In 2009, the US quarter will again undergo a series of design changes to commemorate different regions of the country. Under the District of Columbia and U.S. Territories Quarters Program, six quarter designs will recognize Washington, D.C., and the United States' five civilian-inhabited territories: Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, US Virgin Islands, and the Northern Mariana Islands. These quarters are being released in the order that the territories were acquired by the US. Although technically distinct from the Fifty State Quarters Program, the District of Columbia and U.S. Territories Quarters Program truly completes the mission of the state quarters, by helping shed light on these far-flung regions the United States.