San Diego lies in rolling hills and mesas that connect mountains, from the San Andreas Fault Line and the Pacific Coast shore. There are many different types of terrain in this area, which makes San Diego unique. There are about seven different types of terrain in the area: deserts, mountains, canyons, dense forest hills, shoreline, valleys, and oceans. The temperature in this area has a very wide variety as well. On the coastlines the weather stays pretty constant around the 70's. However, if you go inland to the desert, it can fluctuate from 60 degrees to 90 degrees in one day! The fact that earthquakes can occur at any time and can be almost any magnitude makes San Diego unique. Since the city lies on the San Andreas Fault line it can be completely destroyed at any moment, if there is a large enough earthquake.
The video above demonstrates San Diego's geography in a fun and different way while still providing information about the climate and landscape.
Video from: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VTf6ZSO1Fxg
Ten years into the future the ocean will continue to heat up and it will raise about 1 degree. Since 1950 the temperature of the ocean has raised about 3 degrees, due to global warming. (This has been shown in a study done by Scripps institute of Oceanography). In addition, the San Jacinto mountains may continue to grow because of the strike slip fault line, the San Andreas Fault. Ten years is not a long time in geological terms but there will still be some geological change.
In this photo you can the the two plates of the San Andreas fault colliding and slipping past each other.
One hundred years in the future San Diego will be facing much warmer temperatures. Weather records show that average temperatures have already increased from just one decade ago. If this growth continues there will be a dramatic change to the temperature of Southern California. Ocean levels will also increase. This is caused by global warming and polar ice caps melting. San Diego has a Mediterranean climate. Scientists believe there might be more rainfall due to more EL Nino weather events happening. This will also increase within a longer period of time. One hundred years is plenty of time to see dramatic changes to San Diego physical geography.
The video above demonstrates how global warming has continued to increase since 1987. If this continues to happen San Diego's temperature will continue to rise.
Video from: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EoOrtvYTKeE&feature=player_embedded
One thousand years into the future the temperature of the Pacific will be about 40 degrees higher if the ocean temperature continues to increase at the same rate it has been since 1950. Present coastal cliffs will have eroded more because weathering. This will happen because the weathering from the ocean salt water and winds will continue to build leading to more erosion. In 1000 years it is likely that a very large Earthquake will occur and cause much devastation. If this occurred it would trigger many landslides because steep slopes are not very stable. As a landslide happens this will wipe out densely forested mountain sides. So in 1000 years San Diego will probably be recovering from a large earthquake, that will occur on the San Andreas fault line. It depends when the earthquake happened to be able to predict exactly what condition San Diego will be in, plant life flourishing again or just recently destroyed.
The image above shows a landslide due to a earthquake. Although, if a larger earthquake occurred the landslide would be more severe.
San Diego is considered to be a semi-arid steppe climate. Since San Diego has this type of climate you can predict that it will not get very much rainfall and has mild and sunny weather throughout the year. On average the temperature will range from around 57 degrees Fahrenheit, in the winter, to about 72 degreed Fahrenheit, in its summer months.
The picture above shows the average sunshine, rainfall, and temperatures for every month of the year.
Although San Diego does not have a large amount of rainfall, water is still present in the atmosphere. On average, San Diego has a relative humidity of 68.8% throughout the year. In addition to its humidity, the city also goes through a period from May to June where San Diego has a large amount of Advection Fog. This fog forms from westerly winds and a cold current colliding near the Pacific Coastline. Temperatures during this time are relatively low, however, if Santa Ana winds occur, easterly winds bringing hot dry air, the temperature can rise above average.
This image demonstrates marine layer covering the coast of California.
Stratus clouds can be at fault for this "June Gloom". Their horizontal layering can identify these clouds. Stratus clouds usually do not usually create rain, but they can bring a large amount of drizzle, fog, and mist. Stratus clouds form when weak, uplifting currents lift a thin layer of air high enough up in the atmosphere to a point where condensation can occur. In addition, they can be formed when a layer of air is cooled from below to its dew point and water vapor condenses into liquid droplets. "June Gloom" does not have much affect on the population of San Diego, however, it has the ability to ruin an intended beach day for locals and for vacationers. Therefore, San Diego has a relatively nice climate but can experience large amounts of fog and stratus clouds from May-June.
The photo above shows the formation of "June Gloom".
Seven of the eleven major watersheds lie in the city of San Diego: San Diego, Pueblo, Los Peñasquitos, Sweetwater, Otay, San Dieguito, and Tijuana. Watershed is all of the water, below and above the ground, that drains into a body of water. In San Diego this specific body of water is usually the Pacific Ocean. This can be direct or through lakes. Lake water can flow directly into the ocean or seep into the groundwater. The water inputs into the ocean through precipitation from the atmosphere or flow age from streams and groundwater. The output of the water then evaporates into the atmosphere then subduction occurs into the Lithosphere.
The map above shows watershed paths that occurs from inner San Diego out into the Pacific Ocean, El Capitan Reservoir, San Vincente Reservoir, Lake Murray, or Santee lakes. Map from: http://www.sdwatersheds.org/wiki/San_Diego_Watershed
When San Diego gets a large amount of rainfall it is easy for it's valleys to become flooded. An area that is prone to flooding is Mission Valley. However, management of this can prevent people from health and safety risks. A storm water conveyance system has been used to try to direct water to natural or man made features.
This video demonstrates a case of flooding in Mission Valley, San Diego and shows how this can be very trying on people in the area.
Video from: youtube.com
This flooding is due to high drainage density and low permeability of the soil. The water in San Diego leads to moderate expansive soils. Expansive soils are soils that expand when water is added and shrink when water is taken away. This affects people in the area in that their houses and workplaces may be ruined and need fixing. San Diego also contains many river washed soils that are eroded by water and cannot be used.
In addition to River washed soils, San Diego has other types of poor soils as well. These Alfisol soils are lacking many minerals because it is a coastal desert. Two minerals that are lacking in the soil are Iron and Phosphorous. Also, there is too much clay and too little water in the soil sometimes making it hard for certain plants to grow.
This picture shows a soil that has clay in it and you can see a tiny color variation from soil that does not contain clay.
San Diego lies directly on one of California’s most active
fault line. The Rose Canyon Fault Line is said to be San Diego’s largest threat
in terms of a large earthquake. If this were to occur thousands to millions of
people would lose their belongings, homes, and possibly their lives. This fault
line occurs from movement of two plates sliding and grinding past each other,
also know as a transform plate movement.
The large amount of pressure that the two plates passing by
one another create is what causes broken ground. In addition, this pressure
along with heat from inside the Earth can create metamorphic rock. Over time
this metamorphic rock surfaces due to shifting plates.
When the plates begin to shift, during an earthquake, the
movement of the sediments causes liquefaction, the process where the soil
begins to act as a liquid in response to a change in applied stress. This
liquefaction could also create problems for the people in the area because this
will cause their houses to sink.
The tectonic pressure and faulting cause San Diego counties
coastal mountains that occur around the San Andreas Fault system. The fault is
a right lateral strike slip fault, which causes the mountains. An example of
these transverse ranges would be the La Jolla canyon in San Diego County.
Hello! My name is Jaclyn Zelasko and I am the creator of this blog. Its purpose is to take an in depth look into the Physical Geography of San Diego, California.
I chose San Diego as my location because it is a city near where I was born and raised. Also, you may have noticed, from the title, that I liked to play the game Where in the World is Carmen San Diego? (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt) when i was younger. Like this game I will be taking an in-depth look at a specific location's Physical Geography. Different forms and processes can be seen all around San Diego: Parks, the Pacific Ocean, in the amazing weather, etc. I am looking forward to seeing this astonishing city from the eyes of a geographer!
Image from http://www.coronadovisitorcenter.com/CVC/index.html Title from http://www.carmensandiego.com/hmh/site/carmen/
