Death Valley National Park - The Weather

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Death Valley National Park > The Weather

125°F on the salt flats of Badwater

On July 10th, 1913, Death Valley reached 134°F (56.7°C), and this held the record for the highest measured temperature on Earth until overtaken by the Libyan Sahara Desert in 1922, which managed 136.4 °F. Curiously, despite the supposed effects of global warming, neither location has been hotter since, and Libya still holds the world record, although this figure is disputed and was possibly due to faulty equipment.

Heat: There are many other statistics that can be produced to describe the extreme temperatures in Death Valley, for example in 1994 there were 31 consecutive days above 120°F, and for several months of each year, the average minumum night-time temperature is above 80°F. The visitor center has a comprehensive display of weather-related information, including a graph of the minimum and maximum temperatures throughout the year, and current readings from several locations along the valley. For many people, especially tourists from the temperate countries of Europe, the intense summer heat provides the main reason to visit.

Frost: Nevertheless, frost and even snow can occur and rain may fall at any time although most is during winter and spring, and the yearly total is usually just a couple of inches, yet parts of the valley are subject to flash floods, leading to occasional road closures. Furnace Creek is officially the driest place in the US, with a yearly average of only 1.5 inches, but it still manages to support a well-watered 18 hole golf course which not surprisingly is the lowest in the US at -214 feet. The prevailing, rain-bearing winds blow from in from the Pacific but all moisture is usually deposited on the western slopes of the Sierra Nevada mountains as the air rises. In 1913, the same year which saw the hottest day, the temperature reached a record low of 15°F (-9°C).

Death Valley Weather Forecast

Average Death Valley Weather Conditions

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	Average High	Average Low	Mean	Average Rainfall	Record High	Record Low
Jan	66°F	39°F	52°F	0.35 in	87°F	0°F
Feb	73°F	46°F	60°F	0.42 in	97°F	26°F
Mar	80°F	54°F	67°F	0.42 in	102°F	26°F
Apr	89°F	62°F	76°F	0.12 in	111°F	39°F
May	99°F	71°F	85°F	0.10 in	122°F	46°F
Jun	109°F	80°F	95°F	0.05 in	128°F	54°F
Jul	115°F	86°F	101°F	0.11 in	134°F	67°F
Aug	113°F	84°F	99°F	0.14 in	127°F	65°F
Sep	105°F	75°F	90°F	0.19 in	123°F	55°F
Oct	92°F	61°F	77°F	0.13 in	113°F	37°F
Nov	76°F	47°F	61°F	0.12 in	98°F	30°F
Dec	65°F	37°F	51°F	0.18 in	88°F	22°F

	Average High	Average Low	Mean	Average Rainfall	Record High	Record Low
Jan	19°C	4°C	11°C	0.9 cm	31°C	-18°C
Feb	23°C	8°C	16°C	1.1 cm	36°C	-3°C
Mar	27°C	12°C	19°C	1.1 cm	39°C	-3°C
Apr	32°C	17°C	24°C	0.3 cm	44°C	4°C
May	37°C	22°C	29°C	0.3 cm	50°C	8°C
Jun	43°C	27°C	35°C	0.1 cm	53°C	12°C
Jul	46°C	30°C	38°C	0.3 cm	57°C	19°C
Aug	45°C	29°C	37°C	0.4 cm	53°C	18°C
Sep	41°C	24°C	32°C	0.5 cm	51°C	13°C
Oct	33°C	16°C	25°C	0.3 cm	45°C	3°C
Nov	24°C	8°C	16°C	0.3 cm	37°C	-1°C
Dec	18°C	3°C	11°C	0.5 cm	31°C	-6°C