The Maug Islands consist of three islands formed from the highest points of a single submerged volcano

Volcano

2. Bedrock3. Conduit 4. Base5. Sill6. Dike7. Layers of ash emitted by the volcano8. Flank| 9. Layers of lava emitted by the volcano10. Throat11. Parasitic cone12. Lava flow13. Vent14. Crater15...

's caldera

Caldera

A caldera is a cauldron-like volcanic feature usually formed by the collapse of land following a volcanic eruption, such as the one at Yellowstone National Park in the US. They are sometimes confused with volcanic craters...

. This uninhabited island group is part of the Northern Islands Municipality

Northern Islands Municipality

Northern 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,...

 of the Northern Mariana Islands

Northern Mariana Islands

The 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 15 islands about three-quarters of the way from Hawaii to the Philippines...

.

Description

In the place of the ancient volcanic peak is now a deep and spacious natural harbor. Steep cliffs border the islands and the landscape on the north and west islands is dominated by columns of basalt resembling tombstones. Vegetation on the islands consist mostly of grasses with a few coconut palms.

Island	Japanese Japanese language is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...  Name	Area (km²)	Height (m)
North Island	Kita	0.466	227
East Island	Higashi	0.951	215
West Island	Nishi	0.711	178
TOTAL		2.128	227

History

During World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

 (1939-1945), the islands were used by the Japanese

Empire of Japan

The Empire of Japan is the name of the state of Japan that existed from the Meiji Restoration on 3 January 1868 to the enactment of the post-World War II Constitution of...

 as a manned weather station.

National Monument status

On January 6, 2009, President George W. Bush

George W. Bush

George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....

 designated the Maug Islands as part of Marianas Trench Marine National Monument

Marianas Trench Marine National Monument

The Marianas Trench Marine National Monument is a United States National Monument created by President George W. Bush by an executive order given on January 6, 2009.-Scope:...

, protecting the area from commercial fishing and other exploitation.

External links

• Pascal Horst Lehne and Christoph Gäbler: Über die Marianen. Lehne-Verlag, Wohldorf in Germany 1972.
• Oceandots.com