Hawaii is located in the archipelago of the Hawaiian Islands in the Pacific Ocean. Admitted on August 21, 1959, Hawaii constitutes the 50th state of the United States and is situated 2,300 miles (3,700 km) from the mainland.
Hana Hanalei Hilo Honolulu Honomu Kaanapali Kahana Kahuku Kahului Kailua Kailua Kona Kamuela Kapaa Kapalua Kapolei Kaunakakai Kihei Koloa Lahaina Laie Lanai City Lihue Makena Maunaloa Pahala Poipu Princeville Volcano Waianae Waikoloa Wailuku Waimea
Hawaiii is the only U.S. state that is completely surrounded by water. It is one of two states that do not share a border with another U.S. state (Alaska being the other). It is the southernmost state of the United States.
In addition to possessing the southernmost point in the United States, it is the only state that lies completely in the tropics. One of two states outside the contiguous United States, it is the only state without territory on the mainland of any continent. It is also the only state that continues to grow in area because of active extrusive lava flows, most notably from Kilauea. It has more endangered species per square mile than anywhere else.
The Hawaiian Archipelago comprises nineteen islands and atolls extending across a distance of 1,500 miles (2,400 km). Of these, eight high islands are considered the "main islands" and are located at the southeastern end of the archipelago. These islands are, in order from the northwest to southeast, Niihau, Kauai, Oahu, Molokai, Lanai, Kahoolawe, Maui and the Island of Hawaiii.
All of the Hawaiian Islands were formed by volcanoes arising from the sea floor through a vent described in geological theory as a hotspot. The theory maintains that as the tectonic plate beneath much of the Pacific Ocean moves in a northwesterly direction, the hot spot remains stationary, slowly creating new volcanoes. This explains why only volcanoes on the southern half of the Island of Hawaii are presently active.
The last volcanic eruption outside the Island of Hawaii happened at Haleakala on Maui in the late 18th century. The newest volcano to form is Loihi, deep below the waters off the southern coast of the Island of Hawaii.
The islands are the farthest removed from any other body of land in the world. The isolation of the Hawaiian Islands in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, and the wide range of environments to be found on high islands located in and near the tropics, has resulted in a vast array of endemic flora and fauna, with a considerable number found exclusively in Hawaii or the surrounding ocean. Because of the islands' volcanic formation, native life before human activity is said to have arrived by the "3 W's": wind, waves, and wings. The volcanic activity and subsequent erosion created impressive geological features.
Hawaii is notable for rainfall: Mount Waialeale, on the island of Kauai, has the second highest average annual rainfall on earth: about 460 inches (11.7 m). The Big Island of Hawaii is notable as the world's fifth highest island. If the height of the island is measured from its base, deep in the ocean, to its snow-clad peak on Mauna Kea, it can be considered one of the tallest mountains in the world.
A couple of popular tickets that allow you to enjoy some of the best of the state of Hawaii are:
* The climate of Hawaii is atypical for a tropical area, and is regarded as more subtropical than the latitude would suggest, because of the moderating effect of the surrounding ocean. Temperatures and humidity tend to be less extreme, with summer high temperatures seldom reaching above the upper 80s (°F) and winter temperatures (at low elevation) seldom dipping below the mid-60s. Snow, although not usually associated with tropics, falls at high elevations on Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa on the Big Island in some winter months. Snow only rarely falls on Maui's Haleakala.
Local climates vary considerably on each island, grossly divisible into windward and leeward areas based upon location relative to the higher mountains. Windward sides face the Northeast Trades and receive much more rainfall; leeward sides are drier, with less rain and less cloud cover. This fact is utilized by the tourist industry, which concentrates resorts on sunny leeward coasts.
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* This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License.
It uses material from the Source wikipedia.
