Wake Island

unincorporated territory of the US administered by the US Air Force (under

Wake Island as the 1992 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 25 fields, one of 36 editions from 1990 to 2025.

field in that editiontext changed from the edition beforenot in that editionthe open editionEach field below ends in its editions, 1990 to 2025. Point at a year above to follow it down.

Capitalnone

Area6.5 km2

Populationas each edition published it

381 people January | 1992 · 195 in 1990

Population growth% a year

Not in this edition 0% in 1995

Geography

13 fields

Total area

6.5km2

Comparative area: about 11 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC

Coastline

19.3km

land boundaries: noneContiguous zone: 12 nmContinental shelf: 200 m (depth)Exclusive economic zone: 200 nmTerritorial sea: 12 nm

Land area

6.5 km2

Disputes

claimed by the Republic of the Marshall Islands

Climate

tropical

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 four meters

Natural resources

none

Land use

arable land 0%;
permanent crops 0%;
meadows and pastures 0%;
forest and woodland 0%;
other 100%

Environment

subject to occasional typhoons

Note

strategic location 3,700 km west of Honolulu in the North Pacific Ocean, about two-thirds of the way between Hawaii and the Northern Mariana Islands;
emergency landing location for transpacific flights

People

1 field

Population

no indigenous inhabitants;
381 temporary population (US Air Force personnel, civilian weather service personnel, and US and Thai contractors) (January 1992);
note - population peaked about 1970 with over 1,600 persons during the Vietnam conflict

Government

Unincorporated territory of the US administered by the US Air Force (under

4 fields

Long-form name

none

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

Capital

none; administered from Washington, DC

Flag

the US flag is used

Economy

Economic activity is limited to providing services to US military personnel | and contractors located on the island.

2 fields

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.

Electricity

supplied by US military

Communications

4 fields

Ports

none; because of the reefs, there are only two offshore anchorages for large ships

Airports

1 with permanent-surface runways 2,440-3,659 m

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