Santa Barbara is a coastal city and county seat in California, United States, positioned between the Pacific Ocean and the Santa Ynez Mountains on the longest south-facing stretch of coastline on the West Coast outside Alaska.
Often called “The American Riviera” for its Mediterranean climate, the city had a population of 88,665 at the 2020 census. Its economy centres on services, education, technology and healthcare, with the University of California, Santa Barbara among several higher-education institutions. The city sits 160 kilometres southeast of Los Angeles and 525 kilometres northwest of San Francisco along U.S. Highway 101, with rail connections via Amtrak’s Pacific Surfliner and Coast Starlight routes. Behind the city, the Los Padres National Forest extends into the Santa Ynez Mountains and remote wilderness areas. Channel Islands National Park and Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary lie approximately 30 kilometres offshore in the Pacific.
Santa Barbara appears in our Field Notes coverage of Mount Everest summits and mangrove restoration, and in the episode with Bruce Luyendyk on Antarctic expeditions and the discovery of Zealandia, the submerged eighth continent.
