San Francisco Bay

The San Francisco Bay is a shallow, productive estuary in which water draining approximately forty percent of California, flowing in the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers from the Sierra Nevada mountains, enters the Pacific Ocean. Technically, the Sacramento River flows into Suisun Bay, which flows through the Carquinez Strait to meet with the Napa River at the entrance to San Pablo Bay, which connects at its south end to San Francisco Bay, although the entire group of interconnected bays are often referred to as "the San Francisco Bay."

Miscellaneous

San Francisco Bay is spanned by five bridges: the Golden Gate Bridge (which was the largest suspension bridge ever built at the time of its construction), the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge, the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, the Hayward-San Mateo Bridge and the Dumbarton Bridge.

Related Topics:
Golden Gate Bridge - Suspension bridge - Richmond-San Rafael Bridge - San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge - Hayward-San Mateo Bridge - Dumbarton Bridge

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There are four large islands in San Francisco Bay. Isolated in the center of the Bay is Alcatraz, the site of the famous and allegedly escape-proof federal penitentiary. Mountainous Yerba Buena Island is pierced by tunnels linking the east and west spans of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge. Attached to the north is the artificial and flat Treasure Island, site of the 1939 World's Fair. Closest to shore, Angel Island was known as "Ellis Island West" because it served as the entry point for immigrants from East Asia. (Raccoon Strait, between Tiburon and Angel Island, is the deepest part of the Bay.)

Related Topics:
Alcatraz - Yerba Buena Island - San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge - Treasure Island - World's Fair - Angel Island - Ellis Island - East Asia - Tiburon

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The southern part of the Bay, around the city of San Jose, is known as Silicon Valley for its high concentration of high-tech, semiconductor and computer-related industry.

Related Topics:
San Jose - Silicon Valley - Semiconductor - Computer

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The San Francisco Bay is a mecca for sailors, due to consistent strong winds (Beaufort force 6 is common on summer afternoons) and protection from large open ocean swells. Yachting and yacht racing are popular pastimes and the San Francisco Bay area is home to many of the world's top sailors.

Related Topics:
Beaufort force - Yachting - Yacht racing

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