What stopped the Battle of Midway?

Answer 1

Really only the need of the US Navy to be careful about hazarding its precious carriers brought the action to an end. The US had only three carriers in the Pacific, and all three were at Midway. One was lost, so that left only two. The US had sank all four of the Japanese carriers in the battle, so there was no great prize left to be won by following the Japanese and continuing the attack, though the Navy did follow for about two days and sank a couple of heavy cruisers. The smaller ships of the fleet were very low on fuel by this time, and underway refueling from the larger ships would have meant exposing them to the risk of submarine attack as they sailed along a straight course linked by fuel hoses, unable to zigzag. Japanese subs were known to be in the area. The goal of the fleet in giving battle to the numerically superior Japanese force had been to prevent the Japanese from being able to land and capture Midway Island, and this had been achieved. So, all in all, the best thing under the circumstances was to break off the pursuit and return to base, to refuel, rearm, and replace lost aircraft.