Coordinates: 21°18′41″N 157°47′47″W / 21.31139°N 157.79639°W / 21.31139; -157.79639 Hawaii ( /həˈwaɪ.iː/ (help·info) or /həˈwaɪʔiː/ in English; Hawaiian: Mokuʻāina o Hawaiʻi) is the newest of the 50 U.S. states, and is the only state made up entirely of islands. It is located on an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of Australia. The state was admitted to the Union on August 21, 1959. Its capital is Honolulu on the island of Oʻahu. The most recent census estimate puts the state's population at 1,283,388. The state encompasses nearly the entire volcanic Hawaiian Island chain, which comprises hundreds of islands spread over 1,500 miles (2,400 km). At the southeastern end of the archipelago, the eight "main islands" are (from the northwest to southeast) Niʻihau, Kauaʻi, Oʻahu, Molokaʻi, Lānaʻi, Kahoʻolawe, Maui, and Hawaiʻi. The last is by far the largest, and is often called the "Big Island" or "Big Isle" to avoid confusion with the state as a whole. This archipelago is physiographically and ethnologically part of the Polynesian subregion of Oceania. In standard American English, Hawaii is generally pronounced /həˈwaɪ.iː/. In the Hawaiian language, it is generally pronounced [həˈwɐiʔi] or [həˈvɐiʔi]. Hawaii has produced one U.S. President, the incumbent, Barack Obama. The Hawaiian language word Hawaiʻi derives from Proto-Polynesian *Sawaiki, with the reconstructed meaning "homeland";[4] cognate words are found in other Polynesian languages, including Māori (Hawaiki), Rarotongan (ʻAvaiki), and Samoan (Savaiʻi). (See also Hawaiki). According to Pukui and Elbert,[5] "Elsewhere in Polynesia, Hawaiʻi or a cognate is the name of the underworld or of the ancestral home, but in Hawaiʻi the name has no meaning."[6] The main Hawaiian Islands are: An archipelago situated some 2,000 mi (3,200 km) southwest of the North American mainland,[7] Hawaiʻi is the southernmost state of the United States and the second westernmost state after Alaska. Only Hawaii and Alaska are outside the contiguous United States and do not share a border with any other U.S. state. Hawaii is the only state of the United States that: Hawaii's tallest mountain, Mauna Kea stands at 13,796 ft (4,205 m)[8] but is taller than Mount Everest if followed to the base of the mountain—from the floor of the Pacific Ocean, rising about 33,500 ft (10,200 m).[9] All of the Hawaiian islands were formed by volcanoes erupting from the sea floor from a magma source described in geological theory as a hotspot. As the tectonic plate beneath much of the Pacific Ocean moves in a northwesterly direction, the hot spot remains stationary, slowly creating new volcanoes. This explains why only volcanoes on the southern half of the Big Island, and the Lōʻihi Seamount deep below the waters off its southern coast, are presently active, with Lōʻihi being the newest volcano to form. The last volcanic eruption outside the Big Island occurred at Haleakalā on Maui before the late 18th century, though Haleakalā's most recent eruptive activity could be hundreds of years earlier.[10] In 1790, Kīlauea exploded in the deadliest eruption known to have occurred in what is now the United States.[11] As many as 5,405 warriors and their families marching on Kīlauea were killed in an eruption in 1790.[12] Volcanic activity and subsequent erosion created impressive geological features. The Big Island is the world's second highest island. Slope instability of the volcanoes has generated damaging earthquakes with related tsunamis, particularly in 1868 and 1975.[13] Because of the islands' volcanic formation, native life before human activity is said to have arrived by the "3 W's": wind (carried through the air), waves (brought by ocean currents), and wings (birds, insects, and whatever they brought with them). The isolation of the Hawaiian Islands in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, and the wide range of environments on high islands in and near the tropic, has resulted in a vast array of endemic flora and fauna (see Endemism in the Hawaiian Islands). Hawaii has more endangered species and has lost a higher percentage of its endemic species than anywhere in the United States.[14] Niʻihau (70 sq. mi.) Kauaʻi (552.3 sq. mi.) Oʻahu (598 sq. mi.) Maui (727.3 sq. mi.) Molokaʻi (260 sq. mi.) Lānaʻi (140.5 sq. mi.) Kahoʻolawe (44.6 sq. mi.) Hawaii (4,028.2 sq. mi.) There are several areas in Hawaii under the protection of the National Park Service.[15] Two areas are designated as national parks: Haleakala National Park near Kula, Maui, includes Haleakalā, the dormant volcano that formed east Maui; and Hawaii Volcanoes National Park in the southeast region of the island of Hawaii, which includes the active volcano Kīlauea and its various rift zones. There are three national historical parks: Kalaupapa National Historical Park in Kalaupapa, Molokaʻi, the site of a former colony for Hansen's disease patients; Kaloko-Honokōhau National Historical Park in Kailua-Kona on the island of Hawaii; and Puʻuhonua o Hōnaunau National Historical Park in Hōnaunau on the island of Hawaii, the site of an ancient Hawaiian place of refuge. Other areas under the control of the National Park Service include Ala Kahakai National Historic Trail on the island of Hawaii and the USS Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor on Oʻahu. The Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument was proclaimed by President George W. Bush on June 15, 2006. The monument covers roughly 140,000 square miles (360,000 km²) of reefs, atolls and shallow and deep sea (out to 50 miles (80 km) offshore) in the Pacific Ocean, larger than all of America's National Parks combined.[16] The climate of Hawaii is typical for a tropical area, although temperatures and humidity tend to be a bit less extreme due to constant trade winds from the east. Summer highs are usually in the upper 80s °F, (around 31°C) during the day and mid 70s, (around 24 °C) at night. Winter day temperatures are usually in the low to mid 80s, (around 28 °C) and (at low elevation) seldom dipping below the mid 60s (18 °C) at night. Snow, not usually associated with tropics, falls at 4,205 meters (13,796 ft) on Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa on the Big Island in some winter months. Snow rarely falls on Maui's Haleakala. Mount Waiʻaleʻale, on the island of Kauaʻi, has the second highest average annual rainfall on Earth, about 460 inches (11.7 m). Most of Hawaii has only two seasons: the dry season from May to October, and the wet season from October to April.[17] Local climates vary considerably on each island, grossly divisible into windward (Koʻolau) and leeward (Kona) areas based upon location relative to the higher mountains. Windward sides face cloud cover. The tourist industry therefore concentrates resorts on sunny leeward coasts. Hawaii is one of four U.S. states that were independent prior to becoming part of the United States, along with the Vermont Republic (1791), the Republic of Texas (1845), and the California Republic (1846), and one of two (Texas was the other) with formal diplomatic recognition internationally.[19] The Kingdom of Hawaii existed from 1810 until 1893 when the monarchy was overthrown by resident American (and some European) businessmen. It was an independent republic from 1894 until 1898, when it was annexed by the United States as a territory, until becoming a state in 1959.[20] Hawaii's greatest historic significance is as the target of surprise attack on Pearl Harbor by Imperial Japan on December 7, 1941. The attack on Pearl Harbor and other military and naval installations on Oʻahu, carried out by aircraft and by midget submarine brought the United States into World War II. The earliest habitation supported by archaeological evidence dates to as early as 300 BCE, probably by Polynesian settlers from the Marquesas, followed by a second wave of migration from Raiatea and Bora Bora in the 11th century. The first recorded European contact with the islands was in 1778 by British explorer James Cook. Polynesians from the Marquesas and possibly the Society Islands may have first populated the Hawaiian Islands between 300 and 500 CE. There is a great deal of debate regarding these dates.[21] Some archaeologists and historians believe that there had been an early settlement from the Marquesas and a later wave of immigrants from Tahiti, circa 1000, who were said to have introduced a new line of high chiefs, the Kapu system, the practice of human sacrifice and the building of heiaus. This later immigration is detailed in folk tales about Paʻao. Other authors have argued that there is no archaeological or linguistic evidence for a later influx of Tahitian settlers, and that Paʻao must be regarded as a myth. However, this seems very unlikely due to the fact that the Kapu system and the practice of human sacrifice were only common in Tahitian culture. Regardless of the question of Paʻao and the history of the Royal Hawaiian lineage, historians agree that the history of the islands was marked by a slow but steady growth in population and the size of the Kapu chiefdoms, which grew to encompass whole islands. Local chiefs, called aliʻi, ruled their settlements and fought to extend their sway and defend their communities from predatory rivals. This was conducted in a system of allies of various ranks similar to the tribal systems before Feudalism. The 1778 arrival of British explorer James Cook is usually taken to be Hawaii's first contact with European explorers. Cook named the islands the Sandwich Islands in honor of one of his sponsors, John Montagu, 4th Earl of Sandwich. He published the geographical coordinates of the islands and reported the native name as Owyhee. This erroneous translation lives on in Owyhee County, Idaho, which was named after three Hawaiian members of a trapping party who were killed in that area. Cook visited the Hawaiian islands twice. During his second visit in 1779, he attempted to abduct a Hawaiian chief and hold him as ransom for return of a ship's boat that was stolen by a different minor chief;[22] the chief's supporters fought back, and Cook was killed.