Rose Atoll, American Samoa, US Territories

Rose Atoll is the southernmost piece of US terrain in the world, located more than 4,500 miles from the continental USA, and south of the equator. Rose is one of a few islands belonging to American Samoa, which is one of the five officially inhabited Territories of the USA. Rose however is uninhabited and isolated, 170 miles from the main island of Tutulia, where 97% of the 55,000 residents of American Samoa live. Rose Atoll has never been developed. It is a wildlife refuge, managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the government of American Samoa, with an abundant population of sea creatures, including almost 270 species of fish, giant clams, turtles, and unique corals, and is surrounded by sharks, tuna, mahi-mahi, and whales. 97% of the territory’s seabirds nest there, including frigate birds, red-footed boobies, and black noddies. The atoll is part of the Rose Atoll Marine National Monument, established in 2009, which covers 8.5 million acres of the Pacific Ocean, including the 1,200 acres of reef and 53 acres of land above water at Rose Atoll, which is off limits to the public.