Alaska

Alaska – Geography Overview

Location:

• Located in the northwestern corner of North America.
• It is separated from the contiguous United States by Canada.
• Shares a maritime border with Russia across the Bering Strait.

Coordinates: ~64°N latitude, 150°W longitude

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🗺️ Size & Borders:

• Largest U.S. state by area (over 1.7 million km² / 663,300 mi²).
• Bordered by:
  • Canada (Yukon & British Columbia) to the east
  • Arctic Ocean to the north
  • Pacific Ocean to the south
  • Bering Sea and Bering Strait to the west

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🏔️ Major Landforms:

• Mountains: Includes the Alaska Range and Brooks Range
  • Home to Denali (Mount McKinley) – highest peak in North America at 6,190 m / 20,310 ft
• Glaciers: Over 100,000 glaciers, especially in southern coastal areas
• Tundra & Taiga: Covers vast parts of central and northern Alaska
• Volcanoes: Many active ones in the Aleutian Islands

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🌊 Water Bodies:

• Rivers: Yukon River (longest in Alaska), Kuskokwim River
• Lakes: Over 3 million lakes; largest is Iliamna Lake
• Coastline: Longest coastline of any U.S. state (~34,000 miles/55,000 km)

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❄️ Climate Zones:

• Arctic (North): Extremely cold, tundra landscape
• Subarctic (Interior): Harsh winters, mild summers
• Maritime (South Coast): Milder, wetter, frequent storms
• Temperate Rainforest (Southeast): Lush, wet, cooler (e.g., Juneau area)

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🧭 Interesting Facts:

• Experiences midnight sun in summer and polar night in winter north of the Arctic Circle.
• Rich in natural resources: oil, gas, gold, fish, timber
• Sparsely populated with vast wilderness areas

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