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New Mexico Facts & Trivia
1. New Mexico is known for its diverse landscapes, ancient Puebloan ruins, and as the birthplace of the atomic bomb. 2. New Mexico is also sometimes considered one of the Mountain States, with the southern end of the Rocky
Mountains dipping into the state. 3. New Mexico shares a small border with Oklahoma to the east, Texas to the east and south, the Mexican states of Sonora and Chihuahua to the south, and Arizona to the west. 4. New Mexico is larger than the countries Poland, the Philippines, and Oman. 5. The state has a total area of 121,591 mi² making it 5th largest state, sitting between Montana and Arizona in terms of size. 6. With a population of 2.1 million people, New Mexico is the 36th most populous state, putting it between
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Kansas and Nebraska in terms of population. 7. Due to its fairly large size and relatively low population, New Mexico is the 6th least densely populated state, with about 17.5 people per mi2. 8. New Mexico has also been called the Tyrannosaur State, as several T-Rexes have been found there. The official state fossil is the Coelophysis. 9. New Mexico chiles and frijoles pintos (pinto beans) are the state vegetables of New Mexico. 10. Known for having a speed of 18 mph, the Great Roadrunner, otherwise known as the Chaparral Bird, is the state bird of New Mexico. 11. New Mexico even has an official state cookie, the Biscochito 12. Although often considered a desert state, New Mexico has one of the most diverse landscapes in the US, including forests of cottonwood, snow-capped peaks with spruce and pines, wildflower fields, vast expanses of prairie, and white sand dunes. 13. New Mexico has two national parks: Carlsbad Caverns National Park and White Sands National Park. 14. New Mexico is home to more UNESCO World Heritage Sites (3) than any of the other state: Carlsbad
Caverns, Taos Pueblo, and Chaco Culture. 15. New Mexico has 84 national monuments, more than any state except Arizona. They protect ancient ruins, cave dwellings, volcanoes, rock formations, petroglyphs, and more.
