Alaska

Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area and the most sparsely populated, a vast northern wilderness of mountains, glaciers and tundra. Its capital is Juneau, while Anchorage is by far its largest city. Separated from the contiguous states by Canada, it is a land of extremes and staggering natural beauty.

Alaska contains North America's highest peak, Denali, along with immense glaciers, fjords, boreal forest and Arctic tundra. It has more coastline than all other US states combined and is dotted with volcanoes along the Aleutian chain. Winters are long and dark in the north, with the midnight sun in summer.

Alaska has a strong Indigenous heritage among Inupiat, Yupik, Aleut and other peoples, blended with a frontier spirit of self-reliance. Fishing, hunting, dog mushing and outdoor life are central, and the Iditarod sled-dog race is a celebrated tradition.

Inhabited for millennia by Alaska Native peoples, the territory was purchased by the United States from Russia in 1867 in a deal once mocked as Sewards Folly. Gold rushes and later oil discoveries transformed it, and it became the 49th state in 1959.

This overview is AI-assisted and grounded with available atlas facts and reference material. Treat linked primary data as authoritative. Read the methodology.