Japanese air attacks on the Mariana Islands 27 in preparation for operations against Japan itself. The USAAF bases in the Mariana Islands were within range of a number of Japanese air bases in the Pacific. These included Wake Island to the east, Truk and the Gilbert and Marshall Islands to the southeast, Woleai to the south and Yap to the southwest. To the north the Japanese had air bases in the Nampo Shoto chain of islands and Bonin Islands, which included three airstrips on Iwo Jima. Several of the minor islands in the Mariana chain also remained in Japanese hands, and there were airfields on Rota and
McDonald Islands (volcano) of satellite imagery noted that an eruption took place on 12 July 2005 on the northwest shore of the island. The eruption may have added a small portion to the area of the island. In 2002 the Heard Island and McDonald Islands were declared a marine reserve; this was expanded in 2014. The islands are also recognised as a World Heritage Site. McDonald Islands (volcano) The McDonald Islands () are the peaks of a volcano in the southern Indian Ocean in the vicinity of Heard Island (). The islands are Australian external territory. Prior to 1992, the volcano had not