# Library

ABOUT REFERENCES APPENDICES FAQs CONTACT

Australia-Oceania :: Palmyra Atoll (territory of the US)

- ## Introduction :: PALMYRA ATOLL

- Background:
  The Kingdom of Hawaii claimed the atoll in 1862, and the US included it among the Hawaiian Islands when it annexed the archipelago in 1898. The Hawaii Statehood Act of 1959 did not include Palmyra Atoll, which is now part privately owned by the Nature Conservancy and part US Government-owned and administered as a nature preserve. The lagoons and surrounding waters within the 12-nautical-mile US territorial seas were transferred to the US Fish and Wildlife Service and were designated a National Wildlife Refuge in January 2001.

- ## Geography :: PALMYRA ATOLL

- Location:
  Oceania, atoll in the North Pacific Ocean, about half way between Hawaii and American Samoa
  Geographic coordinates:
  5 52 N, 162 04 W
  Map references:
  Oceania
  Area:
  total: 11.9 sq km
  land: 11.9 sq km
  water: 0 sq km
  country comparison to the world: 243
  Area - comparative:
  about 20 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC
  Land boundaries:
  0 km
  Coastline:
  14.5 km
  Maritime claims:
  territorial sea: 12 nm
  exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
  Climate:
  equatorial, hot, and very rainy
  Terrain:
  very low
  Elevation extremes:
  lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
  highest point: unnamed location 2 m
  Natural resources:
  terrestrial and aquatic wildlife
  Natural hazards:
  NA
  Environment - current issues:
  NA
  Geography - note:
  about 50 islets covered with dense vegetation, coconut trees, and balsa-like trees up to 30 meters tall

- ## People and Society :: PALMYRA ATOLL

- Population:
  no indigenous inhabitants
  note: variable temporary population of 4 to 20 staff and scientists of the the Nature Conservancy and the US Fish and Wildlife Service (July 2014 est.)

- ## Government :: PALMYRA ATOLL

- Country name:
  conventional long form: none
  conventional short form: Palmyra Atoll
  Dependency status:
  incorporated territory of the US; privately owned, but administered from Washington, DC, by the Fish and Wildlife Service of the US Department of the Interior; the Office of Insular Affairs of the US Department of the Interior continues to administer nine excluded areas comprising certain tidal and submerged lands within the 12 nm territorial sea or within the lagoon
  Legal system:
  the laws of the US, where applicable, apply
  Flag description:
  the flag of the US is used

- ## Transportation :: PALMYRA ATOLL

- Airports - with unpaved runways:
  total: 1
  1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2013)
  Ports and terminals:
  West Lagoon

- ## Military :: PALMYRA ATOLL

- Military - note:
  defense is the responsibility of the US

- ## Transnational Issues :: PALMYRA ATOLL

- Disputes - international:
  none

GO TOP