Death Valley recorded a jaw-dropping 130 degrees Fahrenheit air temperature on Sunday.
Because of the extreme temperature and its subsequent rarity, several meteorologists and climatologists will formally review the data before it is officially confirmed.
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The recording is among the hottest air temperatures recorded on Earth. In July 1931, Kebili, Tunisia, recorded a scorching 131 degrees. Experts have since disputed that reading due to poor exposure of the thermometer.
The last recording to exceed 130 degrees also took place in Death Valley. On July 10, 1913, it recorded a temperature of 134 degrees. That recording has also been disputed, making Sunday’s reading possibly the highest temperature ever reliably recorded on Earth.
Death Valley is able to reach such high temperatures because it sits roughly 190 feet below sea level. The valley also receives minuscule amounts of precipitation each year. And while the air temperature in the region is high, the ground temperature can be much higher. Death Valley once recorded a ground temperature of 201 degrees.
Large swaths of the Western United States are experiencing extreme heat this August. This is monsoon season, but the monsoon typically expected this time of year hasn’t yet materialized. Air pressure, therefore, remains high, increasing temperatures.
The National Weather Service is warning those who live in eastern California, Nevada, Arizona, and Utah to limit their time outside to the early hours of the morning.
Due to an overwhelming demand for power, much of California has been undergoing rolling blackouts, adding another deadly element to what is likely to be a devastating heat wave.
