Johnston Atoll Travel Guide

This North Pacific low-lying sand and coral atoll, about 1400 km west of Hawaii, consists of four small and barren islands that were greatly expanded during the mid-20th century by coral dredging. Despite the expansion, the atoll remains very small, with a total land area of under 3 sq. km. Johnston Atoll has had a varied and tumultuous history. It was initially mined for guano before that was depleted and then it was designated as a bird refuge. More recently it has served as a nuclear weapons test site and a chemical/radioactive waste disposal site. A substantial U.S. military population was based on the island, but the base has been closed down since 2005 since, in 2003, it was transferred back to the US Fish and Wildlife Service. Once, you could have lounged at a tiki bar or watched movies at an outdoor theatre on this atoll in the middle of nowhere, but now that everything probably glows in the dark you don't want to hang around too long.  This may be one of those places scientific progress and toxic waste dumping will usher in an interesting hatching of the Serpent's Egg.  Just think of Mr. Burns' three eyed fish....