The hottest desert on Earth just upped the stakes. Death Valley, California may have reached Earth’s hottest recorded day since 1913 on Sunday, at 130 degrees Fahrenheit.
If weather predictions are correct, it would also be one of the hottest days ever measured in Death Valley as well as the highest temperature recorded in the month of August, according National Weather Service (NWS). The last highest temperature in the valley was 129 degrees back in July 2013. (RELATED: Death Valley Broke World Record For The Hottest July)
“Per the climate data in xmACIS2, this is the first time since 1913 that Death Valley has reached 130F,” said the National Weather Service said in a tweet. “In July 2013, it last reached 129F. If valid, it would be the hottest August temperature at the site by 3F.”
Per the climate data in xmACIS2, this is the first time since 1913 that Death Valley has reached 130F. In July 2013, it last reached 129F. If valid, it would be the hottest August temperature at the site by 3F. @NWSVegas pic.twitter.com/gZNBW4NXI4
— NWS WPC (@NWSWPC) August 16, 2020
If verified, the Earth ???? has just had the highest August temperature ever recorded, possibily the highest reliable temperature on record! ????
130 F or 54.4 C was recorded at Furnace Creek, Death Valley on Sunday afternoon ???? pic.twitter.com/Tk26ltdh0A
— BBC Weather (@bbcweather) August 17, 2020
The highest temperature ever recorded on Earth was in 1913 at 134 degrees Fahrenheit in 1913. If the temperature recorded is accurate, Sunday’s weather would come close to topping the planet’s hottest day on record.
Death Valley’s temperature comes amid a massive heat wave spreading the Western U.S. with 56 million people under heat advisories or warnings, according to the NWS. (RELATED: Record-Setting Temperature Reading At Death Valley Contaminated By ‘Solar Panels And RVs’)