Hawaii is the 50th and most recent state of the United States of America, receiving statehood on August 21, 1959. Hawaii is the only U.S. state located in Oceania and the only one composed entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean. Hawaii is the only U.S. state not located in the Americas.

Hawaii is an archipelago of over nineteen distinct volcanic islands located over a geological “hot spot” in the Central Pacific. The Pacific plate on which the islands ride moves to the northwest, so in general the islands are older and smaller (due to erosion) as you move from southeast to northwest. There are eight major islands, six of which are open to tourism. Hawaii, almost always called the Big Island to avoid confusion, is the largest of the islands and home to Mauna Kea, Mauna Loa (the largest and one of the most active volcanoes on Earth), and Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. Other major islands are Oahu, Maui, Kauai, Molokai, Lanai, Niihau and Kahoolawe.