Alabama Geography

Alabama is the 30th in the United States with 52,423 square miles (135,775 km²) of total area. 3.19% of that is water, making Alabama 23rd in the amount of surface water, also giving it the second largest inland waterway system in the United States.[3]

Baldwin County, along the gulf coast, is the largest county in the state in both land area and water area. [4] About three-fifths of the land area is a gentle plain with a general descent towards the Mississippi River and the Gulf of Mexico. The North Alabama region is mostly mountainous, with the Tennessee River cutting a large valley creating numerous creeks, streams, rivers, mountains, and lakes.[5] Another natural wonder is "Natural Bridge", the longest land bridge span east of the Mississippi River.

Alabama generally ranges in elevation from sea level,[2] at Mobile Bay, to a little more than 1,800 feet (550 m) in the Appalachian Mountains in the northeast. The highest point is Mount Cheaha[5] (see map).

States bordering Alabama include Tennessee to the north; Georgia to the east; Florida to the south; and Mississippi to the west. Alabama has coastline at the Gulf of Mexico in the extreme southern edge of the state.[5]

National Parks in Alabama include Horseshoe Bend National Military Park in Daviston; Little River Canyon National Preserve in Fort Payne; Russell Cave National Monument in Bridgeport; Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site in Tuskegee; and Tuskegee Institute National Historic Site near Tuskegee.[6]

Alabama also contains the Natchez Trace Parkway, the Selma To Montgomery National Historic Trail, and the Trail Of Tears National Historic Trail.

The climate of Alabama is described as temperate with an average annual temperature of 64° F (18° C). Temperatures tend to be warmer in the southern part of the state with its close proximity to the Gulf of Mexico, while the northern parts of the state, especially in the Appalachian Mountains in the northeast, tend to be slighty cooler.[7] Generally, Alabama has very hot summers and mild winters with copious precipitation throughout the year. Alabama receives an average of 56 inches of rainfall annually and enjoys a lengthy growing season of up to 300 days in the southern part of the state. [8]

Summers in Alabama are among the hottest in the United States, with high temperatures averaging over 90 °F throughout the summer in the entire state. Alabama is also prone to strikes by hurricanes. Even areas of the state far away from the Gulf are not immune to the effects of hurricanes or tropical storms, which often dump tremendous amounts of rain as they move inland and weaken. [[Image:Hurricane Ivan 15 September 2004 1850Z.jpg|thumb|left|250px|Hurricane Ivan approaching the Alabama coast]]

South Alabama reports more thunderstorms than any part of the US outside of Florida. The Gulf Coast, around Mobile, averages between 70 and 80 days per year with thunder reported. This activity decreases somewhat further north in the state, but even the far north of the state reports thunder on about 60 days per year. Occasionally, thunderstorms are severe with frequent lightning and large hail - the central and northern parts of the state are most vulnerable to this type of storm. Alabama ranks seventh in the number of deaths from lightning and ninth in the number of deaths from lightning strikes per capita. [9] Sometimes Tornadoes occur - these are common throughout the state, although the peak season for tornadoes varies from the northern to southern parts of the state. Alabama shares the dubious distinction, with Kansas, of having reported more F5 tornadoes than any other state - according to statistics from the National Climatic Data Center for the period 1 January 1950 to 31 October 2006. An F5 tornado is the most powerful of its kind. Several long - tracked F5 tornadoes have contributed to Alabama reporting more tornado fatalities than any other state except for Texas and Mississippi. The Super Outbreak of March, 1974, badly affected Alabama. The north of the state - along the Tennessee Valley - is one of the area's in the US most vulnerable to violent tornadoes. The area of Alabama and Mississippi most affected by tornadoes is sometimes referred to as Dixie Alley, as distinct from the Tornado Alley of the Southern Plains. Alabama is one of the few places in the world that has a secondary tornado season (November and December) in addition to the Spring severe weather season.

Winters are generally mild in Alabama, as they are throughout most of the southeastern United States, with average January low temperatures around 40 °F in Mobile and around 32° F in Birmingham. Snow is a rare event in much of Alabama. Areas of the state north of Montgomery may receive a dusting of snow a few times every winter, with an occasional moderately heavy snowfall every few years. In the southern Gulf coast, snowfall is less frequent, sometimes going several years without any snowfall.

Alabama terrain map: shows lakes, rivers, roads, with Mount Cheaha (right center) east of Birmingham.

Alabama Population Density map