United States

50 states, Hollywood and the first step on the Moon

The USA has 50 states, and the 50 stars on its flag are one for each state. It has the Grand Canyon, Yellowstone, the skyscrapers of New York and Hollywood. Americans were the first to step on the Moon (1969) and invented the internet, the telephone and the aeroplane. The USA is the richest country in the world. It takes 6 hours to fly from coast to coast — 4 time zones.

Capital: Washington, D.C.. Language: English (de facto), Spanish.

The United States of America covers 9.83 million km² (3rd–4th) with 335 million people (3rd), 50 states plus the District of Columbia, a federal republic (Declaration of Independence 1776, Constitution 1787 — the oldest still in force). Nature: the Rockies, the Appalachians, the Great Plains, the Mississippi–Missouri (6,275 km), the Great Lakes, Alaska (Denali 6,190 m), Hawaii's volcanoes, Death Valley (56.7 °C). History: Native peoples, Jamestown 1607, independence 1776, the Civil War 1861–1865 (abolition of slavery), Apollo 11 in 1969, the sole superpower since 1991. Economy: the world's largest (25%), Silicon Valley (Apple, Google), Hollywood, the dollar as the world currency. Science: over 400 Nobel prizes. A multi-ethnic 'nation of immigrants'. With Uzbekistan: recognised independence in 1991; an Uzbek diaspora of over 100,000 (New York, Brooklyn); education programmes.

Fun facts

• The 50 stars on the US flag are the 50 states; the 13 stripes are the first 13 colonies.
• American scientists have won over 400 Nobel prizes — the most of any country.
• Death Valley recorded the highest air temperature on Earth — 56.7 °C.