the United States of America USA for short is located in North America between the Atlantic Ocean in the East and the Pacific Ocean in the west as well as Mexico and the Gulf of Mexico in the South and Canada in the North in addition there is Alaska which lies between Canada and Russia and finally the Hawaiian archipelago in the middle of the Pacific the area of the United States is about 9.5 million square kilometers making it the fourth largest country on Earth behind Russia Canada and China the United States has about 333 million inhabitants making it the third most populous country in the World Behind China and India the capital is Washington DC the so-called District of Columbia is a federal district that does not belong to any of the 50 states these are beside Alaska and Hawaii the 48 contiguous states of the United States or simply the lower 48. the United States does not have an official language but de facto English is used due to the enormous size and expanse of the country the USA is geographically and climatically extremely diverse in the east of the USA the Appalachian Mountains extend in a north-south Direction to the South extends the Florida peninsula in the Northeast the Great Lakes Lake Ontario Lake Erie Lake Huron Lake Michigan and Lake Superior form the border with Canada the central lowlands extend around the Mississippi River and its tributaries including the Ohio and Missouri Rivers this is followed further west by the Great Plains the western part of the USA is very maintenius here the Rocky Mountains stretch from north to south they are part of a large series of mountains that cross the American double continent from north to south the Cascade Range and the Sierra Nevada in California are also foothills of this range in the Rocky Mountains rise the Rio Grande which partly forms the border to Mexico but it's called Rio Bravo there and the Colorado between the mountain ranges of the West is situated the Great Basin the Pacific region finds itself in a seismically very active Zone and earthquakes are a real threat here after all the archipelago of Hawaii which includes a total of 137 islands and atolls most of them uninhabited is located more than 3 600 kilometers from the American West Coast in the Pacific Ocean the islands are a volcanic origin the largest in area is itself called Hawaii While most of the population lives on the island of Oahu where Honolulu the state capital is located the most important mountain ranges in Alaska are the Brooks range and the Alaska range here the Denali at times also called Mount McKinley is the highest mountain of the USA with 697 meters from Canada the Yukon river flows West into the Bering Sea the island chain of the Aleutian Islands stretches almost to the coast of Kamchatka and belongs mostly to the USA climatically the northernmost state is relatively cold due to its location the north has a polar tundra climate While most of the rest has a cold Boreal climate that is moderated by the Sea on the southern coast the Northeastern United States has a continental climate with cold Winters and warm to hot summers some areas along the Great Lakes parts of New England and the Appalachian Mountains Are densely forested The Plains of the Midwest are heavily farmed the southeast is part of the subtropics with an East Side climate that is humid in summer swamps extend along the coast and in the Mississippi Delta the Southern and eastern coast of the US are particularly vulnerable to tropical storms from the Caribbean the Mississippi River Basin is particularly prone to tornadoes the south of Florida belongs to the humid tropics and has high temperatures all year round here are the tropical marshlands of the Everglades which are home to alligators almost the entire Western half of the U.S has relatively low precipitation and a semi-arid step climate prevails in large Parts including the vast Prairie Landscapes of the Great Plains at higher altitudes mountainous climates can be found the Southwest with its desert climate is very hot and dry here lies the Mojave Desert and Death Valley which is considered one of the hottest and driest places on Earth in addition there are salt Plains especially in the Great Basin including the great salt desert on the Pacific coast the climate in the north is oceanic with mild temperatures temperate rainforests extend here this is where the famous redwoods grow further south a Mediterranean climate can be found in large parts of California the climate in Hawaii is tropical and thus warm all year round but is somewhat moderated by almost constant winds here is the first episode on the USA the continuation will follow soon thanks for watching until next time