California is a state in the Pacific Region of the United States. With 39.6 million residents, California is the most populous U.S. state and the third-largest by area. The state capital is Sacramento. The Greater Los Angeles Area and the San Francisco Bay Area are the nation's second- and fifth-most populous urban regions, with 18.7 million and 8.8 million residents respectively. Los Angeles is California's most populous city, and the country's second-most populous, after New York City. California also has the nation's most populous county, Los Angeles County, and its largest county by area, San Bernardino County. The City and County of San Francisco is both the country's second-most densely populated major city and the fifth-most densely populated county.

Statehood	September 9th, 1850
Capital	Sacramento
Official Flag
Approximate Size	Total: 163,696 sq mi (423,970 km2) Width: 250 miles (400 km) Length: 770 miles (1,240 km) % Water: 4.7
Highest Point	Mt. Whitney (14,494ft or 4,418m)
Counties	58
Population	39,557,045 (2018)
Electoral Votes	55
State Quarter Issued	January 31st, 2005
Official Motto	Eureka (I have found it)
Official Flower	Golden Poppy
Official Bird	California Valley Quail
Nickname	The Golden State
Area Code(s)	209, 213, 310, 323, 341, 369, 408, 415, 424, 442, 510, 530, 559, 562, 619, 626, 627, 628, 650, 657, 661, 669, 707, 714, 747, 752, 760, 764, 805, 818, 831, 858, 909, 916, 925, 935, 949, 951
Sports	MLB: Los Angeles Angels, Los Angeles Dodgers, San Diego Padres, San Francisco Giants, Oakland A's NFL: San Diego Chargers, San Francisco 49ers, Oakland Raiders NBA: Los Angeles Lakers, Los Angeles Clippers, Golden State Warriors, Sacramento Kings NHL: Anaheim Mighty Ducks, Los Angeles Kings, San Jose Sharks
Area Facts	What is the climate like in California? Although most of the state has a Mediterranean climate, due to the state's large size, the climate ranges from polar to subtropical. The cool California Current offshore often creates summer fog near the coast. Farther inland, there are colder winters and hotter summers. The maritime moderation results in the shoreline summertime temperatures of Los Angeles and San Francisco being the coolest of all major metropolitan areas of the United States and uniquely cool compared to areas on the same latitude in the interior and on the east coast of the North American continent. Even the San Diego shoreline bordering Mexico is cooler in summer than most areas in the contiguous United States. Just a few miles inland, summer temperature extremes are significantly higher, with downtown Los Angeles being several degrees warmer than at the coast. The same microclimate phenomenon is seen in the climate of the Bay Area, where areas sheltered from the sea experience significantly hotter summers than nearby areas that are close to the ocean. Northern parts of the state have more rain than the south. California's mountain ranges also influence the climate: some of the rainiest parts of the state are west-facing mountain slopes. Northwestern California has a temperate climate, and the Central Valley has a Mediterranean climate but with greater temperature extremes than the coast. The high mountains, including the Sierra Nevada, have an alpine climate with snow in winter and mild to moderate heat in summer. California's mountains produce rain shadows on the eastern side, creating extensive deserts. The higher elevation deserts of eastern California have hot summers and cold winters, while the low deserts east of the Southern California mountains have hot summers and nearly frostless mild winters. Death Valley, a desert with large expanses below sea level, is considered the hottest location in the world; the highest temperature in the world, 134 °F (56.7 °C), was recorded there on July 10, 1913. The lowest temperature in California was -45 °F (-43 °C) in 1937 in Boca.

Posted By Gremelin Posted on May 8th, 2014 · Updated on January 9th, 2019

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