Uninhabited
Clipperton Island
Key facts and a structured country profile. 🧾 Change log 📐 True Size
Locator 🗺️ Map
6 sq km
Middle America, atoll in the North Pacific Ocean, 1,120 km southwest of Mexico
🧭 Background
This isolated atoll was named for John CLIPPERTON, an English pirate who was rumored to have made it his hideout early in the 18th century. Annexed by France in 1855 and claimed by the US, it was seized by Mexico in 1897. Arbitration eventually awarded the island to France in 1931, which took possession in 1935.
🗺️ Geography
Middle America, atoll in the North Pacific Ocean, 1,120 km southwest of Mexico
10 17 N, 109 13 W
Political Map of the World
6 sq km
6 sq km
0 sq km
About 12 times the size of the National Mall in Washington, D.C.
0 km
11.1 km
12 nm
200 nm
Tropical; humid, average temperature 20-32 degrees Celsius, wet season (May to October)
Coral atoll
Rocher Clipperton 29 m
Pacific Ocean 0 m
Fish
0% (2018 est.)
0% (2018 est.)
100% (2018 est.)
Subject to tropical storms and hurricanes from May to October
The atoll reef is approximately 12 km (7.5 mi) in circumference
👥 People and Society⬆️ Top
Uninhabited
🌿 Environment⬆️ Top
No natural resources, guano deposits depleted; stagnant fresh-water lagoon
Tropical; humid, average temperature 20-32 degrees Celsius, wet season (May to October)
0% (2018 est.)
0% (2018 est.)
100% (2018 est.)
🏛️ Government⬆️ Top
None
Clipperton Island
None
Ile Clipperton
Sometimes referred to as Ile de la Passion or Atoll Clipperton
Named after an 18th-century English pirate who is alleged to have used the island as a base starting in 1705
Possession of France; administered directly by the Minister of Overseas France
The laws of France apply
The flag of France is used
🛡️ Military and Security⬆️ Top
Defense is the responsibility of France
Source: Factbook JSON archive.