San Jose, California

Geography

San Jose is located at 37°18'15" North, 121°52'22" West (37.304051, −121.872734)¹.

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According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 461.5 km² (178.2 mi²){{GR|1}}. 452.9 km² (174.9 mi²) of it is land and 8.6 km² (3.3 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 1.86% water.

Related Topics:
United States Census Bureau - Km² - Mi²

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San Jose lies near the San Andreas Fault; a major source of earthquake activity in California. The most serious earthquake, in 1906, damaged many buildings in San Jose as described earlier. Earlier significant quakes rocked the city in 1839, 1851, 1858, 1864, 1865, 1868, and 1891. The Daly City Earthquake of 1957 caused some damage. The Loma Prieta earthquake of 1989 also did some damage to parts of the city. The other faults near San Jose are the Monte Vista Fault, South Hayward Fault, Northern Calaveras Fault, and Central Calaveras Fault.

Related Topics:
San Andreas Fault - Earthquake - 1906 - 1839 - 1851 - 1858 - 1864 - 1865 - 1868 - 1891 - Daly City - 1957 - Loma Prieta earthquake - 1989 - Fault - South Hayward Fault

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The Guadalupe River runs from the Santa Cruz Mountains (which separate the South Bay from the Pacific Coast) flowing north through San Jose, ending in the San Francisco Bay at Alviso. Along the southern part of the river is the neighborhood of Almaden Valley, originally named for the mercury mines which produced mercury needed for gold extraction from quartz during the California gold rush as well as mercury fulminate blasting caps and detonators for the U.S. military from 1870 to 1945.

Related Topics:
Guadalupe River - Santa Cruz Mountains - Alviso - Almaden Valley - Mercury - Gold - Quartz - California gold rush - Mercury fulminate - 1870 - 1945

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The lowest point in San Jose is at sea level at the San Francisco Bay in Alviso; the highest is 4,372 feet (1,333 m) at Copernicus Peak, Mount Hamilton. Due to the proximity to Lick Observatory atop Mount Hamilton, San Jose has taken several steps to reduce light pollution, including replacing all street lamps with low pressure sodium lamps. To recognize the city's efforts, the asteroid 6216 San Jose was named after the city. Some residents object to the deep yellow color of the streetlights, saying they are distracting because they are the same shade of yellow as traffic lights and other illuminated traffic warnings. http://www.baddesigns.com/strlt.html

Related Topics:
Sea level - Mount Hamilton - Lick Observatory - Light pollution - Low pressure sodium lamp - Asteroid

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