Alaska

For other uses, see Alaska (disambiguation).

Alaska
State
Country	United States
Admitted to the Union	January 3, 1959 (49th)
Capital	Juneau
Largest city	Anchorage
Government
• Governor	Sarah Palin (R)
• Upper house	{{{Upperhouse}}}
• Lower house	{{{Lowerhouse}}}
U.S. senators	Ted Stevens (R) Lisa Murkowski (R)
Population
• Total	626,932
• Density	1.09/sq mi (0.42/km2)
• Median household income	$54,627
• Income rank	6th
Language
• Official language	English
• Spoken language	English 85.7%, Native North American 5.2%, Spanish 2.9%
Latitude	51°20'N to 71°50'N
Longitude	130°W to 172°E

Alaska (IPA: [əˈlæskə], Template:Lang-ru) is a state in the United States of America, located in the extreme northwest portion of the North American continent. It is the largest U.S. state in terms of area (by a substantial margin), along with being one of the wealthiest and most racially diverse.

The area that became Alaska was purchased from Russian interests on October 18 1867. The land went through several administrative changes before becoming an organized territory in 1912 and the 49th state of the U.S. on January 3, 1959. The name "Alaska" is derived from the Aleut Alaskax, alternately spelled Alyeska, meaning "Land that is not an island."

Geography

Alaska is one of two U.S. States not bordered by another state, Hawaiʻi being the other. It is the only non-contiguous state in North America; about 500 miles (800 km) of Canadian territory separate Alaska from Washington State. Alaska is thus an exclave of the United States that is part of the continental U.S. but is not part of the contiguous U.S. Alaska is also the only state whose capital city is accessible only via ship or air. No roads connect Juneau to the rest of the state.

The state is bordered by Yukon and British Columbia, Canada to the east, the Gulf of Alaska and the Pacific Ocean to the south, the Bering Sea, Bering Strait, and Chukchi Sea to the west, and the Beaufort Sea and the Arctic Ocean to the north.

Alaska is the largest state in the United States in terms of land area at 570,380 square miles (1,477,277 km²), over twice as large as Texas, the next largest state. If the state's westernmost point were superimposed on San Francisco, California, its easternmost point would be in Jacksonville, Florida. Alaska also has more coastline than all of the contiguous U.S. combined. It is larger than all but 18 sovereign nations.

Near Little Port Walter in Southeast Alaska.

One scheme for describing the state's geography is by labeling the regions:

• South Central Alaska is the southern coastal region and contains most of the state's population. Anchorage and many growing towns, such as Palmer, and Wasilla, lie within this area. Petroleum industrial plants, transportation, tourism, and two military bases form the core of the economy here.
• The Alaska Panhandle, also known as Southeast Alaska, is home to many of Alaska's larger towns including the state capital Juneau, tidewater glaciers and extensive forests. Tourism, fishing, forestry and state government anchor the economy.
• The Alaska Interior is home to Fairbanks. The geography is marked by large braided rivers, such as the Yukon River and the Kuskokwim River, as well as Arctic tundra lands and shorelines.
• The Alaskan Bush is the remote, less crowded part of the state, encompassing 380 native villages and small towns such as Nome, Bethel, Kotzebue and, most famously, Barrow, the northernmost town in the United States.

The northeast corner of Alaska is covered by the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, which covers 19,049,236 acres (77,090 km²). Much of the northwest is covered by the larger National Petroleum Reserve–Alaska, which covers around 23,000,000 acres (93,100 km²) million acres. The Arctic is Alaska's most remote wilderness. A location in the National Petroleum Reserve–Alaska is 120 miles (190 km) miles from any town or village, the geographic point most remote from permanent habitation in the USA.

With its numerous islands, Alaska has nearly 34,000 miles (54,720 km) of tidal shoreline. The island chain extending west from the southern tip of the Alaska Peninsula is called the Aleutian Islands. Many active volcanoes are found in the Aleutians. For example, Unimak Island is home to Mount Shishaldin, a moderately active volcano that rises to 9,980 feet (3,042 m) above sea level. The chain of volcanoes extends to Mount Spurr, west of Anchorage on the mainland.

One of North America's largest tides occurs in Turnagain Arm just south of Anchorage. Tidal differences can be more than 35 feet (10.7 m). (Many sources say Turnagain has the second-greatest tides in North America, but it has since been shown that several areas in Canada have larger tides, according to an Anchorage Daily News article dated 6/23/03.)

Alaska is home to 3.5 million lakes of 20 acres (8 ha) or larger . Marshlands and wetland permafrost cover 188,320 square miles (487,747 km²) (mostly in northern, western and southwest flatlands). Frozen water, in the form of glacier ice, covers some 16,000 square miles (41,440 km²) of land and 1,200 square miles (3,110 km²) of tidal zone. The Bering Glacier complex near the southeastern border with Yukon, Canada, covers 2,250 square miles (5,827 km²) alone.

The Aleutian Islands cross longitude 180°, so Alaska can be considered the easternmost state as well as the westernmost. Alaska and, especially, the Aleutians are one of the extreme points of the United States. The International Date Line jogs west of 180° to keep the whole state, and thus the entire continental United States, within the same legal day.

According to an October 1998 report by the United States Bureau of Land Management, approximately 65% of Alaska is owned and managed by the U.S. federal government as national forests, national parks, and national wildlife refuges. Of these, the Bureau of Land Management manages 87 million acres (350,000 km²), or 23.8% of the state. The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is managed by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service.

Of the remaining land area, the State of Alaska owns 24.5%; another 10% is managed by thirteen regional and dozens of local Native corporations created under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act. Various private interests own the remaining land, totaling less than 1%. Template:Ussm Alaska is administratively divided into "boroughs," as opposed to "counties." The function is the same, but whereas some states use a three-tiered system of decentralization — state/county/township — most of Alaska only uses two tiers — state/borough. Owing to the state's low population density, most of the land is located in the Unorganized Borough which, as the name implies, has no intermediate borough government of its own, but is administered directly by the state government. Currently (2000 census) 57.71 percent of Alaska's land area has this status; however, its population comprises only 13.05 percent of the state's total. For statistical purposes the United States Census Bureau divides this territory into census areas. Anchorage merged the city government with the Greater Anchorage Area Borough in 1971 to form the Municipality of Anchorage, containing the city proper, and the bedroom communities of Eagle River, Chugiak, Peters Creek, Girdwood, Bird, and Indian. Fairbanks, on the other hand, has a separate borough (the Fairbanks North Star Borough) and municipality (the City of Fairbanks).

The Alaska Community Database System provides a wide range of community-based information and data for planning, policy-making, and technical assistance decisions. This comprehensive interactive database system presents information of the most frequently asked questions for each community in Alaska, including a community’s location, population, taxes, climate, history, culture, demographics, utilities, schools, health care, economy, transportation, and local contacts.

Users can obtain community information through direct links to rural community data in detailed or summary form, custom data queries features, capital project information from different agencies for all Alaskan communities, download a current directory of Municipal Officials, and view community photos. Customized queries can be viewed online or downloaded into a Microsoft Excel file and automatically sent via e-mail to your personalized e-mail accounts.

Climate

The climate in Juneau and the southeast panhandle is best described as a "cooler version of Seattle". It is a mid-latitude oceanic climate (Köppen climate classification Cfb) in the southern sections and a subarctic oceanic climate (Köppen Cfc) in the northern sections. On an annual basis, this is both the wettest and warmest part of Alaska with milder temperatures in the winter and high precipitation throughout the year. Juneau averages over 50 inches (1,270 mm) of precipitation a year, while other areas receive over 275 inches (6,980 mm). This is also the only region in Alaska in which the average daytime high temperature is above freezing during the winter months.

The climate in south central Alaska, with Anchorage as a typical city, is mild by Alaskan standards. This is due in large part to its proximity to the coast. While it does not get nearly as much rain as the southeast of Alaska, it does get more snow, although days tend to be clearer here. On average, Anchorage receives 16 inches (406 mm) of precipitation a year, with around 75 inches (1,905 mm) of snow, although there are areas in the south central which receive far more snow. It is a subarctic climate (Köppen Dfc) due to its short, cool summers though.

Barrow, Alaska is the northernmost city in the United States.

The climate of Western Alaska is determined in large part by the Bering Sea and the Gulf of Alaska. It is a subarctic oceanic climate in the southwest and a continental subarctic climate farther north. The temperature is somewhat moderate considering how far north the area is. This area has a tremendous amount of variety, especially when considering precipitation. The northern side of the Seward Peninsula is technically a desert with less than 10 inches (250 mm) of precipitation annually, while some locations between Dillingham and Bethel average around 100 inches (2,540 mm) of precipitation.

The climate of the interior of Alaska is best described as extreme and is the best example of a true subarctic climate. Some of the hottest and coldest temperatures in Alaska occur around the area near Fairbanks. The summers can have temperatures reaching into the 80s°F (near 30°C), while in the winter, the temperature can fall below −60°F (-52°C). Precipitation is not much in the Interior, often less than 10 inches (250 mm) a year, but what precipitation falls in the winter tends to stay the entire winter.

The highest and lowest recorded temperatures in Alaska are both in the Interior. The highest is 100°F (38°C) in Fort Yukon on June 27, 1915, tied with Pahala, Hawaii as the lowest high temperature in the United States. The lowest Alaska temperature is −80°F (-64°C) in Prospect Creek on January 23, 1971, one degree above the lowest temperature recorded in North America (in Snag, Yukon, Canada).

The climate in the extreme north of Alaska is what would be expected for an area north of the Arctic Circle. It is an Arctic climate (Köppen ET) with long, very cold winters and short, cool summers. Even in July, the average low temperature is barely above freezing in Barrow, at 34°F (2°C). Precipitation is light in this part of Alaska, with many places averaging less than 10 inches (250 mm) per year, mostly in the form of snow which stays on the ground almost the entire year.

State symbols

• State bird: Willow Ptarmigan, adopted by the Territorial Legislature in 1955. It is a small (15-17 inches), arctic grouse that lives among willows and on open tundra and muskeg. Plumage is brown in summer, changing to white in winter. The Willow Ptarmigan is common in much of Alaska.
• State fish: King Salmon, adopted 1962.
• State flower: wild/native Forget-Me-Not, adopted by the Territorial Legislature in 1917. It is a perennial that is found throughout Alaska, from Hyder to the Arctic Coast, and west to the Aleutians.
• State fossil: Woolly Mammoth, adopted 1986.
• State gem: Jade, adopted 1968.
• State insect: Four-spot skimmer dragonfly, adopted 1995.
• State land mammal: Moose, adopted 1998.
• State marine mammal: Bowhead Whale, adopted 1983.
• State mineral: Gold, adopted 1968.
• State song: "Alaska's Flag"
• State sport: Dog Mushing, adopted 1972.
• State tree: Sitka Spruce, adopted by the Alaska (AK) Legislature in 1962.

History

Main article: History of Alaska

In this 1860 map, Russian America (Alaska) was to the west of British America (Canada).

At the end of the Upper Paleolithic Period (around 12,000 BCE), Asiatic groups crossed the Bering Land Bridge into what is now western Alaska. At the time of European contact by the Russian explorers, the area was populated by Alaska Native groups.

The first European contact with Alaska occurred in the 1741, when Vitus Bering led an expedition for the Russian Navy aboard the St. Peter. After his crew returned to Russia bearing sea otter pelts judged to be the finest fur in the world, small associations of fur traders began to sail from the shores of Siberia towards the Aleutian islands. The first permanent European settlement was founded in 1784, and the Russian-American Company carried out expanded colonization program during the early to mid-1800s. Despite these efforts, the Russians never fully colonized Alaska, and the colony was never very profitable. William H. Seward, the U.S. Secretary of State, engineered the Alaskan purchase in 1867 for $7.2 million.

In the 1890s, gold rushes in Alaska and the nearby Yukon Territory brought thousands of miners and settlers to Alaska. Alaska was granted territorial status in 1912.

During World War II, three of the outer Aleutian Islands—Attu, Agattu and Kiska—were the only part of the United States to have land occupied by the enemy during the war. The battle became a matter of national pride, defending the nation against the first foreign military campaign on U.S. soil since the War of 1812. The construction of military bases also contributed to the population growth of some Alaskan cities.

Alaska was granted statehood on January 3, 1959.

In 1964, the massive "Good Friday Earthquake" killed 131 people and leveled several villages.

The 1968 discovery of oil at Prudhoe Bay and the 1977 completion of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline led to an oil boom. In 1989, the Exxon Valdez hit a reef in the Prince William Sound, spilling between 11 and 35 million US gallons (42,000 and 130,000 m³) of crude oil over 1,100 miles (1,600 km) of coastline. Today, the battle between philosophies of development and conservation is seen in the contentious debate over oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

Demographics

See also: List of boroughs and census areas in Alaska

Alaska Population Density Map

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1950	128,643		—
1960	226,167		75.8%
1970	300,382		32.8%
1980	401,851		33.8%
1990	550,043		36.9%
2000	626,932		14.0%

As of 2005, Alaska has an estimated population of 663,661, which is an increase of 5,906, or 0.9%, from the prior year and an increase of 36,730, or 5.9%, since the year 2000. This includes a natural increase since the last census of 36,590 people (53,132 births minus 16,542 deaths), and an increase due to net migration of 1,181 people into the state. Immigration from outside the United States resulted in a net increase of 5,800 people, and migration within the country produced a net loss of 4,619 people.

With a population of 626,932, according to the 2000 U.S. census , Alaska is ranked 48th out of the 50 States. But ranked by population density, Alaska is the least densely populated at 2.849 people per square kilometer (1.1 per square mile), with the next nearest ranking state, Wyoming, at 13.208 (5.1 per square mile), and the most densely populated, New Jersey, at 2937.92 people per square kilometer (1,134.4 per square mile).

For purposes of the federal census, the state is divided into artificial divisions defined geographically by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only.

The center of population of Alaska is located approximately 64.37 kilometers (39.96 miles) east of Anchorage. .

Race and ancestry

Multiracial/Mixed-Race people are the third largest group of people in the state, totaling 6.9% of the population or 44,426. The largest ancestry groups in the state are: German (16.6%), Alaska Native or American Indian (15.6%), Irish (10.8%), British (9.6%), American (5.7%), and Norwegian (4.2%). Alaska has the largest percentage of American Indians of any state.

The vast, sparsely populated regions of northern and western Alaska are primarily inhabited by Alaska Natives, who are also numerous in the southeast. Anchorage, Fairbanks, and other parts of south-central and southeast Alaska have many whites of northern and western European ancestry. The Wrangell-Petersburg area has many residents of Scandinavian ancestry and the Aleutians contain a large Filipino population. Most of the state's black population lives in Anchorage. Fairbanks also has a sizable black population as well.

Demographics of Alaska (csv)

By race	White	Black	AIAN*	Asian	NHPI*
2000 (total population)	75.43%	4.46%	19.06%	5.24%	0.88%
2000 (Hispanic only)	3.42%	0.33%	0.45%	0.16%	0.06%
2005 (total population)	74.71%	4.72%	18.77%	5.90%	0.88%
2005 (Hispanic only)	4.32%	0.38%	0.48%	0.19%	0.05%
Growth 2000–05 (total population)	4.85%	12.03%	4.27%	19.23%	5.35%
Growth 2000–05 (non-Hispanic only)	3.49%	11.30%	4.02%	18.96%	5.86%
Growth 2000–05 (Hispanic only)	33.56%	21.02%	14.52%	27.89%	-1.95%
* AIAN is American Indian or Alaskan Native; NHPI is Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander

Languages

According to the 2000 U.S. Census, 85.7% of Alaska residents age 5 and older speak English at home. The next most common languages are Spanish (2.88%), Yupik (2.87%), Tagalog (1.54%), and Iñupiaq (1.06%).

A total of 5.2% of Alaskans speak one of the state's 22 indigenous languages, known locally as Native languages. These languages belong to two major language families, Eskimo-Aleut and Na-Dené (Athabaskan-Eyak-Tlingit). As the homeland of these two major language families of North America, Alaska has been described as the crossroads of the continents, providing evidence for the recent settlement of North America via the Bering land bridge.

Eskimo-Aleut family Aleut Sirenik Eskimo family Central Alaskan Yup'ik Central Siberian Yupik (Yuit) Alutiiq (Pacific Gulf Yupik) Naukan Inuit family Iñupiaq

Athabaksan-Eyak-Tlingit family Tlingit Eyak Athabaskan family (spec. Northern Athabaskan) Ahtna Dena’ina (Tanaina) Deg Hit’an (Ingalik, Deg Xinag) Holikachuk (Innoko) Koyukon Upper Kuskokwim (Kolchan) Lower Tanana (Tanana) Tanacross Upper Tanana Gwich’in (Kutchin) Hän

Haida language Tsimshianic Coast Tsimshian

Religion

File:Sitkachurch.jpg

Russian Orthodox church in Sitka, Alaska.

• Christian – 78%
  • Protestant – 62%
    • Baptist – 11%
    • Lutheran – 8%
    • Methodist – 6%
    • Pentecostal – 2%
    • Quaker – 1%
  • Eastern Orthodox – 8%
  • Roman Catholic – 7%
  • Episcopal – 1%
  • The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints – 4%
• Buddhist – 10%
• Not religious/agnostic – 7%
• Other religions – 1%

Notable is Alaska's relatively large Eastern Orthodox Christian population, a result of early Russian colonization and missionary work among indigenous Alaskans. Alaska also has the largest Quaker population (by percentage) of any state. Also, as of 1994, there are 3,060 Jews in Alaska. Jehovah's Witnesses stands at a little less than 2,400.

Economy

The Trans-Alaska Pipeline transports oil, Alaska's most important export, from the North Slope to Valdez

The state's 2005 total gross state product was $39.9 billion. Its per-capita GSP for 2005 was $60,079, 3rd in the nation. Alaska's economy relies heavily on petroleum extraction, with more than 80 percent of the state's revenues derived from this industry. Alaska's main export product (excluding oil and natural gas) is seafood, primarily salmon, cod, pollock and crab. Agriculture represents only a fraction of the Alaska economy. Agricultural production is primarily for consumption within the state and includes nursery stock, dairy products, vegetables, and livestock. Manufacturing is limited, with most foodstuffs and general goods imported from elsewhere. Employment is primarily in government and industries such as natural resource extraction, shipping, and transportation. Military bases are a significant component of the economy in both Fairbanks and Anchorage. Its industrial outputs are crude petroleum, natural gas, coal, gold, precious metals, zinc and other mining, seafood processing, timber and wood products. There is also a growing service and tourism sector. Tourists have contributed to the economy by supporting local lodging.

Alaska's economy is heavily dependent on increasingly expensive diesel fuel for heating, transportation, electric power and light. Though wind and hydroelectric power are abundant and underutilized, proposals for state-wide energy systems (e.g. with special low-cost electric interties) were judged uneconomical (at the time of the report, 2001) due to low (<$0.50/Gal) fuel prices, long distances and low population. The cost of a gallon of gas in urban Alaska today is usually $0.30-$0.60 higher than the national average; prices in rural areas are generally significantly higher but vary widely depending on transportation costs, seasonal usage peaks, nearby petroleum development infrastructure and many other factors.

Cost of living

The cost of goods in Alaska has long been higher than in the contiguous 48 states. This has changed for the most part in Anchorage and to a lesser extent in Fairbanks, where the cost of living has dropped somewhat in the past five years. Federal Government employees, namely United States Postal Service (USPS) workers, receive a Cost Of Living Allowance usually set at 25% of base pay because, while the cost of living has gone down, it is still one of the highest in the country.

The introduction of big-box stores in Anchorage, Fairbanks (Wal-Mart in March of 2004), and Juneau also did much to lower prices. However, rural Alaska suffers from extremely high prices for food and consumer goods, compared to the rest of the country due to the relatively limited transportation infrastructure. Many rural residents come in to these cities and purchase food and goods in bulk from warehouse clubs like Costco and Sam's Club. Some have embraced the free shipping offers of some online retailers to purchase items much more cheaply than they could in their own communities, if they are available at all.

Taxes

Alaska is one of only six states with no state sales tax and one of seven states that do not levy an individual income tax. To finance state government operations, Alaska depends primarily on petroleum revenues. The Department of Revenue Tax Division reports regularly on the state's revenue sources. The Department also issues an annual overview of its operations, including new state laws that directly affect the tax division.

While Alaska has no state sales tax, 89 municipalities collect a local sales tax, with a range of between 1 percent and 7 percent. Typical sales tax rates are 3 to 5 percent. Other types of local taxes levied include raw fish taxes, hotel, motel, and B&B “bed” taxes, severance taxes, liquor and tobacco taxes, gaming (pull tabs) taxes, tire taxes and fuel transfer taxes. A percentage of revenue collected from certain state taxes and license fees (such as petroleum, aviation motor fuel, telephone cooperative) is shared with municipalities in Alaska.

Property taxes are relatively low, with only 25 of 161 incorporated municipalities or boroughs in the state assessing property taxes. Fairbanks has one of the highest property taxes in the state as no sales or income taxes are assessed in the Fairbanks North Star Borough (FNSB). A sales tax for the FNSB has been voted on many times, but has yet to be approved, leading law makers to increase taxes dramatically on other goods such as liquor and tobacco. The average per capita property tax paid in all municipalities, excluding oil and gas properties, was US$999 (2003 data).

Transportation

Roads

See also: List of Alaska Routes

Alaska is arguably the least-connected state in terms of road transportation. The state's road system covers a relatively small area of the state, linking the central population centers and the Alaska Highway, the principal route out of the state through Canada. The state capital, Juneau, is not accessible by road, which has spurred several debates over the decades about moving the capital to a city on the road system. One unique feature of the road system is the Anton Anderson Memorial Tunnel, which links the Seward Highway south of Anchorage with the relatively isolated community of Whittier. The tunnel held the title of the longest road tunnel in North America (at nearly 2.5 miles [4 km]) until completion of the 3.5 mile (5.6km) Interstate 93 tunnel as part of the "Big Dig" project in Boston, Massachusetts. The tunnel retains the title of the longest combination road and rail tunnel in North America.

The Alaska Railroad runs from Seward through Anchorage, Denali, and Fairbanks to North Pole, with spurs to Whittier and Palmer (locally known as "The Railbelt"). The railroad is famous for its summertime passenger services but also plays a vital part in moving Alaska's natural resources, such as coal and gravel, to ports in Anchorage, Whittier and Seward. The Alaska Railroad is one of the few remaining railroads in North America to use cabooses in regular service and offers one of the last flag stop routes in the country. A stretch of about 60 miles of track along an area inaccessible by road serves as the only transportation to cabins in the area.

Marine transport

Most cities and villages in the state are accessible only by sea or air. Alaska has a well-developed ferry system, known as the Alaska Marine Highway, which serves the cities of Southeast and the Alaska Peninsula. The system also operates a ferry service from Bellingham, Washington up the Inside Passage to Skagway. In the Prince of Wales Island region of Southeast, the Inter-Island Ferry Authority also serves as an important marine link for many communities, and works in concert with the Alaska Marine Highway. Tourist sea travel is also popular on Alaska cruises.

Air transport

Cities not served by road or sea can only be reached by air, accounting for Alaska's extremely well-developed Bush air services—an Alaskan novelty. Anchorage itself, and to a lesser extent Fairbanks, are serviced by many major airlines. Air travel is the cheapest and most efficient form of transportation in and out of the state. Anchorage recently completed extensive remodeling and construction at Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport to help accommodate the upsurge in tourism (in 2000-2001, the latest year for which data are available, 2.4 million total arrivals to Alaska were counted, 1.7 million via air travel; 1.4 million were visitors).

However, regular flights to most villages and towns within the state are commercially challenging to provide. Alaska Airlines is the only major airline offering in-state travel with jet service (sometimes in combination cargo and passenger Boeing 737-200s) from Anchorage and Fairbanks to regional hubs like Bethel, Nome, Kotzebue, Dillingham, Kodiak, and other larger communities as well as to major Southeast and Alaska Peninsula communities. The bulk of remaining commercial flight offerings come from small regional commuter airlines like: Era Aviation, PenAir, and Frontier Flying Service. The smallest towns and villages must rely on scheduled or chartered Bush flying services using general aviation aircraft such as the Cessna Caravan, the most popular aircraft in use in the state. Much of this service can be attributed to the Alaska bypass mail program which subsidizes bulk mail delivery to Alaskan rural communities. The program requires 70% of that subsidy to go to carriers who offer passenger service to the communities. But perhaps the most quintessentially Alaskan plane is the Bush seaplane. The world's busiest seaplane base is Lake Hood, located next to Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport, where flights bound for remote villages without an airstrip carry passengers, cargo, and lots of items from stores and warehouse clubs. Alaska has the highest number of pilots per capita of any U.S. state: out of the estimated 663,661 residents, 8,550 are pilots, or about one in every 78.

It is interesting to note that Alaska has the longest runway in the world, as the entire length of the Richardson Highway is designated an emergency landing strip.

Other transport

Another Alaskan transportation method is the dogsled. In modern times, dog mushing is more of a sport than a true means of transportation. Various races are held around the state, but the best known is the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, a 1,150-mile (1850 km) trail from Anchorage to Nome. The race commemorates the famous 1925 serum run to Nome in which mushers and dogs like Balto took much-needed medicine to the diphtheria-stricken community of Nome when all other means of transportation had failed. Mushers from all over the world come to Anchorage each March to compete for cash prizes and prestige.

In areas not served by road or rail, primary summer transportation is by all-terrain vehicle and primary winter transportation is by snowmobile, or "snow machine," as it is commonly referred to in Alaska.

Satellite image of Alaska.

Law and government

Presidential elections results

Year	Republican	Democratic
2004	61.07% 190,889	35.52% 111,025
2000	58.62% 167,398	27.67% 79,004
1996	50.80% 122,746	33.27% 80,380
1992	39.46% 102,000	30.29% 78,294
1988	59.59% 119,251	36.27% 72,584
1984	66.65% 138,377	29.87% 62,007
1980	54.35% 86,112	26.41% 41,842
1976	57.90% 71,555	35.65% 44,058
1972	58.13% 55,349	34.62% 32,967
1968	45.28% 37,600	42.65% 35,411
1964	34.09% 22,930	65.91% 44,329
1960	50.94% 30,953	49.06% 29,809

Main article: Government of Alaska

Alaska is often described as a Republican-leaning state with strong Libertarian tendencies. Local political communities often work on issues related to land use development, fishing, tourism, and individual rights. It is very important to note that, as of 2004, well over half of all registered voters choose "Non-Partisan" or "Undeclared" as their affiliation , despite recent attempts to close primaries.

Alaska Natives, while organized in and around their communities, are often active within the Native corporations which have been given ownership over large tracts of land, and thus need to deliberate resource conservation and development issues.

In presidential elections, the state's electoral college votes have been almost always won by a Republican nominee. Only once has Alaska supported a Democratic nominee, when it supported Lyndon B. Johnson in the landslide year of 1964, although the 1960 and 1968 elections were close. No state has voted for a Democratic presidential candidate fewer times. President George W. Bush won the state's electoral votes in 2004 by a margin of 25 percentage points with 61.1% of the vote. The city of Juneau stands out as a stronghold of the Democratic party.

When the United States Congress, in 1957 and 1958, debated the wisdom of admitting it as the 49th state, much of the political debate centered on whether Alaska would become a Democratic or Republican-leaning state. Conventional wisdom had it that, with its penchant for new ideas and dependence on federal government funds for basic needs, it would become a Democratic stronghold, about which Republicans, and the Republican Administration of Dwight Eisenhower had reservations. However, those fears proved unfounded. After an early flirtatious period with liberal politics, the political climate of Alaska changed quickly once petroleum was discovered and the federal government came to be widely viewed as interfering in state affairs. Still, despite its libertarian leanings, the state regularly takes in more federal money than it gives out, a fact that can be attributed at least partially to its equal representation in the United States Senate.

The Alaska Legislature consists of a 20-member Senate, whose members serve four-year terms, and 40-member House of Representatives, who serve 2-year terms. It has been dominated by conservatives, generally Republicans. Likewise, recent state governors have been mostly conservatives, although not always elected under the official Republican banner. Republican Wally Hickel was elected to the office for a second term in 1990 after jumping the Republican ship and briefly joining the Alaskan Independence Party ticket just long enough to be reelected. He subsequently officially rejoined the Republican fold in 1994.

Alaska's members of the U.S. Congress are all Republican. U.S. Senator Ted Stevens was appointed to the position following the death of U.S. Senator Bob Bartlett in December of 1968, and has never lost a re-election campaign since. As the longest-serving Republican in the Senate (sometimes nicknamed "Senator-For-Life"), Stevens has been a crucial force in gaining federal money for his state.

Until his resignation from the U.S. Senate after being elected governor in 2002, Republican Frank Murkowski held the state's other senatorial position and, as governor, appointed his daughter, State Representative Lisa Murkowski as his successor (under massive public pressure, the State legislature amended the constitution to eliminate gubernatorial appointments in the future). She won a full six-year term on her own in 2004.

Alaska's sole U.S. Representative, Don Young, was re-elected to his 17th consecutive term, also in 2004. His seniority in House makes him one of the most influential Republican House members.

December 4 2006, Sarah Palin was sworn in as the first woman and youngest ever Governor of Alaska. Her running mate was Lieutenant Governor Sean Parnell. Palin is the former two term mayor of Wasilla, Alaska.

Political parties

• Alaska Republican Party
• Alaska Democratic Party
• Alaska Republican Moderate Party
• Alaskan Independence Party
• Alaska Libertarian Party
• Alaska Green Party

Important cities and towns

See also: List of cities in Alaska by population and Alaska locations by per capita income

Alaska's most populous city is Anchorage, home to 260,283 people (as of 2000), 225,744 of whom live in the urbanized area. The richest location in Alaska by per capita income is Halibut Cove ($89,895). Sitka, Juneau, and Anchorage are the three largest cities in the U.S. by area.

Also notable is the rapid growth of towns in the Mat-Su Valley. Wasilla and Palmer are projected to experience over 100% population growth between 2000 and 2010.

Anchorage is the largest city in Alaska.

Cities of 100,000 or more people Anchorage
Towns of 10,000-100,000 people Fairbanks Juneau
Towns of 1,000-10,000 people
Ketchikan Sitka Wasilla Kenai Kodiak Palmer Bethel Barrow		Unalaska Valdez Soldotna Homer Nome Petersburg Kotzebue Seward		Dillingham Cordova Haines North Pole Hooper Bay Craig Houston
Smaller towns Alaska has many smaller towns, especially in the Alaska Bush, the portion of the state that is inaccessible by road.

Education

The Alaska Department of Education and Early Development administers many school districts in Alaska. In addition, the state operates a boarding school called Mt. Edgecumbe High School in Sitka.

There are more than a dozen colleges and universities in Alaska. The state's most notable universities are the University of Alaska Anchorage, University of Alaska Fairbanks, and Alaska Pacific University. 43% of the population attends or attended college.

Current issues

Alaska has long had a problem with alcohol use and abuse. Many rural communities in Alaska have outlawed its import. "Dry", "wet", and "damp" are terms describing a community's laws on liquor consumption. This problem directly relates to Alaska's high rate of Fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) as well as contributing to the high rate of suicides. This is a controversial topic for many residents.

Alaska has also had a problem with "brain drain" as many of its young people, including most of the highest academic achievers, leave the state upon graduating high school. While for many this functions as a sort of walkabout, many do not return to the state. The University of Alaska has been successfully combating this by offering partial four-year scholarships to the top 10 percent of Alaska high school graduates, via the Alaska Scholars Program[2].

Domestic abuse and other violent crimes are also at notoriously high levels in the state; this is in part linked to alcohol abuse.

Alaska is also the only state in the union to allow legal possession of marijuana. An adult may legally possess four ounces of marijuana for personal use. Noy v. Alaska, 83 P.3d 538, 543 (2003).

Culture

See also List of artists and writers from Alaska

Libraries

The four main libraries in the state are the Alaska State Library in Juneau, the Elmer E. Rasmuson Library in Fairbanks, the Z. J. Loussac Library in Anchorage, and the UAA/APU Consortium Library, also in Anchorage. Alaska is one of three states (the others are Delaware and Rhode Island) that does not have a Carnegie library.

Food

Alaskans eat many diverse things, mostly consisting of seafood and other leading products, such as fruits. An example is Akutaq, the Eskimo ice cream, consisting of reindeer fat and seal oil and some berries. Alaska is known for their desserts and their beverages.

Music

Main article: Music of Alaska

See also

• Scouting in Alaska
• Alaska State Troopers
• List of athletes from Alaska

External links

• State of Alaska website
• Alaska Inter-Tribal Council
• USGS real-time, geographic, and other scientific resources of Alaska
• US Census Bureau
• Alaska State Facts

United States

64°N 153°W