory of the US administered by the US Defense Nuclear Agency (DNA) and managed cooperatively by DNA and the Fish and Wildlife Service of the US Department of the Interior as part of the National Wildlife Refuge system
Economy
Electricity
supplied by the management and operations contractor
Overview
Economic activity is limited to providing services to US military personnel and contractors located on the island. All food and manufactured goods must be imported.
Communications
Airports
total: 1 usable: 1 with permanent-surface runways: 1 with runways over 3,659 m: with runways 2,440 to 3,659 m: 1 with TACAN and beacon with runways 1,220 to 2,439 m:
Telecommunications
excellent system including 60-channel submarine cable, Autodin/SRT terminal, digital telephone switch, Military Affiliated Radio System (MARS station), commercial satellite television system, and UHF/VHF air-ground radio
Military and Security
Note
defense is the responsibility of the US