Midway Atoll

Midway Atoll (/ˈmɪdweɪ/; also called Midway Island and Midway Islands; Hawaiian: Pihemanu Kauihelani) is a 2.4-square-mile (6.2 km²) atoll in the North Pacific Ocean at 28°12′N 177°21′W / 28.200°N 177.350°W / 28.200; -177.350Coordinates: 28°12′N 177°21′W / 28.200°N 177.350°W / 28.200; -177.350. As its name suggests, Midway is roughly equidistant between North America and Asia, and lies almost halfway around the world longitudinally from Greenwich, UK. It is near the northwestern end of the Hawaiian archipelago, about one-third of the way from Honolulu, Hawaii, to Tokyo, Japan.

Midway Atoll is an unorganized, unincorporated territory of the United States, and the former home of the Naval Air Facility Midway (former ICAO PMDY). For statistical purposes, Midway is grouped as one of the United States Minor Outlying Islands. It is less than 140 nautical miles (259 km; 161 mi) east of the International Date Line, about 2,800 nautical miles (5,200 km; 3,200 mi) west of San Francisco, and 2,200 nautical miles (4,100 km; 2,500 mi) east of Tokyo. The Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge, encompassing 590,991.50 acres (239,165.77 ha) of land and water (mostly water) in the surrounding area, is administered by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS). Approximately 40 to 60 members of the Service live on the Atoll.