New Mexico has a significant U.S. military presence,[16] including White Sands Missile Range, and strategically valuable federal research centers, such as the Sandia and Los Alamos National Laboratories.

To encourage settlement in its vulnerable periphery, Spain awarded land grants to European settlers in Nuevo México; due to the scarcity of water throughout the region, the vast majority of colonists resided in the central valley of the Rio Grande and its tributaries.

[36]: 132  The Americans were initially heavy-handed in their treatment of former Mexican citizens, triggering the Taos Revolt in 1847 by Hispanos and their Pueblo allies; the insurrection led to the death of territorial governor Charles Bent and the collapse of the civilian government established by Stephen W. Kearny.

The Confederacy claimed the southern tract as its own Arizona Territory, and as part of the Trans-Mississippi Theater of the war, waged the ambitious New Mexico Campaign to control the American Southwest and open up access to Union California.

Politically, they still controlled most town and county offices through local elections, and wealthy ranching families commanded considerable influence, preferring business, legislative, and judicial relations with fellow indigenous New Mexican groups.

Following the elimination of the Confederate threat, Brigadier General James Carleton, who had assumed command of the Military Department of New Mexico in 1862, led what he described as a "merciless war against all hostile tribes" that aimed to "force them to their knees, and then confine them to reservations where they could be Christianized and instructed in agriculture.

"[51] With famed frontiersman Kit Carson placed in charge of troops in the field, powerful indigenous groups such as the Navajo, Mescalero Apache, Kiowa, and Comanche were brutally pacified through a scorched earth policy, and thereafter forced into barren and remote reservations.

Nevertheless, prominent figures from across these communities, and from both the Democratic and Republican parties, attempted to fight this prejudice and forge a more cohesive, multiethnic New Mexican identity; they include lawmen Baca and Garrett, and governors Curry, Hagerman, and Otero.

New Mexico's rough terrain and geographic isolation made it an attractive location for several sensitive military and scientific installations; the most famous was Los Alamos, one of the central facilities of the Manhattan Project, where the first atomic bombs were designed and manufactured.

While the high military presence brought considerable investment, it has also been the center of controversy; on May 22, 1957, a B-36 accidentally dropped a nuclear bomb 4.5 miles from the control tower while landing at Kirtland Air Force Base in Albuquerque; only its conventional "trigger" detonated.

[72] In the 21st century, employment growth areas in New Mexico include electronic circuitry, scientific research, information technology, casinos, art of the American Southwest, food, film, and media, particularly in Albuquerque.

[89] Nearly bisecting New Mexico from north to south, the Rio Grande has played an influential role in the region's history; its fertile floodplain has supported human habitation since prehistoric times, and European settlers initially lived exclusively in its valleys and along its tributaries.

[95] The Upper Sonoran Zone is by far the most prominent, constituting about three-fourths of the state; it includes most of the plains, foothills, and valleys above 4,500 feet, and is defined by prairie grasses, low piñon pines, and juniper shrubs.

The mountainous north hosts a wide array of vegetation types corresponding to elevation gradients, such as piñon-juniper woodlands near the base, through evergreen conifers, spruce-fir and aspen forests in the transitionary zone, and Krummholz, and alpine tundra at the very top.

Like several other southwestern states, New Mexico hosts numerous colonias, unincorporated, low-income slums characterized by abject poverty, the absence of basic services (such as water and sewage), and scarce housing and infrastructure.

[122] In response, the New Mexico government invested heavily in public outreach to increase census participation, resulting in a final tally that exceeded earlier estimates and outperformed several neighboring states.

[159] Notwithstanding their relatively small population, immigrants play a disproportionately large role in New Mexico's economy, accounting for almost one-eighth (12.5%) of the labor force,15% of entrepreneurs, and 19.1% of personal care aides, as well as 9.1% of workers in STEM fields.

[179] Religious self-identification, per Public Religion Research Institute's 2022 American Values Survey[180] Like most U.S. states, New Mexico is predominantly Christian, with Roman Catholicism and Protestantism each constituting roughly a third of the population.

[189] The state's "thriving New Age network" encompasses various schools of alternative medicine, Holistic Health, psychic healing, and new religions, as well as festivals, pilgrimage sites, spiritual retreats, and communes.

[209] New Mexico's leadership within otherwise disparate traditions such as Christianity, the Native American Church, and New Age movements has been linked to its remote and ancient indigenous spirituality, which emphasized sacred connections to nature, and its over 300 years of syncretized Pueblo and Hispano religious and folk customs.

[249][250][251][252][253] During the 1950s to 1960s, Glen Campbell, The Champs, Johnny Duncan, Carolyn Hester, Al Hurricane, Waylon Jennings, Eddie Reeves, and JD Souther recorded on equipment by Norman Petty at Clovis.

[270][271] New Mexico's high altitude, generally clear skies, and sparse population have long fostered astronomical and aerospace activities, beginning with the ancient observatories of the Chaco Canyon culture; the "Space Triangle" between Roswell, Alamogordo, and Las Cruces has seen the highest concentration rocket tests and launches.

Restaurant chains originating in the state include Blake's Lotaburger, Boba Tea Company, Dion's Pizza, Little Anita's, Mac's Steak in the Rough, and Twisters; many specialize in New Mexican cuisine.

The state is tied with Delaware, North Dakota, Puerto Rico, and Rhode Island in having the fewest primary interstate routes, which is partly a reflection of its rugged geography and sparse population.

[343]Since 2006, a state owned, privately run commuter railway, the New Mexico Rail Runner Express, has served the Albuquerque metropolitan area, connecting the city proper with Santa Fe and other communities.

Albuquerque International Sunport is the state's main aerial port of entry and by far the largest airport: It is the only one designated a medium-sized hub by the Federal Aviation Administration, serving millions of passengers annually.

[425] New Mexico ranked 13th in the 2022 Social Mobility Index (SMI), which measures the extent to which economically disadvantaged students (with family incomes below the national median) have access to colleges and universities with lower tuition and indebtedness and higher job prospects.

[446] Santa Fe has long hosted a thriving artistic community, which has included such prominent figures as Bruce Nauman, Richard Tuttle, John Connell, Steina Vasulka and Ned Bittinger.

Among the more notable authors were: Angélico Chávez, Nina Otero-Warren, Fabiola Cabeza de Baca, Aurelio Espinosa, Cleofas Jaramillo, Juan Bautista Rael, and Aurora Lucero-White Lea.

New Mexico's strong Spanish, Anglo, and Wild West frontier motifs have contributed to a unique body of literature, represented by internationally recognized authors such as Rudolfo Anaya, Tony Hillerman, and Daniel Abraham.