Overview
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
- Location
- Middle America, atoll in the North Pacific Ocean, 1,120 km southwest of Mexico
- Total Area
- 6 sq km
- Climate
- tropical; humid, average temperature 20-32 degrees Celsius, wet season (May to October)
- Terrain
- coral atoll
- Natural Resources
- fish
- Coastline
- 11.1 km
- Land Borders
- 0 km
People & Society
- Population
- uninhabited
Government
- Legal System
- the laws of France apply