Why Are Alaska and Hawaii Shown on the Inset Map?

In a map of the United States of America, you may notice that Alaska and Hawaii are usually shown on an inset map. But why is that? The reason is simple: they are not connected to the rest of the United States by land.

Alaska:

Alaska is located in the far northwest part of North America, just above Canada. It shares a border with Canada and is also located near Russia. Due to its geographical location, it is not possible to include Alaska on the main map of the contiguous United States. Therefore, it is often shown on an inset map to provide context and to show its position relative to the rest of the country.

Hawaii:

Hawaii, on the other hand, is a group of islands located in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. It is thousands of miles away from any continental American land mass. Including Hawaii on the main map would require stretching the map to cover the vast distance between the islands and the mainland, distorting the scale and shape of the rest of the country. Therefore, Hawaii is typically shown on an inset map to represent its position accurately.

By including Alaska and Hawaii on inset maps, cartographers can accurately represent the geographical layout of the United States without distorting the shape or scale of the map.

Why do Alaska and Hawaii have to be shown on the inset map?

That is because they are not connected to the rest of the United States of America by land. Alaska is found on the far north west part just above Canada, near Russia, while Hawaii are found in the middle of the Pacific ocean, far away from any continental American land mass.