The US just increased in size by 1 million square kilometers!! (v1.0)

 A key reference is Earth. This is an extract. 

In a historic move, the United States has officially expanded its geographical territory by one million square kilometers. The catalyst for this territory expansion lies in the redefinition of the U.S. continental shelf boundaries.  By invoking international law, the US State Department has outlined new areas under the sea where the continental shelf, a seabed area surrounding large landmasses with relatively shallow waters, extends further than previously recognized. This monumental addition is spread across seven distinct ocean regions, with over half of the new territory located in the Arctic.

The concept of the Extended Continental Shelf (ECS) is pivotal in understanding this expansion. Under international law, coastal nations can claim these extended shelves, along with the right to manage and exploit their resources. With this territory expansion move, the U.S. joins over 75 countries that have defined their ECS limits, which extend beyond 200 nautical miles from their coasts.

The journey to this announcement began in 2003, involving a multi-agency collaboration led by the U.S. State Department, NOAA, and the US Geological Survey. The mission was to gather comprehensive geological data to determine the outer limits of the U.S. continental shelf. This extensive effort ended on December 19, 2023, with the State Department revealing the new geographic coordinates that mark the U.S. ECS.

The areas encompassed in this claim include the Arctic, the east coast Atlantic, the Bearing Sea, the west coast Pacific, the Marianna islands, and two regions in the Gulf of Mexico. The addition of this vast territory, equivalent in size to double the state of California, significantly strengthens the nation's control over marine resources. "It's not quite the Louisiana Purchase. It's not quite the purchase of Alaska, but the new area of land and subsurface resources under the land controlled by the United States is two Californias larger."

State Department project director Brian Van Pay said it took multi-agency fieldwork spanning 20 years for scientists to gather data about the shape of the seafloor and measuring sediment layers. "Forty missions at sea, going to areas that we've never explored before, finding entire seamounts we didn't even know existed," said Van Pay. "And, if you add up all the time that our scientists spent at sea, it's over three years of data collection."

The State Department's Arctic claim notably aligns with a 1990 maritime boundary agreement with Russia, ensuring no encroachment on Russian territory. "None of the fixed points delineating the outer limits of the continental shelf of the United States are located west of the agreed boundary with the Russian Federation," said the State Department. However, potential overlap with Canada's claims was acknowledged by Van Pay, indicating future diplomatic negotiations.

Crucially, this declaration does not extend U.S. jurisdiction over the water column or fishing rights beyond 200 miles off its coast. Instead, it focuses on control over the seabed and its resources, including mining and research rights, as well as pipeline activities. The extended continental shelf areas include portions of the Atlantic, Pacific, the Gulf of Mexico, and the Mariana Islands. The largest section lies north of Alaska, coupled with a smaller segment in the Bering Sea, collectively nearing the size of Texas.

Here is the US ECS.