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Geography
Geography
Utah is generally rocky with three distinct geological regions: the Rocky Mountains, the Great Basin, and the Colorado Plateau.
Utah is known for its natural diversity and is home to features ranging from arid deserts with sand dunes to thriving pine forests in mountain valleys.
Utah is one of the Four Corners states, and is bordered by Idaho in the north, Wyoming in the north and east; by Colorado in the east; at a single point by New Mexico to the southeast (at the Four Corners Monument); by Arizona in the south; and by Nevada in the west.
It covers an area of 84,899 square miles (219,887 km²).
The state is one of only three U.S.
states (with Colorado and Wyoming) that have only lines of latitude and longitude for boundaries.
One of Utah's defining characteristics is the variety of its terrain.
Running down the northern center of the state is the Wasatch Range, which rises to heights of about 12,000 feet (3,650 m) above sea level.
Portions of these mountains receive more than 500 inches (12.7 m) of snow each year and are home to world-renowned ski resorts, made popular by the light, fluffy snow, which is considered good for skiing.
In the northeastern section of the state, running east to west, are the Uinta Mountains, which rise to heights of 13,000 feet (3,950 m) or more.
The highest point in the state, Kings Peak, at 13,528 feet (4,123 m), lies within the Uinta Mountains.
At the western base of the Wasatch Range is the Wasatch Front, a series of valleys and basins that are home to the most populous parts of the state.
The major cities of Ogden, Salt Lake City, Layton, West Valley City, Sandy, West Jordan, Orem, and Provo are located within this region, which stretches approximately from Brigham City at the north end to Nephi at the south end.
Approximately 75 percent of the population of the state lies in this corridor, and urban sprawl continues to expand along the edges of these valleys.
Western Utah is mostly arid desert with a basin and range topography.
Small mountain ranges and rugged terrain punctuate the landscape.
The Bonneville Salt Flats are an exception, being comparatively flat as a result of once forming the bed of Lake Bonneville.
Great Salt Lake, Utah Lake, Sevier Lake, Rush Lake and Little Salt Lake are all remnants of this ancient freshwater lake, which once covered most of the eastern Great Basin.
West of the Great Salt Lake, stretching to the Nevada border, lies the arid Great Salt Lake Desert.
Much of the scenic southern landscape is sandstone, specifically Kayenta sandstone and Navajo sandstone.
The Colorado River and its tributaries wind their way through the sandstone, creating some of the world's most striking and wild terrain.
Wind and rain have also sculpted the soft sandstone over millions of years.
Canyons, gullies, arches, pinnacles, buttes, bluffs, and mesas are the common sight throughout south-central and southeast Utah.
This terrain is the central feature of protected state and federal parks such as Arches, Bryce Canyon, Canyonlands, Capitol Reef, and Zion national parks, Cedar Breaks, Grand Staircase-Escalante, Hovenweep, and Natural Bridges national monuments, Glen Canyon National Recreation Area (site of the popular tourist destination, Lake Powell), Dead Horse Point and Goblin Valley state parks, and Monument Valley (a popular photographic and filming site).
Southwestern Utah is the lowest and hottest spot in Utah.
It is known as Utah's Dixie because early settlers were able to grow limited amounts of cotton there.
Beaverdam Wash in far southwestern Utah is the lowest point in the state, at 2,000 feet (610 m).
The northernmost portion of the Mojave Desert is also located in this area.
Dixie is quickly becoming a popular recreational and retirement destination, and the population is growing rapidly.
Just north of Dixie is the state's highest ski resort, Brian Head.
Eastern Utah is a high-elevation area covered mostly by plateaus and basins.
Economies are dominated by mining, oil and natural gas-drilling, ranching, and recreation.
Much of eastern Utah is part of the Uintah and Ouray Indian Reservation.
The Navajo Nation also extends into southeastern Utah.
The most popular destination within eastern Utah is Dinosaur National Monument near Vernal.
Like most of the Western and Southwestern states, the federal government owns much of the land in Utah.
Over 70 percent of the land is either BLM land, Utah State Trustland, or U.S.
National Forest, U.S.
National Park, U.S.
National Monument, National Recreation Area or U.S.
Wilderness Area.
Climate
Utah features a dry, mostly desert climate, although its many mountains feature a large variety of climates, with the highest points in the Uinta Mountains being above the timberline.
The dry weather results from the state lying mostly in the rain shadow of the Sierra Nevada in California.
The eastern half of the state lies in the rain shadow of the Wasatch Mountains.
The primary source of precipitation for the state is the Pacific Ocean, with the state usually lying in the path of large Pacific storms from mid-October through April, although northern Utah often sees these large storms earlier and later.
In summer, the state, especially southern and eastern Utah, lies in the path of monsoon moisture from the Gulf of California.
Most of the lowland areas receive less than 12 inches (300 mm) of precipitation annually, although the I-15 corridor, including the densely-populated Wasatch Front, receive approximately 15 inches (380 mm).
The Great Salt Lake Desert is the driest area of the state, with less than 5 inches (125 mm).
Snowfall is common in all but the far southern valleys.
Although St.
George only receives about 3 inches (7.5 cm) per year, Salt Lake City sees about 60 inches (150 cm), enhanced by the lake-effect snow from the Great Salt Lake, which increases snowfall totals to the south, southeast, and east of the lake.
Some areas of the Wasatch Range in the path of the lake-effect receive up to 700 inches (1,770 cm) per year.
The consistently dry, fluffy, snow led Utah's ski industry to adopt the slogan "the Greatest Snow on Earth" in the 1980s.
In the winter, temperature inversions are an issue across Utah's low basins and valleys, leading to thick haze and fog that can sometimes last for weeks at a time, especially in the Uintah Basin.
Utah's temperatures are extreme, with cold temperatures in winter due to its elevation, and very hot summers statewide (with the exception of mountain areas and high mountain valleys).
Utah is usually protected from major blasts of cold air by mountains lying north and east of the state, although major Arctic blasts can occasionally reach the state.
Average January high temperatures range from around 30 °F (-1 °C) in some northern valleys to almost 55 °F (13 °C) in St.
George.
Temperatures dropping below 0 °F (-18 °C) should be expected on occasion in most areas of the state most years, although some areas see it often (for example, the town of Randolph averages about 50 days per year with temperatures dropping that low).
In July, average highs range from about 85 °F (29 °C) to 100 °F (38 °C).
However, the low humidity and high elevation typically leads to large temperature variations, leading to cool nights most summer days.
The record high temperature in Utah was 118 °F (47 °C), recorded south of St.
George on July 4, 2007, and the record low was -69 °F (-56 °C), recorded at Peter's Sink in the Bear River Mountains of northern Utah on February 1, 1985.
Utah, like most of the western United States, has few days of thunderstorms.
On average there are fewer than 40 days of thunderstorm activity during the year, although these storms can be briefly intense when they do occur.
They are most likely to occur during monsoon season from about mid-July through mid-September, especially in southern and eastern Utah.
Dry lightning strikes and the general dry summer weather often spark wildfires in summer, while intense thunderstorms can lead to flash flooding, especially in the rugged terrain of southern Utah.
Tornadoes are uncommon in Utah, with an average of two striking the state yearly, rarely higher than F1 intensity.
One exception of note, however, was the strong F2 Salt Lake City Tornado that sliced across the downtown metro area of Salt Lake City on August 11, 1999, striking large buildings and causing approximately $170 million in damage, and one fatality.
Source: CIA Factbook, Wikipedia
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