Alaska Facts

48 Alaska Facts

1. Alaska is one of the 50 states of the United States of America.
2. Alaska was the 49th state to join the United States on 21553.
3. Alaska is in the western region of the United States.
4. Alaska is the largest U.S. state, covering a total of 665,384.04 square miles or 17.48% of the total area of the United States.
5. Alaska's 665,384.04 square miles is 85.76% land and 14.24% surface water.
6. Alaska is ranked 1st with the most land area in the United States, with 570,640.95 square miles of land area.
7. Alaska is ranked 1st with the most water area in the United States, with 94,743.10 square miles of water area.
8. Alaska is the 48th most populated U.S. state with a population of 733,391 or 0.22% of the total population of the United States.
9. The state capital of Alaska is the city of Juneau.
10. Alaska is divided into 19 boroughs statewide.
11. Anchorage Borough is the most populated borough in Alaska
12. The most populated city in Alaska is Anchorage with an estimated 291,538 residents.
13. The five most populated city in Alaska are Anchorage, Juneau, Fairbanks, Wasilla and Sitka.
14. A native or resident Alaska is called a Alaskan.
15. Alaska's average elevation statewide is 1,900 feet.
16. Alaska's highest elevation point is Denali at 20,310 feet.
17. Alaska's lowest elevation point is the Pacific Ocean at 0 feet.
18. Alaska is in both Alaska Time Zone (AKT) and Hawaii-Aleutian Time Zone (HST).
19. The two letter abbreviation for Alaska is AK.
20. The ISO 3166 code for Alaska is US-AK.
21. Alaska is called the Last Frontier.
22. The estimated median household income in Alaska is $75,463.
23. Alaska is the 12th most expensive U.S. state to buy a home with an estimated median home price of $300,889.
24. Alaska is ranked 6th on the cost of living index out of all 50 U.S. states.
25. Alaska has the 48th oldest population in the United States with a median age of 35.3.
26. Alaska's average temperature is 32.03°F making it the coldest state in the United States.
27. Alaska on average has 29.03 inches of precipitation per year, making it the 37th wettest U.S. state.
28. The hottest temperature ever recorded in Alaska was 100 °F on Sunday, June 27, 1915, in Fort Yukon, AK.
29. The coldest temperature ever recorded in Alaska was -80 °F on Saturday, January 23, 1971, in Prospect Creek, AK.
30. Alaska has more than three million lakes and over 3,000 rivers. The longest river is the Yukon River, which is shy of 2,000 miles in length. The largest lake is Iliamna Lake, which covers 1,600 square miles.
31. Alaska has more coastline and shoreline than any other U.S. state with 6,640 miles of coastline and 33,904 miles of shoreline.
32. In the United States, 17 of the 20 highest mountain peaks are in Alaska.
33. At the shortest point, there is only 50 miles between Alaska and Russia.
34. Fairbanks, Alaska is the best place the view the northern lights. On average they are visible 243 days a year.
35. Alaska is the only U.S. state that you can type out on a QWERTY keyboard using only one row.
36. In 1867, the United States bought Alaska from the Russian Empire. At the time, the U.S. paid $7.2 million or $0.02 an acre. The purchase is equivalent to $140 million or $0.39 an acre in 2021 USD.
37. In 1896, the Klondike Gold Rush started in the Klondike region and lasted until 1899.
38. In 1907, the Tongass National Forest was established by U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt. Located in southeast Alaska, covering 16.7 million acres, Tongass is the largest U.S. National Forest.
39. In 1942, the Empire of Japan invaded the Aleutian Islands during World War 2. It would take the United States over 14 months to retake the Aleutian Islands.
40. In 1959, President Eisenhower signed an official declaration to make the Alaskan territory a U.S. state.
41. In 1964, Alaska experienced one of the strongest earthquakes in world history. On March 27th, 1964, the Great Alaskan earthquake occurred across south-central Alaska. At 9.2 magnitude, this earthquake was the 2nd strongest in world history and the strongest ever recorded in North America.
42. In 1976, Alaska established the Alaska Permanent Fund (APF). This fund makes payments to eligible Alaskan residents from oil revenues generated in Alaska.
43. In 1985, the world record for the largest Chinook salmon was caught in Alaska. On May 17th, 1985, Les Anderson caught a 97+ pound Chinook salmon in the Kenai River.
44. In 1989, one of the worst oil spills in history occurred in Alaska. On March 24th, 1989, the oil supertanker Exxon Valdez struck a reef in the Prince William Sound and lost 10.8 million gallons of oil.
45. Alaska's official state motto is "North to the Future" .
46. Alaska's official state bird is the Willow ptarmigan (Lagopus lagopus).
47. Alaska's official state tree is the Sitka Spruce (Picea sitchensis).
48. Alaska's official state flower is the Forget-me-not (Myosotis alpestris).

Pictures of Alaska, USA

The state of Alaska and its regional area on a Map of the United States of America.

The official state flag of Alaska waving in the wind on a flag pole.

The official state seal of Alaska that is used by the state's government.

Juneau the capital city of Alaska.

Anchorage, Alaska, United States of America.

Kenai Fjords National Park