Broadcast media [time series]

American Armed Forces Radio and Television Service (AFRTS) provides satellite radio/TV broadcasts (2018)

Telecommunication systems [time series]

general assessment: satellite communications; 2 Defense Switched Network circuits off the Overseas Telephone System (OTS); located in the Hawaii area code - 808 (2018) (2018)

Carbon dioxide emissions [time series]

1.221 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2022 est.) from petroleum and other liquids: 1.221 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2022 est.)

Electricity access [time series]

electrification - total population: 100% (2021)

Petroleum [time series]

refined petroleum consumption: 8,000 bbl/day (2022 est.)

Climate [time series]

tropical

Environment - current issues [time series]

potable water obtained through a catchment rainwater system and a desalinization plant for brackish ground water; hazardous wastes moved to an accumulation site for storage and eventual transport off site via barge

Land use [time series]

agricultural land: 0% (2018 est.) other: 100% (2018 est.)

Area [time series]

total : 7 sq km land: 6.5 sq km water: 0 sq km

Area - comparative [time series]

about 11 times the size of the National Mall in Washington, DC

Climate [time series]

tropical

Coastline [time series]

19.3 km

Elevation [time series]

highest point: unnamed location 8 m lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m

Geographic coordinates [time series]

19 17 N, 166 39 E

Geography - note [time series]

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

Irrigated land [time series]

0 sq km (2022)

Land boundaries [time series]

total: 0 km

Land use [time series]

agricultural land: 0% (2018 est.) other: 100% (2018 est.)

Location [time series]

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

Map references [time series]

Oceania

Maritime claims [time series]

territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm

Natural hazards [time series]

subject to occasional typhoons

Natural resources [time series]

none

Terrain [time series]

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

Citizenship [time series]

see United States

Country name [time series]

conventional long form: none conventional short form: Wake Island etymology: although first discovered by British Captain William WAKE in 1792, the island is named after British Captain Samuel WAKE, who rediscovered the island in 1796

Dependency status [time series]

unincorporated unorganized territory of the US; administered from Washington, DC, by the Department of the Interior; activities in the atoll are currently conducted by the 11th US Air Force and managed from Pacific Air Force Support Center

Flag (Flag description) [time series]

the flag of the US is used

Independence [time series]

none (territory of the US)

Legal system [time series]

US common law

Background [time series]

Early Micronesian and Polynesian settlers probably visited Wake Island, and oral legends tell of periodic voyages to the islands by people from the Marshall Islands. Wake Island was uninhabited when Spanish explorer Alvaro de Mendana de NEYRA became the first European to see it in 1568 and still had no inhabitants when English captain Samuel WAKE sailed by it in 1796. The United States Exploring Expedition visited the island in 1841, and the US annexed it in 1899 to use as a cable and refueling station for its newly acquired Pacific territories of Hawaii, the Philippines, and Guam. In the 1930s, Pan American Airways built facilities on Wake Island so that it could be used as a stopover for flights from the US to China. In 1941, the US began to install military assets on Wake Island, and Japan then captured the island and held it until the end of World War II. In 1946, commercial airlines resumed using Wake Island as a refueling stop. In 1973, the Marshall Islands claimed Wake Island, based on the oral legends, although the US has not recognized these claims. In 1974, the US military took exclusive control of the island s airstrip and restricted visitors. In 1978, Bikini Islanders from the Marshall Islands, who were evacuated in the 1950s and 1960s because of US nuclear tests, considered rehoming on Wake Island, but the US military rejected that plan. Since the 1970s, the island has been important for missile defense testing. In 2009, Wake Island was included in the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument.

Military - note [time series]

defense is the responsibility of the US; the island serves as a trans-Pacific refueling stop for military aircraft and supports US Missile Defense Agency (MDA) testing activities; the US Air Force is responsible for overall administration and operation of the island facilities while the launch support facility is administered by the MDA (2024)

Population [time series]

total: (2018 est.) no indigenous inhabitants note: approximately 100 military personnel and civilian contractors maintain and operate the airfield and communications facilities

Airports [time series]

1 (2024)

Ports [time series]

total ports: 1 (2024) large: 0 medium: 0 small: 0 very small: 1 ports with oil terminals: 1 key ports: Wake Island

Transportation - note [time series]

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