1993 Edition
CIA World Factbook 1993 (Project Gutenberg)
Geography
Area
total area: 6.5 km2 land area: 6.5 km2 comparative area: about 11 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC
Climate
tropical
Coastline
19.3 km
Environment
subject to occasional typhoons
International disputes
claimed by the Republic of the Marshall Islands
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, 3,700 km west of Honolulu, about two-thirds of the way between Hawaii and the Northern Mariana 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
none
Note
strategic location in the North Pacific Ocean; emergency landing location for transpacific flights
Terrain
atoll of three coral islands built up on an underwater volcano; central lagoon is former crater, islands are part of the rim; average elevation less than 4 meters
People and Society
Population
no indigenous inhabitants; note - there are 302 US Air Force personnel, civilian weather service personnel, and US and Thai contractors; population peaked about 1970 with over 1,600 persons during the Vietnam conflict
Government
Capital
none; administered from Washington, DC
Digraph
WQ
Flag
the US flag is used
Independence
none (territory of the US)
Names
conventional long form: none conventional short form: Wake Island
Type
unincorporated territory of the US administered by the US Air Force (under an agreement with the US Department of Interior) since 24 June 1972
Economy
Electricity
supplied by US military
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 2,440-3,659 m: 1 with runways 1,220-2,439 m:
Note
formerly an important commercial aviation base, now used only by US military and some commercial cargo planes
Ports
none; because of the reefs, there are only two offshore anchorages for large ships
Telecommunications
underwater cables to Guam and through Midway to Honolulu; 1 Autovon circuit off the Overseas Telephone System (OTS); Armed Forces Radio/Television Service (AFRTS) radio and television service provided by satellite; broadcast stations - 1 AM, no FM, no TV