Howland and Baker Islands

Howland Island and Baker Island are two reserved U.S. coral islands in the Equatorial Pacific that are located close to one another. Both islands are strict wildlife refuges, the larger of which is Howland Island. They are both part of the larger political territory of the United States Minor Outlying Islands and they are also both part of the larger geographic grouping of the Phoenix Islands. Each is a National Wildlife Refuge managed by a division of Interior, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. On January 6, 2009, U.S. President George W. Bush included both islands in the Pacific Islands Heritage Marine National Monument. The Howland-Baker exclusive economic zone (EEZ) is a 400-nautical-mile-diameter (460 mi; 740 km) area protected by the U.S. Coast Guard. The area of the Howland-Baker EEZ is 425,700 km2 (164,400 sq mi); by comparison, the area of California is 423,970 km2 (163,700 sq mi). Howland Island was the area that Amelia Earhart and Fred Noonan were trying to reach in 1937 when they disappeared. The islands are the only land masses in the world associated with UTC−12:00, which is the last area on Earth for deadlines with a date to pass.

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