Trump set tariffs on pretty much all countries (except Russia, N Korea and Cuba) but also on some non-countries. One of those non-countries was the Heard & McDonald Islands, which are inhabited by penguins but not humans. We then found out that they were included (probably by an AI) because they have a top level domain (.hm).
So why do they have a top level domain? Are there servers there catering to (double click rule applies) PENGUIN LUST urges from hell?
The answer is “because they have an ISO 3066-1 country code.” But that just transfers the question to “why do they have an ISO country code?”
The answer to that question is “because the territory appears in the United Nations Statistics Division ‘Standard country or area codes for statistical use (M49)’ list.” (This list is one of the two authoritative sources for entries in ISO 3066-1.)
But that raises the next question: Why are they in the UNSD country or region list?
Search seems to run dry here.
Probably for the same reason the British Indian Ocean Territory has a top-level domain - someone saw an opportunity for profit.
A LOT of techies and indie game developers use .io for their projects.
Not an answer to your turtles-all-the-way-down question, but some more info on the four territory domains that Australia administers (3 populated with humans, one by seals as well as penguins).
I think the answer is that outlying territories of other countries (used to be called “colonies”, but that word is out of fashion today) typically get treated as sort-of-nation-like status for purposes such as ISO country codes - other examples are the Falklands, St Helena, or French Polynesia. Heard & McDonald is such an outlying territory under Australian law, and it has this status despite not having a population. And based on that status it got a TLD.
You serious?
No. Nobody has even been to the islands for nearly a decade. There is nothing there.
Not that part. I do occasionally include a little joke in my posts.
Things that make you go .hm
Servers in no way have to physically located anywhere near the “country”. Perhaps, if you got the dough you can lease a domain from Australia. A quick ping shows that “google.hm” maps to an IP address in DNS but doesn’t connect to anything. OTOH, WHOIS says it’s an invalid or unsupported domain.
Tuvalu is a great example of a small country which has an amazing number of websites under it’s top level domain “.tv”. Income from leasing those domains is a major source of income.
Tuvalu has a pop. of 10,000+ and is very worried about rising sea levels. At some point the whole population may need to be evacuated giving a 0 population country with a lot of domains.
Perfect for an evil lair … or … Fortress of Solitude.
That’s just what the penguins want you to think.
The penguins want you to think that, too.
I have a theory about penguins. 
Only 10% tariff on guano. A bargain!
American Samoa also gets a TLD, (.as) for the same reason.
Considering the competence displayed by whoever composed the original list of tariffs, it’s somewhat amazing American Samoa didn’t get one.
I assume the original UN list is simple - if it’s part of the country it’s the country, just as if it’s an independent country. If it’s a separate territory that’s not really an integral “part of the country” it’s separate. I suppose the country’s own definition is the reference for this. South Georgia is another example. Obbviously not part of the UK, but controlled by it. (Actually includes the South Sandwich Islands). So give it a separate listing and designation in the UN.
The Cook Islands internet authority was quick to realize the potential misuses of .ck.
That generated a nerdy giggle, thank you.
Should we all just assume you registered that web name and we shouldn’t try?