Farallon de Medinilla is a small island in the
Northern Mariana IslandsThe Northern Mariana Islands , officially the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands , is a commonwealth in political union with the United States, occupying a strategic region of the western Pacific Ocean. It consists of fifteen islands about three-quarters of the way from Hawaii to the...
chain and is situated north of
SaipanSaipan is the largest island and capital of the United States Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands , a chain of 15 tropical islands belonging to the Marianas archipelago in the western Pacific Ocean with a total area of...
. It is the second smallest in the chain; only
Zealandia BankZealandia Bank is the name given to two rocky pinnacles, and the submarine volcano they rise from, in the Northern Mariana Islands chain situated 11 miles NNE of Sarigan. These two pinnacles are 1/2 mile apart from each other; one reaches more than a meter above sea level at low tide...
is smaller. It is an uninhabited coral island which is 0.845 km² (0.326 sq mi, or 208.9 acres) in area. It is 2.8 km long from southwest to northeast. The southern part is up to 150 meters wide, and the northern part up to 520 meters. At its narrowest, where the northern and southern parts join, the island is only about 20 meters wide.
Farallon de Medinilla is a small island in the
Northern Mariana IslandsThe Northern Mariana Islands , officially the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands , is a commonwealth in political union with the United States, occupying a strategic region of the western Pacific Ocean. It consists of fifteen islands about three-quarters of the way from Hawaii to the...
chain and is situated north of
SaipanSaipan is the largest island and capital of the United States Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands , a chain of 15 tropical islands belonging to the Marianas archipelago in the western Pacific Ocean with a total area of...
. It is the second smallest in the chain; only
Zealandia BankZealandia Bank is the name given to two rocky pinnacles, and the submarine volcano they rise from, in the Northern Mariana Islands chain situated 11 miles NNE of Sarigan. These two pinnacles are 1/2 mile apart from each other; one reaches more than a meter above sea level at low tide...
is smaller. It is an uninhabited coral island which is 0.845 km² (0.326 sq mi, or 208.9 acres) in area. It is 2.8 km long from southwest to northeast. The southern part is up to 150 meters wide, and the northern part up to 520 meters. At its narrowest, where the northern and southern parts join, the island is only about 20 meters wide. Its highest elevation is 81 meters. The shores are rimmed with cliffs containing caves and its tableland has some brush and savanna grass. Politically, it is part of the
Northern Islands MunicipalityNorthern Islands Municipality is one of the four main political divisions of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. It consists of a long string of the northernmost islands of the Northern Marianas, including Farallon de Pajaros, the Maug Islands, Asuncion, Agrihan, Pagan, Alamagan,...
.
For years, the U.S.Navy has used Farallon de Medinilla for military and bombing exercises. In a 2002 lawsuit, the
Center for Biological DiversityThe Center for Biological Diversity based in Tucson, Arizona, is a nonprofit membership organization with approximately 220,000 members, known for its work protecting endangered species through legal action and scientific petitions. The Center has offices and staff in Arizona, California, New...
charged the Navy with the destruction of wildlife habitat on the island. A subsequent court ruling ordered the U.S. Defense Department to cease bombing exercises on Farallon de Medinilla until they came in compliance with the Migratory Bird Treaty Act.
X marks the spot
Satellite imagery (e.g.,
Google EarthGoogle Earth is an information program that was originally called EarthViewer 3D, and was created by Keyhole, Inc, a company acquired by Google in 2004. It maps the Earth by the superimposition of images obtained from satellite imagery, aerial photography and GIS 3D globe...
) of the island shows 3 full X-shaped figures and one partial X in its northern half. While there is as yet no official explanation, it is assumed that these are arrangements of shipping containers left by the U.S. Navy for bomb targeting practice.