TheU.S. State ofMinnesota is the northernmost state outsideAlaska; its isolatedNorthwest Angle inLake of the Woods is the only part of the 48contiguous states lying north of the49th parallel north. Minnesota is in the U.S. region known as theUpper Midwest in interior North America. The state shares aLake Superior water border withMichigan andWisconsin on the northeast; the remainder of the eastern border is withWisconsin.Iowa is to the south,South Dakota andNorth Dakota are to the west, and the Canadian provinces ofManitoba andOntario are to the north. With 87,014 square miles (225,370 km²), or approximately 2.26% of the United States,^[1] Minnesota is the 12th largest state.^[2]

Minnesota contains some of the oldest rocks found on earth,gneisses some 3.6 billion years old, or 80% as old as the planet.^[3][4] About 2.7 billion years ago,basalticlava poured out of cracks in the floor of the primordial ocean; thisvolcanic activity created theCanadian Shield in northeast Minnesota.^[3][5] The roots of these volcanic mountains and the action ofPrecambrian seas formed theIron Range of northern Minnesota. Following a period of volcanic activity 1.1 billion years ago, Minnesota's geological activity has been more subdued, with no volcanism or mountain formation, but with repeated incursions of the sea which left behind multiple strata of sedimentary rock.^[3]

In more recent times, massive ice sheets at least one kilometer thick ravaged the landscape of the state and sculpted its current terrain.^[3] TheWisconsin glaciation left 12,000 years ago.^[3] These glaciers covered all of Minnesota except the far southeast, an area characterized by steep hills and streams that cut into thebedrock. This area is known as theDriftless Zone for its absence ofglacial drift.^[6] Much of the remainder of the state outside the northeast has 50 feet (15 m) or more ofglacial till deposited when the last glaciers melted. 13,000 years ago giganticLake Agassiz formed in the northwest; the lake's outflow, theGlacial River Warren, carved the valley of theMinnesota River, and its bed became the fertile lands of theRed River valley.^[3] Minnesota is geologically quiet today; it experiences earthquakes infrequently, and most of them are minor.^[7]

The state's high point isEagle Mountain at 2,301 feet (701 m), which is only 13 miles (21 km) away from the low of 602 feet (183 m) at the shore ofLake Superior.^[5][8] Relatively high elevations are also found in theLeaf Hills in Otter Tail County.^[9] Notwithstanding dramatic local differences in elevation, much of the state is a gently rollingpeneplain.^[3]

Twocontinental divides meet in the northeastern part of Minnesota in ruralHibbing, forming a triplewatershed.Precipitation there can follow theMississippi River south to theGulf of Mexico, theSt. Lawrence Seaway east to the Atlantic Ocean, or theHudson Bay watershed to the Arctic Ocean.^[10]

The state's nickname,The Land of 10,000 Lakes, is no exaggeration; there are 11,842 lakes ten or more acres in size.^[11] The Minnesota portion ofLake Superior is the largest at 962,700 acres (3,896 km²) and deepest (at 1,290 ft (390 m), 393 m) body of water in the state.^[11] Minnesota has 6,564 natural rivers and streams that cumulatively flow for 69,000 miles (111,000 km).^[11] TheMississippi River begins its journey from itsheadwaters atLake Itasca and crosses theIowa border 680 miles (1,094 km) downstream.^[11] It is joined by theMinnesota River atFort Snelling, by theSt. Croix River nearHastings, by theChippewa River atWabasha, and by many smaller streams. TheRed River, in the bed of glacial Lake Agassiz, drains the northwest part of the state northward toward Canada'sHudson Bay. Approximately 10.6 million acres (42,900 km²) of wetlands are contained within Minnesota's borders, the most of any state outside Alaska.^[12]

Three of North America'sbiomes converge in Minnesota:prairie grasslands in the southwestern and western parts of the state, theBig Woodsdeciduous forest of the southeast, and the northernboreal forest.^[13] The northern coniferous forests are a vast wilderness ofpine andspruce trees mixed with patchy stands ofbirch andpoplar. Much of Minnesota's northern forest has been logged, leaving only a few patches ofold growth forest today in areas such as in theChippewa National Forest and theSuperior National Forest where theBoundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness has some 400,000 acres (1,600 km²) of unlogged land.^[14] Although logging continues, regrowth keeps about one third of the state forested.^[15] While loss of habitat has affected native animals such as thepine marten,elk, andbison,^[16]whitetail deer andbobcat thrive. The state has the nation's largest population oftimber wolves outside Alaska,^[17] and supports healthy populations ofblack bear andmoose. Located on theMississippi Flyway, Minnesota hosts migratory waterfowl such asgeese andducks, and game birds such asgrouse,pheasants, andturkeys. It is home tobirds of prey including thebald eagle,red-tailed hawk, andsnowy owl. The lakes teem with sport fish such aswalleye,bass,muskellunge, andnorthern pike, and streams in the southeast are populated bybrook,brown, andrainbow trout.

Minnesota endurestemperature extremes characteristic of itscontinental climate; with cold winters and hot summers, the record high and low span 174 degrees Fahrenheit (79 °C).^[18] Meteorological events include rain, snow,hail,blizzards,polar fronts,tornadoes,thunderstorms, and high-velocityderechos anddownbursts. The growing season varies from 90 days per year in theIron Range to 160 days in southeast Minnesota near the Mississippi River, and mean average temperatures range from 36 to 49 °F (2 to 9 °C).^[19] Average summerdewpoints range from about 58 °F (14 °C) in the south to about 48 °F (9 °C) in the north.^[19][20] Depending on location, average annual precipitation ranges from 19 to 35 in (48 to 89 cm), and droughts occur every 10 to 50 years.^[19]

Minnesota is home to a variety of wilderness, park, and other open spaces. Minnesota's first state park,Itasca State Park, was established in 1891, and is thesource of the Mississippi River.^[21] Today Minnesota has72 state parks and recreation areas,58 state forests covering about four million acres (16,000 km²), and numerous state wildlife preserves, all managed by theMinnesota Department of Natural Resources. There are 5.5 million acres (22,000 km²) in theChippewa andSuperior National Forests. The Superior National Forest in the northeast contains theBoundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, which encompasses over a million acres (4,000 km²) and a thousand lakes. To its west isVoyageurs National Park, the state's only national park.

The US state ofMinnesota can be divided into regions in a variety of ways. On a basic level, the state is divided between theMinneapolis–Saint Paul or Twin Cities metropolitan area (often referred to locally asThe Cities), andOutstate orGreater Minnesota. The distinction between the metropolitan counties and the outstate area was codified in 1967 with the Minnesota legislature's creation of the state'sMetropolitan Council.^[22]

The Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area comprises eleven Minnesota counties centered onMinneapolis, the state's largest city, and adjoiningSaint Paul, the capital; plus twoWisconsin counties. About three out of every five residents of the state live in thisconurbation.

Greater Minnesota is less urbanized than theTwin Cities. It is also geographically more diverse, with farmlands to the south and west, lake country incentral Minnesota, and forests in the northern part of the state. Approximately 40% of Minnesotans live in Greater Minnesota. Its major population centers includeDuluth,Rochester,Moorhead,St. Cloud,Mankato, andWinona.

• Politically, Minnesota contains eightcongressional districts.
• Climatologically, the state varies considerably from the far north, near Canada andLake Superior, to the south, where fertilefarm land bordersIowa,South Dakota, andWisconsin.
• Demographically, population density varies from less than 4 persons per square mile in the least developed areas to 8,000 persons per square mile in Minneapolis.
• Geologically, variations exist due to ice cover during thelast Ice Age.
• Culturally and economically, areas of the state vary with respect to industry, predominant professions, and urbanization.

Thegeographic regions discussed here have combined elements from several of these various criteria to divide the state into areas recognized by the typical Minnesotan. Disagreements concerning the exact boundaries are to be expected, however, the exact boundary definitions are not necessary to adequately define the state's regions. Large areas of the state are sometimes referred to historically and politically as Southern Minnesota or Northern Minnesota to refer to areas outside of the Twin Cities Metropolitan area but stretch across multiple regions due to climate, agriculture, political views, school systems and other relations.^[23]

• TheArrowhead Region is the far northeastern part of Minnesota. Its name comes from the shape of the area north of Lake Superior, and it is centered around Duluth. It includes two of the three iron ranges in Minnesota. Collectively the Mesabi and Vermillion iron ranges are called theIron Range and colloquially as "the Range." These parts of the Arrowhead are dotted with iron mines. The Arrowhead region also includes theNorth Shore and theBoundary Waters.
• Although no legal boundaries of the region exist, most definitions of what makes upCentral Minnesota would include the parts of the state within the economic influence of St. Cloud.
• TheNorthwest Angle is that land of Minnesota north of the 49th parallellatitude line.
• Southeastern Minnesota includes the scenicMississippi Valley, Whitewater, Zumbro and Root Rivers in the Coulee Region, also known as theDriftless Area or “Bluff Country”. Its primary city is Rochester, and to a lesser extent, Winona and La Crosse, WI.
• Southwestern Minnesota includes theBuffalo Ridge, which is the eastern portion of theCoteau des Prairies, a geological formation characterized by higher elevation and high average wind speed, providing opportunities for commercially viablewind power. The area also includes thePipestone Region.
• TheMinnesota River Valley follows the state's namesake, a fertile agricultural area, running from theSouth Dakota border to its junction with the Mississippi River in St. Paul.
• "Northern Minnesota" is a broader title that includes several regions, including theNorth Woods, and can be defined as any area within the 218 telephone area code. Examples of cities include Brainerd, Bemidji, Grand Rapids and International Falls.
• TheRed River Valley is a term the U.S. government uses to generally describe the sections of northeastern North Dakota and northwestern Minnesota to which the U.S. secured title following theAnglo-American Convention of 1818. Popularly, it is used to refer to most of the territory in the northwestern part of the state. Specifically, the area in the Fargo-Grand Forks media market is called the Red River Valley by media outlets (referring to both the Dakota and Minnesota parts).
• "South Central Minnesota" refers to a group of fewer than a dozen counties loosely centered on the city of Mankato. It is essentially an alternate name for the Minnesota River Valley, with a slightly extended area to include towns such as Owatonna.
• TheTwin Cities Metropolitan area includes 13 counties, two of which are in Wisconsin. It is a socio-economic area driven by thetwin cities ofMinneapolis and the state capital,Saint Paul.

• Geography of Minnesota

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