Compare Indian Ocean (2004) - Baker Island (2004)

Compare Indian Ocean (2004) z Baker Island (2004)

	Indian Ocean (2004)	Baker Island (2004)

Airports	-	1 abandoned World War II runway of 1,665 m, completely covered with vegetation and unusable (2003 est.)
Area	total: 68.556 million sq km note: includes Andaman Sea, Arabian Sea, Bay of Bengal, Flores Sea, Great Australian Bight, Gulf of Aden, Gulf of Oman, Java Sea, Mozambique Channel, Persian Gulf, Red Sea, Savu Sea, Strait of Malacca, Timor Sea, and other tributary water bodies	total: 1.4 sq km land: 1.4 sq km water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative	about 5.5 times the size of the US	about 2.5 times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC
Background	The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's five oceans (after the Pacific Ocean and Atlantic Ocean, but larger than the Southern Ocean and Arctic Ocean). Four critically important access waterways are the Suez Canal (Egypt), Bab el Mandeb (Djibouti-Yemen), Strait of Hormuz (Iran-Oman), and Strait of Malacca (Indonesia-Malaysia). The decision by the International Hydrographic Organization in the spring of 2000 to delimit a fifth ocean, the Southern Ocean, removed the portion of the Indian Ocean south of 60 degrees south.	The US took possession of the island in 1857, and its guano deposits were mined by US and British companies during the second half of the 19th century. In 1935, a short-lived attempt at colonization was begun on this island - as well as on nearby Howland Island - but was disrupted by World War II and thereafter abandoned. Presently the island is a National Wildlife Refuge run by the US Department of the Interior; a day beacon is situated near the middle of the west coast.
Climate	northeast monsoon (December to April), southwest monsoon (June to October); tropical cyclones occur during May/June and October/November in the northern Indian Ocean and January/February in the southern Indian Ocean	equatorial; scant rainfall, constant wind, burning sun
Coastline	66,526 km	4.8 km
Country name	-	conventional long form: none conventional short form: Baker Island
Dependency status	-	unincorporated territory of the US; administered from Washington, DC, by the Fish and Wildlife Service of the US Department of the Interior as part of the National Wildlife Refuge system
Disputes - international	some maritime disputes (see littoral states)	none
Economy - overview	The Indian Ocean provides major sea routes connecting the Middle East, Africa, and East Asia with Europe and the Americas. It carries a particularly heavy traffic of petroleum and petroleum products from the oilfields of the Persian Gulf and Indonesia. Its fish are of great and growing importance to the bordering countries for domestic consumption and export. Fishing fleets from Russia, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan also exploit the Indian Ocean, mainly for shrimp and tuna. Large reserves of hydrocarbons are being tapped in the offshore areas of Saudi Arabia, Iran, India, and western Australia. An estimated 40% of the world's offshore oil production comes from the Indian Ocean. Beach sands rich in heavy minerals and offshore placer deposits are actively exploited by bordering countries, particularly India, South Africa, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, and Thailand.	no economic activity
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Java Trench -7,258 m highest point: sea level 0 m	lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location 8 m
Environment - current issues	endangered marine species include the dugong, seals, turtles, and whales; oil pollution in the Arabian Sea, Persian Gulf, and Red Sea	no natural fresh water resources
Flag description	-	the flag of the US is used
Geographic coordinates	20 00 S, 80 00 E	0 13 N, 176 31 W
Geography - note	major chokepoints include Bab el Mandeb, Strait of Hormuz, Strait of Malacca, southern access to the Suez Canal, and the Lombok Strait	treeless, sparse, and scattered vegetation consisting of grasses, prostrate vines, and low growing shrubs; primarily a nesting, roosting, and foraging habitat for seabirds, shorebirds, and marine wildlife
Irrigated land	-	0 sq km (1998 est.)
Land boundaries	-	0 km
Land use	-	arable land: 0% permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2001)
Legal system	-	the laws of the US, where applicable, apply
Location	body of water between Africa, the Southern Ocean, Asia, and Australia	Oceania, atoll in the North Pacific Ocean, about half way between Hawaii and Australia
Map references	Political Map of the World	Oceania
Maritime claims	-	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Military - note	-	defense is the responsibility of the US; visited annually by the US Coast Guard
Natural hazards	occasional icebergs pose navigational hazard in southern reaches	the narrow fringing reef surrounding the island can be a maritime hazard
Natural resources	oil and gas fields, fish, shrimp, sand and gravel aggregates, placer deposits, polymetallic nodules	guano (deposits worked until 1891), terrestrial and aquatic wildlife
Population	-	uninhabited note: American civilians evacuated in 1942 after Japanese air and naval attacks during World War II; occupied by US military during World War II, but abandoned after the war; public entry is by special-use permit from US Fish and Wildlife Service only and generally restricted to scientists and educators; a cemetery and remnants of structures from early settlement are located near the middle of the west coast; visited annually by US Fish and Wildlife Service (2004 est.)
Ports and harbors	Chennai (Madras; India), Colombo (Sri Lanka), Durban (South Africa), Jakarta (Indonesia), Kolkata (Calcutta; India) Melbourne (Australia), Mumbai (Bombay; India), Richards Bay (South Africa)	none; offshore anchorage only; note - there is one small boat landing area along the middle of the west coast
Terrain	surface dominated by counterclockwise gyre (broad, circular system of currents) in the southern Indian Ocean; unique reversal of surface currents in the northern Indian Ocean; low atmospheric pressure over southwest Asia from hot, rising, summer air results in the southwest monsoon and southwest-to-northeast winds and currents, while high pressure over northern Asia from cold, falling, winter air results in the northeast monsoon and northeast-to-southwest winds and currents; ocean floor is dominated by the Mid-Indian Ocean Ridge and subdivided by the Southeast Indian Ocean Ridge, Southwest Indian Ocean Ridge, and Ninetyeast Ridge	low, nearly level coral island surrounded by a narrow fringing reef
Transportation - note	-	there is a day beacon near the middle of the west coast

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