1989 Edition
CIA World Factbook 1989 (Internet Archive)
Geography
Climate
tropical; hot, rainy season (November to April); cool, dry season (May to October)
Coastline
1 29 km
Comparative area
slightly larger than Washington, DC
Continental shelf
200 meters or to depth of exploitation
Environment
both island groups have fringing reefs
Extended economic zone
200 nm
Flag
the US flag is used
Land boundaries
none
Land use
5% arable land; 20% permanent crops; 0% meadows and pastures; 0% forest and woodland; 75% other
Natural resources
negligible
Note
located 4,600 km southwest of Honolulu in the South Pacific Ocean about two-thirds of the way from Hawaii to
Terrain
volcanic origin; low hills
Territorial sea
1 2 nm
Total area
274 km2; land area: 274 km2
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
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
1 with permanent-surface runways 2,987 m
Note
- formerly an important commercial aviation base, now used only by US military and some commercial cargo planes Defense Forces
- defense is the responsibility of the US MATA-UTUj He Uvet? South Pacific Ocean lie Futuna lie Atofi Ste region*! map X
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; AFRTS radio and television service provided by satellite; stations — 1 AM, no FM, no TV