The Fox Islands (Russian: Лисьи острова) are a group of islands in the eastern Aleutian Islands of the U.S. state of Alaska. The Fox Islands are the closest to mainland North America in the Aleutian chain, and just east of Samalga Pass and the Islands of Four Mountains group.
Inhabited by the Aleut for centuries, the islands, along with the rest of the Aleutians, were first visited by Europeans in 1741, when a Danish navigator employed by the Imperial Russian Navy, Vitus Bering, was searching for new sources of fur for Russian fur trappers.
Foggy almost all year round, the islands are difficult to navigate due to constantly adverse weather and numerous reefs. The Fox Islands Passes are the waterways surrounding the islands. As with the other Aleutian islands, the Fox Islands are prone to frequent earthquakes year-round.
The larger Fox Islands are, from west to east, Umnak, Unalaska, Amaknak, Akutan, Akun, Unimak and Sanak. Islands lying west of Akutan are in the Aleutians West Census Area. From Akutan eastward they are in the Aleutians East Borough.
Fox Islands is the English translation of the name given to the islands in the 18th century by Russian explorers and fur traders.[1]
In fiction
The fictional Shadow Moses Island, located in the Fox archipelago, is an important locale for the Metal Gear video game franchise, and is the main setting for the 1998 game Metal Gear Solid and its 2004 remake Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes. Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots also sets its fourth act, entitled Twin Suns, on the fictional nuclear weapons disposal facility on Shadow Moses Island.