| Albuquerque is a city in central New Mexico with a population of over 520,000. It is located on the Rio Grande river in Bernalillo County. It is the thirty-fourth largest United States city, and ranked in the top ten for growing the fastest in the country. Its MSA has nearly 870,000 people. The elevation of Albuquerque is 5,308 feet. Although settled since the 1600s, the city of Albuquerque was not officially established until 1891. The University of New Mexico is located in Albuquerque. Albuquerque's military presence includes Kirtland Air Force Base. A minor league baseball team, the Albuquerque Isotopes of Los Angeles Dodgers affiliation, play home games there. The New Mexico Thunderbirds basketball team and New Mexico Mustangs ice hockey team also play in Albuquerque. The University of New Mexico Lobos football and basketball teams play home games there. The city's weather and commitment to health with many parks and recreation areas help it achieve consistently top rankings for fitness. The city is home to the Heart Hospital of New Mexico as well as Presbyterian Hospital, a VA Medical Center and the University of New Mexico Hospital. The area's tallest building is the Albuquerque Plaza. Other tall area buildings include the Compass Bank Building and Hyatt Regency Albuquerque. Famous past or present residents of Albuquerque include Bill Gates of Microsoft, Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos and Jim Morrison of the Doors band. The area is served by the Albuquerque International Airport. I-25 (Interstate 25) is the primary highway of the city and runs north to south. The weather is mild with summer highs in the eighties and nineties and winter lows into the twenties with little precipitation, usually less than nine inches total of rain and snow per year. Median family income is around $47,000. Arts and entertainment in the Albuquerque area include the Blackout Theater company, New Mexico Ballet Company, National Dance Insitute of New Mexico, Burlesque Noir, and Albuquerque Studios. Famous references to Albuquerque include the movie Little Miss Sunshine and the Disney High School Musical movies. The Albuquerque Journal is the city's newspaper. |
