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Midway Islands

The tiny Midway Islands are only visible in this Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) image acquired by the Terra satellite on March 7, 2004, because of the bright ring of coral that surrounds them. The islands are part of a coral atoll in the North Pacific Ocean, about a third of the way between Honolulu and Tokyo. The coral shells, made out of white calcium carbonate, appear bright blue in satellite images.

The Midway Islands have been a United States territory since 1867, but have only been occupied since 1903. They served as a US naval base until 1993, at which time they became a wildlife reserve.

All together, the islands have a land area of 6.2 square kilometers. The highest point is a mere 13 meters above sea level.


Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Rapid Response Team, NASA/GSFC

Published March 30, 2004
Data acquired March 7, 2004

Source:
Terra > MODIS