Unincorporated territory of the USA
Date claimed 1898
Capital Not applicable
Population 302
Population density 38 per square km (98 per square mile)

 

 

 

 

 


DESCRIPTION

The rim of an extinct volcano, Wake Island has a US air base, whose airstrip can be used in emergencies by trans-Pacific flights. A proposal in 1998 to store nuclear waste was dropped after widespread condemnation. The three constituent islands are claimed by the Marshall Islands.