The State of California is located in the pacific region of the United States. It was admitted to the United States as 31st state on September 9, 1850. California is bordered by the Pacific Ocean to the west, Oregon to the north, Nevada to the east and northeast, Arizona to the southeast, and an international border with Mexico (the Mexican state of Baja California) to the south. What are the interesting facts about California? Let’s talk about 10 interesting facts about California in this article.
1. California is the Most Populous States of the U.S.
While it’s the third largest state by area, California is the largest state in the U.S. by population. California is also the most populated subnational entity in North America. The Greater Los Angeles area and the San Francisco Bay Area of California are the second and fifth most populous urban regions in the United States. If California were a country, it would be 37th most populous country in the world.
2. California’s Economy is the Largest Sub-National Economy in the World
When it comes to gross state product, California is the state with the largest economy in the U.S. It is also the largest sub-nation economy in the world. If California were a country, California’s economy would be the fifth-largest in the world. The Greater Los Angeles area and the San Francisco Bay Area are the nation’s second- and third-largest urban economies after the New York metropolitan area.
3. Interconnected Water System of California is the Largest in the World
As the most populous state in the U.S, California is also the largest consumer of water in North America. With its very high water demand, California has the largest interconnected water system in the world. It manages over 40 million acre feet (49 km3) of water per year. California’s water supply comes from two main sources: surface water and groundwater. The Colorado river is one of the main sources of water for the southern part of the state.
4. Badwater Basin in California is the Lowest Point in North America
The lowest point in the United States and North America is Badwater Basin. Badwater basin is located in Death Valley National Park, California. It’s an endorheic basin with a depth of 282 ft (86 m) below sea level. Badwater basin was once considered as the lowest elevation in the Western Hemisphere until the discovery of Laguna del Carbón in Argentina at −344 ft (−105 m).
5. Mount Whitney is the Highest Point in California and the Contiguous United States
The highest point of California is Mount Whitney. Mount Whitney with 14,505 ft (4,421.0 m) elevation is also the highest point in the contiguous United States. Although it’s the highest point of California, Mount Whitney is only less than 90 miles (140 km) away from Badwater Basin as the lowest point of California and North America.
6. The Tallest, Largest and Oldest Trees can be Found in California
We can find few superlatives of the world’s flora in California. The world’s tallest tree is Coast redwood (Sequoia sempervirens) that’s also called California redwood. The tallest Coast redwood is named Hyperion (380.1 feet/115.85 m) that can be found in Redwood National Park in California. The Largest tree in the world is the giant sequoia (Sequoiadendron giganteum). The largest giant sequoia by trunk volume is named General Sherman (274.9 ft/ 83.8 m) that we can find in the Giant Forest within Sequoia National Park. The oldest tree is the Great Basin bristlecone pine (Pinus longaeva). The oldest confirmed Pinus longaeva in the world is named Methuselah (4,852-year-old) that is located in Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest within the Inyo National Forest.
7. California Quail is the State Bird of California
The state bird of California is the California quail. It was established as the state bird on June 12, 1931. California quail is a small ground-dwelling bird in the New World quail family. California quail birds forage on the ground, often scratching at the soil. They were originally found mainly in the southwestern United States.
8. Death Valley in California is Considered the Hottest Location in the World
Death Valley is located in Eastern California. It’s a desert with large expanses below sea level in the northern Mojave Desert. Along with deserts in the Middle East and the Sahara, Death Valley is one of the hottest places on Earth. The current official highest registered air temperature is on Earth is 56.7 °C (134.1 °F) that was recorded in Furnace Creek Ranch, California, located in the Death Valley.
9. The Largest and The Most Populous County of United States are Both in California
We can find that the largest and the most populous county of United States are located in California. The largest country is San Bernardino County that has a total area of 20,105.32 sq mi (52,072.5 km2) while the most populous county is Los Angeles County with est. 10,105,518 population in July 1, 2018. We can also find that 4 of 10 most populous counties in the United States are located in California.
10. Four of the World’s Ten Largest Companies are headquartered in California
California is the home to four of the ten largest companies in the world by market capitalization. Those 4 companies are Apple Inc. that headquartered in Cupertino, Alphabet Inc. that headquartered in Mountain View, Facebook, Inc. that headquartered in Menlo Park, and Tesla, Inc. that headquartered in Palo Alto.
There are surely more interesting facts about California that are not mentioned in this article. You can share with us here if you have more interesting California facts that’s not discussed in this article.