California

I

Introduction

California, one of the Pacific Coast states of the United States, bordered on the north by Oregon, on the east by Nevada and Arizona, on the south by the Mexican state of Baja California, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean. The Colorado River forms the southern portion of the state’s eastern border.

California entered the Union on September 9, 1850, as the 31st state. Agriculture and mining have always been important to the economy of California. Industrial activity expanded rapidly in the 20th century along with a booming population. By the 1990s California had a larger population than any other state and was the leading producer by value of both agricultural and manufactured goods. The name “California” was first given to the Baja California peninsula by the Portuguese explorer Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo in 1542 and was applied by other explorers to more northern areas. The word is derived from the name of an imaginary island in a popular Spanish romance of the time. California is also known as the “Golden State”.

II

Land and Resources

With an area of 411,471 sq km (158,869 sq mi) California is the third-largest state in the United States (after Alaska and Texas). The state most resembles an arc; its extreme dimensions are about 1,052 km (654 mi) from north to south and about 945 km (587 mi) from east to west. California has a great complexity of relief, with elevations from 86 m (282 ft) below sea level in Death Valley (the lowest point on the continent), to 4,418 m (14,494 ft), at the top of Mount Whitney, one of the highest peaks in the United States.

A

Physical Geography

The topography of California is extremely varied. There are four main regions: Central Valley and its surrounding mountain ranges; the Lower Californian ranges; the eastern basins, valleys, and deserts; and the coastline.

The great Central Valley is a downfolded basin with deep, fertile, alluvial soils, bordered on the east by the Sierra Nevada (a rugged granitic mountain range important both as a source of numerous rivers and for its scenic beauty); on the north by the Cascade Range (a volcanic tableland capped by cones) and the Klamath Mountains; and on the west by the Coast Ranges (low parallel ranges running north to south and interspersed with structural depressions, the best known of which are the Salinas Valley and the lowlands around San Francisco Bay). Major peaks include, in the Sierra Nevada, Mount Whitney (4,418 m/14,494 ft), and in the Cascade Range, the extinct volcano Mount Shasta at 4,317 m (14,162 ft) and the active volcano Lassen Peak (3,187 m/10,457 ft), which protrudes from the core of the ancient Mount Tehama.

The Lower California Ranges, to the south-west, comprise the Transverse Ranges in the north and the Peninsular Ranges to the south—both granitic ranges that differ from the Sierra Nevada in their lower elevations and absence of glacial features.

East of California’s mountain ranges are several arid basins and valleys, the most famous of which are the Great Basin in the north, which includes Death Valley, and the Mojave Desert in the south—which alone occupies approximately one fifth of the state.

The coastline is geologically unstable, with many faults, or fractures, the most prominent of which is the San Andreas Fault.

The longest river in California, the Sacramento, rises near Mount Shasta and flows south into San Francisco Bay. The second-longest is the San Joaquin River, which rises in the Sierra Nevada and flows into the Sacramento River near its mouth. Both rivers lie mostly in the Central Valley and with their numerous tributaries drain the Sierra Nevada, the Cascades, and much of the north-east. The principal lakes and other bodies of water include Lake Tahoe (shared with Nevada), Clear Lake, Honey Lake, Mono Lake, Shasta Lake, and Oroville Reservoir.

B

Climate

The climate in California varies widely, but is essentially subtropical. Maritime influences and summer fog mean that the Pacific coast has mild winters and relatively cool summers. Inland the climate becomes more continental. The highest recorded temperature of 56.7° C (134° F) in Death Valley in 1913 is near the world record. Increasingly cooler climates are found at higher elevations in the mountains. The state’s lowest recorded temperature was -42.8° C (-45° F), recorded in 1937 north of Lake Tahoe.