Flag
(unofficial)
Quick Facts
Area	6.2 sq km
Population	approximately 40 US Fish and Wildlife staff (April 2002 est.)
Language	English
Internet TLD	.um (part of U.S. Minor Outlying Islands)
Time Zone	UTC -11

The Midway Islands or Midway Atoll [1] is a wildlife refuge in the north Pacific Ocean, roughly "midway" between California and East Asia, just east of the International Date Line. It was made famous by an Oscar-winning color documentary in 1942, and a 1976 feature film, both about the battle which marked a turning point in World War II.

Understand

Landscape

satellite view of Midway Islands

Midway is part of the extended series of Pacific islands which include Hawaii. It is an atoll of several low, sandy islands. The two largest are Sand Island (the most developed) and Eastern Island (not to be confused with Easter Island), with the smaller Spit Island between them. Several tiny additional islands lie within a coral reef which nearly encircles them (one of the most northerly coral formations of this kind). The three largest islands total 6.2 sq km in area; their collective coastline is 15km. The highest point is 13m above sea level. The climate is subtropical, but moderated by prevailing easterly winds.

History

The U.S. took formal possession of the islands in 1867. The laying of a trans-Pacific telegraph cable, which passed through the islands, brought the first residents in 1903. Between 1935 and 1947, Midway was used as a refueling stop for trans-Pacific flights, and a hotel was built to house passengers. A naval base was constructed shortly before the U.S. entered World War II, and the victory over a Japanese fleet off Midway in 1942 was one of the war's turning points. Although the islands and surrounding waters were designated a National Wildlife Refuge in 1988, they continued to serve as a naval facility until 1993. The atoll was transferred to civilian control in 1996 following an environmental restoration effort.

Get in

There is no commercial air service to the Midway Islands, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which manages the atoll, currently has no program in place to accommodate visitors. They are developing a "Visitor Services Plan" in coordination with the government plan for managing the wildlife refuge. In the meantime, there is a harbor on Sand Island, and Henderson Field Airport on Sand Island is nominally open; travelers with their own means of transportation can inquire with the FWS about visiting. Cruise ships crossing the Pacific sometimes stop at the atoll and take passengers ashore for excursions.

Get around

See

cannon and albatrosses

Nearly 2 million members of 15 species of seabirds nest on the islands, including 70% of the world's population of Laysan albatrosses, more affectionately known as the "gooney bird" for their awkward landings and especially for their entertaining mating rituals. Endangered Hawaiian monk seals (7-8 feet, up to 500 lbs) haul themselves onto land to rest and to give birth and raise their young, giant green sea turtles (up to 400 lbs) are frequent visitors, and a pod of 250-300 spinner dolphins lives – and often performs acrobatics – in and around the atoll's shallow lagoon.

The islands also contain memorials and artifacts of the 1942 Battle of Midway.

Do

When it was open to the general public, sport fishing, snorkeling, and scuba diving were the main activities of visitors. Midway Bowl is the atoll's bowling alley, and there is a golf course on Sand Island.

Buy

Eat

Drink

Sleep

Work

Stay safe

Stay healthy

Get out

• The Kure Atoll and the Pearl and Hermes Atoll lie 60 miles to the west and 90 miles to the east, respectively. These are uninhabited coral formations under the jurisdiction of the 2006-created National Monument encompassing the islands to the northwest of Hawaii.
• The nearest inhabited islands of Hawaii lie about 1200 miles to the ESE.
• Wake Island, about 1200 miles to the WSW, was the next stop on Pan Am's "China Clipper" service.
• The Marshall Islands are about 1500 miles to the SW.