Death Valley, USA. It’s looking pretty hot out there.
Think we know what’s in store for us? Abu Dhabi stands at an average high of about 110F in August, and now Death Valley, California peaks a record hot high at 130 degrees F (or 54.4 degrees Celsius) this month, the highest since 1931.
“The weather station at Furnace Creek in Death Valley, California, reported a temperature of 54.4C, which is 130F, on Sunday 16 August,” said Clare Nullis, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) spokesperson. “If validated, it would be the highest temperature on Earth since 1931, and the third-hottest temperature ever recorded on the planet.”
“All indications” suggest that the extreme temperature reading of 54.4 degrees Celsius recorded in California’s Death Valley on Sunday, is legitimate,” she added.
Tunisia and Kuwait are in the top 3 hot spots
According to the data from the WMO’s Weather and Climate Extremes archive, the hottest temperature ever recorded there or anywhere was in Furnace Creek, Death Valley, California, reaching 56.7C (134.06F) on 10 July 1913. And that’s because someone was checking.
The next highest temperature for the world was then set in Kebili, Tunisia, in July in 1931 reaching 55C (131F).
A few years ago it reached 54C (or 129.2F) in Mitribah, Kuwait, on 21 July, 2016.
The conditions have coincided with a heatwave on the US west coast with heat warnings issued by US government groups.
The development follows repeated warnings from the UN weather agency about extreme high temperatures which are having an impact on sea ice melt, also causing extensive wildfires in places such as the Arctic. Earlier this month climate change science pioneer Konrad Steffen actually fell through a melting glacier at his research station and drowned. This is how depressing the whole climate change situation has become.
US-Swiss climate change scientist falls through glacier while checking his weather station in Greenland.
Alarm for the Arctic
Siberia is experiencing a prolonged heatwave, with a recorded temperature of 38C (100.4F) on 20 June in the Russian town of Verkhoyansk. If this readout is verified it will be the highest temperature ever recorded in the Arctic Circle.
The glaciers are melting. Carbon is releasing into the air. If you thought Covid was scary, it might just be a taste of the hell to come.
Author: Karin Kloosterman
Karin Kloosterman is an award-winning journalist and publisher that founded Green Prophet to unite a prosperous Middle East. She shows through her work that positive, inspiring dialogue creates action that impacts people, business and planet. She has published in thought-leading newspapers and magazines globally, owns an IoT tech chip patent, and is part of teams that build world-changing products to make agriculture and our planet more sustainable. Reach out directly to [email protected]
