New Mexico
| Capital | Santa Fe |
|---|---|
| Nickname | The Land of Enchantment |
| Official Language | English, Spanish |
| Governor | Bill Richardson, D |
| Senator | Jeff Bingaman, D (202) 224-5521 Contact |
| Senator | Tom Udall, D (202) 224-6621 Contact |
| Ratification of Constitution/or statehood | January 6, 1912 (47th) |
| Flag of New Mexico | Motto: Crescit eundo (It grows as it goes) |
New Mexico became 47th state to join the union on January 6, 1912. It is the fifth largest of the United States, with a total land area of 121,412 square miles[1]. New Mexico has the largest Hispanic population, percentage-wise, of any US State. Its official state question is "red or green?".
The state is bordered by Colorado, Arizona, Utah, Oklahoma and Texas. It also borders Mexico.
Contents
Population
The state capital is Santa Fe. The cities with the largest populations are: Albuquerque, 494,236; Las Cruces, 82,671; Santa Fe, 70,631; Rio Rancho, 66,599; and Roswell, 45,199.
The total population of 1,928,384 includes a high number of peoples of Hispanic origin and of Native American (Indian) descent. [2]
Climate
New Mexico's weather is usually sunny and dry, with little rainfall all year. [3]
Geography
The land includes areas of dry desert and forest, and has many mountainous regions, including the Sangre de Cristo mountain range, and the Jemez Mountains. [4]
The highest point in New Mexico is Wheeler Peak at 13,161 feet above sea level, and the lowest point is at Red Bluff Reservoir, 2,842 feet above sea level. [5]
Industry
Agriculture is important to New Mexico, but the lack of irrigation hinders using much of the land for farming. Much of the farmed land is located around the two major rivers which flow through the state: the Rio Grande and Pecos River.
Much of the land is used for grazing livestock, especially sheep. More than two-thirds of New Mexico's farm income comes from livestock products. Another large industry in the state is mining, particularly copper, silver, and uranium. [6]
Transportation
Interstate Highways 10, 25 and 40 traverse the state. New Mexico's largest commercial airport is Albuquerque's International Sunport. [7]
Places of Interest
- Carlsbad Caverns National Park
- Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monuments
- Bandelier National Monument
- Elephant Butte Reservoir
- Inscription Rock at El Morro National Monument
- White Sands National Monument
Notable people from New Mexico
- Porfirio Podres (San popo) (folk hero)
- Demi Moore (actress)
- Georgia O'Keeffe (painter)
- Al Unser and Bobby Unser (auto racers)
- John Denver (singer)
- Ralph Bunche (Nobel Peace Prize winner)
References
- ↑ http://www.newmexico.gov/
- ↑ http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/35000.html
- ↑ http://weather.nmsu.edu/News/climate-in-NM.htm
- ↑ http://www.americansouthwest.net/new_mexico/jemez_mountains/
- ↑ http://www.netstate.com/states/geography/nm_geography.htm
- ↑ http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0108250.html
- ↑ http://nmshtd.state.nm.us/
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