New Mexico is a state known for many things. Perhaps one of the most famous is the long stretch of highway that runs through it. Route 66 is well known throughout the country, as it is one way of driving all the way to the west coast. Still, there are plenty of other things that are well known in the state, including the fact that the capital of the state is the highest in the country. There is a huge balloon festival there each year as well, which is called the largest international balloon festival in the world.

If you are looking for a good swim, New Mexico isn’t a place you want to be, as only 0.002% of the state is covered in water. Still, there are plenty of natural places that can be enjoyed, even without the water. One of the best, perhaps, is the Navajo reservation; a nation of its own that covers fourteen million acres. You can also find historical sites to tickle any fancy, such as the Anasazi sites identified by archaeologists to date back over one thousand years.

But New Mexico isn’t just known for its lack of water and ancestry. No, it is also the one place in the world that lives on as the birthplace of the nuclear bomb; not because it was actually designed and created there, but because the very first device to be tested was detonated there in a place called White Sands. And if that wasn’t enough technology for you, you can also find the alternate landing site for the Space Shuttle in the very same location, White Sands.

Make packing for your move to New Mexico fun by including these trivia facts in the process.

• The capital of New Mexico, Santa Fe, is known for being the highest capital city in the United States. It sits at seven thousand feet above sea level.
• The world’s largest international hot air balloon festival is held each year in Albuquerque.
• New Mexico has the lowest water to land ratio of all states in the union. Only two thousandths of the state is covered by water. Most of this water can be found in the Rio Grande, which runs the length of the state.
• White Sands, known for its alternative Space Shuttle landing facility, is not comprised of sand, but of white gypsum crystals that gleam in the sunlight.
• White Sands is also known for the very first detonation of a nuclear bomb. The explosion occurred in 1945 on a test range.

So much has happened throughout the history of this state. Today, the blend of natural wonder and technology make this place one of the greatest places in the United States to live.