Alexânia is a municipality in central Goiás state, Brazil. Alexânia is known for its alleged extraterrestrial sightings in the late sixties and early seventies. The Areias River passes through the municipality. Location It is located on the main Brasília–Goiânia highway, GO-060, which has been recently widened to four lanes. The distance to Brasília is 130 km and 118 km to Goiânia. It is part of the Entorno do Distrito Federal statistical micro-region. Municipal boundaries are with: North: Corumbá de Goiás South: Abadiânia East: Santo Antônio do Descoberto West: Corumbá de Goiás and Abadiânia Districts, Villages, and Hamlets Villages: Alvorada, Olhos d’Água and Estiva. Hamlet: Serra do Ouro. Economy The city relies on agriculture and livestock raising, with ranches producing both meat and dairy cattle. There is a substantial poultry industry with 755,000 birds counted in 2006. There is also an intense commercial activity because of the highway traffic. Alexânia is also an important cluster of ‘Cachaça de alambique’ (artisanal sugar cane rum). The major ones are: Cambeba, Cachaça do Ministro, Cana Brava, Cachaça do Piloto. There were two bank branches in 2007. The municipality still has a relatively unspoilt nature with some forest growth along the rivers. In recent years several rural hotels (‘hotéis-fazendas’) have opened up near the town offering what is known as eco-tourism to the urban inhabitants of Brasília. This activity supports more than 200 families. Recently a beer brewery was established in the municipality providing needed jobs and giving the region the possibility of finally developing and benefiting from a higher standard of living. In the Seplan list of municipal development, which ranked 58 municipalities in the state based on dynamism, economic wealth, quality of life and other factors, Alexânia went from 51st place in 2003 to 18th place in 2004. Motor vehicles Automobiles: 2,510 Pickup trucks: 233 Number of inhabitants per motor vehicle: 7.3 Agricultural data 2006 Farms: 638 Total area: 31,901 ha. Area of permanent crops: 718 ha. Area of perennial crops: 3,820 ha. Area of pasture: 26,571 ha. Area of woodland and forests: 6,495 ha. Cattle herd: 39,559 Main crops in hectares Rice: 60 Banana: 250 Sugarcane: 200 Oranges: 9 Lemons: 12 Passion fruit: 35 Corn: 1,800 Soybeans: 3,160 Tangerines: 10 Tomatoes: 40 (All data are from 2006) Health and education Schools: 27 (2006) Enrollment: 6,912 Hospitals: 1 with 46 beds Literacy rate in 2000: 84.3% Infant mortality rate in 2000: 36.16 MHDI: