Chapter 2: The Nonhuman World

Physiography:

As stated in post 1: Santa Clarita in indeed a desert.  The large amount of modernization and construction of living communities sometimes makes it seems the opposite.  Its dry hills are characterized by their large amounts of brush.  This being said, the dryness in combination with the sheer number of dry brush makes the area very susceptible for wildfires. 

There were instances of large dry fires in 2001, 2002, 2004, 2004, 2007, 2008, and 2009.  The dryness and heat is often attributed to its closeness in proximity to the Mojave Desert.   It's location also makes it so the San Andreas Fault and San Gabriel fault run through it.  These features help attribute its name of the Santa Clarita Valley (SCV).  The elevation of SCV is 1,207 ft and the total area is 62.16 square miles, 62.095 square miles of that being land, and the rest being occupied by water.

Climate:

The average high temperature for the year in SCV is 78.3 degrees with the average low temperature being about 44.1 degrees.  This makes for a very comfortable and enjoyable climate that encourages many to remain active outdoors during all times of the year. 

 

In the hotter parts of the year, the temperature stays close to around the 90's and low 100's.  Winters aren't especially cold, with the temperatures varying anywhere between high-40's to mid-70's (on average).  Snow is extremely rare being that the temperature very rarely drops below freezing.  The total precipitation for the year is 13.96 inches.

Location:

Santa Clarita is located in Southern California, 31.4 miles north of Los Angeles, 37 minutes via car.  CSUN is a 25 minute car ride from Santa Clarita, putting it 16.1 miles away.   Santa Clarita is part of the overall Los Angeles County and is in the Pacific time zone.  It contains all of the zip codes 91310, 91321-91322, 91350-91351, 91354-91355, 91380-91387, 91390 and has the telephone area code of 661.

Its coordinates are 34°25′00″N 118°30′23″W.  Its borders are the I-5 freeway and the SR-14 freeway.

The largest mountains next to it are the Alamo Mountains and Mt. San Antonio.