Southern California's coastline, from southern Los Angeles to Tijuana in Mexico, a distance of about 225 kilometers, is featured in this image photographed by an Expedition 18 crewmember on the International Space Station. Port facilities of Los Angeles Harbor give much detail to the coastline at the north end and arcuate San Diego Bay is highly recognizable at the south end (right bottom). The image includes much of one of the most densely populated parts of the USA, with approximately 20 million people within the parts of five counties shown here. The dense urban areas appear gray, with the largest conurbation in the north of the view, in the region Long Beach--Los Angeles--San Bernardino. A smaller zone appears around San Diego--Tijuana in the south. Major highways with their associated strip development snake through these dense urban areas. The geography and geomorphology of Southern California is defined by long linear features that are surface traces of large transform faults. These faults, including the Elsinore fault and San Jacinto fault seen here, are generally considered part of the San Andreas system, and make up the broad zone comprising the tectonic plate boundary between North America to the east and the Pacific plate to the west. The Elsinore fault marks the steep eastern scarp of the Santa Ana Mountains, as well as the precipitation boundary between the wetter mountains and the drier deserts to the east. The rainfall difference is reflected in the darker appearance (more vegetation) of the mountains and coastal regions. Inland of the mountains, climates are far drier, and the natural vegetation is scrubby and much less dense which allows brown and yellow soils to show through. However, the entire region is arid, water management is a critical issue for the large urban areas of the state. Several reservoirs that are visible east of the Santa Ana Mountains provide water for both cities and agriculture in southern California.

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TOP25317870

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達志影像

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RM

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須由TPG 完整授權

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