Midway Island lies 1,250 miles (2,010 kilometers) northwest of Honolulu in the Pacific Ocean. It is made up of two islands in an atoll 6 miles (10 kilometers) in diameter. It has an area of 2 square miles (6 square kilometers) and a total coastline of about 9 miles (15 kilometers). Midway has a population of about 40. The United States discovered Midway in 1859, and annexed it in 1867. United States companies built a cable relay station there in 1903, and an airport in 1935. The U.S. Department of the Interior controls the island.
The Battle of Midway was one of the main naval battles in World War II. From June 3 to June 6, 1942, U.S. land- and carrier-based planes attacked a Japanese fleet approaching the islands. They sank four aircraft carriers and one heavy cruiser. The United States lost the destroyer Hammann and the aircraft carrier Yorktown.
The Battle of Midway was the first decisive U.S. naval victory over the Japanese in World War II. It crippled Japan’s naval air power and ended Japan’s attempt to seize Midway as a base from which to strike Hawaii. Many military experts believe it was the turning point in the Pacific campaign.
See also Midway, Battle of ; World War II (The tide turns) .
