Kingman Reef

Kingman Reef is a largely submerged, uninhabited tropical located in the North, roughly half way between  and  at. It is the northernmost of the and lies 65 km  of, the next closest island, and has the status of an  of the , administered from  by the. The atoll is closed to the public. The total area within the rim of the reef, which has greater depths in the western part, is 60 km². There is just one small strip of dry land on the eastern rim, with an area of less than 0.01 km².

The pre-20th century names Caldew Reef, Maria Shoal and Crane Shoal refer to this atoll, which by then was still entirely submerged at high tide.

Kingman Reef was found in by Captain  of the ship Betsey. Captain described it in. It was formally annexed to the United States on, when Lorrin A. Thurston read this declaration on shore, "Be it known to all people: That on the tenth of May, A.D. 1922, the undersigned agent of the Island of Palmyra Copra Co., Ltd., landed from the motorship Palmyra doth, on this tenth day of May, A.D. 1922, take formal possession of this island, called Kingman Reef, situated in longitude 162 degrees 18' west and 6 degrees 23' north, on behalf of the United States of America and claim the same for said company."

Kingman Reef is about 920 nautical miles south of. At times, its shoreline might reach three kilometers in circumference, but the highest point on the reef is about one meter above sea level and wetted or awash most of the time, making Kingman Reef a maritime hazard. It has no natural resources, is uninhabited, and supports no economic activity. The reef partly encloses a up to 73 meters deep that was used in  and  as a halfway station between  and American Samoa by  flying boats. In 1937, Pan Am had plans to anchor the ship North Wind as a floating tanker at Kingman and use the reef as a stopover for its flying boats on the route to. The idea was abandoned as Pan Am found that the costs of supporting a mostly idle tanker ship prohibitive. There were also concerns that comfortable overnight accommodations would not be available in the event of a mechanical breakdown. As a result, Pan Am switched to on,  and began service to New Zealand on ,.

For statistical purposes, Kingman Reef is grouped as part of the.