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Illinois is located in the Midwestern region of the United States. It contains 55,593 square miles (143,985 square kilometers or 14,398,521 hectares) of land, and 2,325 square miles (6 021.7 square kilometers or 602,172 hectares) covered by water. The Prairie State’s total area of 57,918 square miles (150,007 square kilometers or 15,000,693 hectares) makes it the 25th largest of the United States. The state is bordered to the north by Wisconsin, to the south by Kentucky, to the east by Lake Michigan and Indiana, and to the west by Iowa and Missouri. Major rivers in Illinois include the Illinois River, Ohio River, Mississippi River, and Wabash River. The highest point in Illinois is Charles Mound at 1,235 feet (376.4 meters).
Illinois is divided geographically into three main regions; the Central Plains, the Shawnee Hills and the Gulf Coastal Plain. Much of Illinois is covered by the Central Plains, which are further divided into the Great Lakes Plain, the Driftless Plains, and the Till Plains. These fertile areas were formed by glacial movement during the last Ice Age. The Shawnee Hills region is higher in elevation and contains valleys and woodland areas. The Gulf Coastal region contains part of the Gulf Coastal Plain that reaches north from the Gulf of Mexico.
The temperate climate of Illinois is quite variable, with four distinct seasons and over 200 sunny days per year. Summers are moist and warm to hot, averaging 85 to 90 degrees F (29.4 to 32.2 degrees C) in July. Winters are quite cold with temperatures in January averaging 30 to 40 degrees F (-1.1 to 4.4 degrees C). Precipitation averages 4 inches (10.16 centimeters) per month, primarily falling as snow in the winter.
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