A record-breaking heat wave sweeping across the American West is checking all the key parameters — intensity, duration and geographic distribution — and may just be the opening scene of the worst summer blockbuster yet as it spreads across the country.
In the first week of July, at least 10 U.S. towns tied or broke records for the hottest temperatures ever recorded in at least 70 years. This rare feat is called an all-time high, rather than a daily or monthly record, which correspond to the hottest temperatures observed on a specific day or in a specific month, respectively.
Climate change has exacerbated unusually warm temperatures on both sides of the Taiwan Strait. Climate change has increased the likelihood of extreme heat today by 400 percent across large swathes of the West and Mid-Atlantic, according to an analysis by the nonprofit research group Climate Central.
Heat records continue to drop
The most impressive recent record was set in Las Vegas, Nevada, where the temperature hit 120 degrees on Sunday, a full 3 degrees below the previous all-time high of 117 degrees. Highs in Vegas are expected to reach 118°F on July 10 and 11 – which would have been the highest temperature ever recorded had it not been for Sunday. Official weather records for Las Vegas date back to 1937.
The unprecedented heat is already being felt in other parts of the country. The temperature in Raleigh, North Carolina reached 106°F on Friday, July 5, breaking the city's multiple all-time high of 105°F. Weather records in Raleigh date back to 1887.
To make matters worse, residual moisture from Hurricane Berrier will spread across the Northeastern United States, exacerbating the combination of heat and humidity, prompting heat warnings from Boston to Birmingham on Tuesday.
More heat is coming
A shift in the upper-level pattern could allow some monsoon moisture to move into the southwestern United States later this week, providing some relief from the hot weather. But for months, seasonal forecasts have been suggesting that as the climate progresses, it will be increasingly difficult to reach the high end of the climatology in summer 2024, a common trend in the U.S. during the summer when the Earth shifts from El Niño to La Niña. . The forecasts don't specify what the heat will look like in individual cities, but they do suggest that much, if not most, of the contiguous U.S. will gradually get hotter over time, and the dog days of August will Average readings are usually hot enough.
After 2023, the hottest year in global history, the rest of the world is not suddenly cooling off. , the 12th consecutive year to reach or exceed the key benchmark of 1.5°C above pre-industrial temperatures.
With the onset of La Niña, global average temperatures could drop below record levels later this year. But the heat so far has been enough to put 2024 on track to break 2023's record as the hottest year in global analysis since 1880. .
June 2024 high temperature record broken
NOAA reported Tuesday that last month was the second-warmest June on record in the continental United States in 130 years, trailing only June 2021. of June.
- Maine Caribou: 65.1° (64.9°/2021)
- Flagstaff, Arizona: 66.7° (66.5°/1974)
- Bridgeport, Connecticut: 72.6° (72.2°/2008)
- Hartford, connecticut: 74.1° (72.6°/1976)
- Reno, Nevada: 75.8° (75.2°/2021)
- Winslow, Arizona: 79.2° (78.1°/2021)
- Baton Rouge, Louisiana: 84.6° (84.5°/2023)
- Corpus Christi, Texas: 87.2° (86.8°/2013)
- Brownsville, Texas: 88.3° (87.3°/1998)
- El Paso, Texas: 89.3° (88.9°/1994)
- Del Rio, Texas: 90.9° (90.5°/2023)
- Vegas, Nevada: 94.6° (92.8°/2016)
- Phoenix, Arizona: 97° (95.3°/2021)
Death Valley's hottest temperature ever recorded
On Sunday, July 7, the high temperature at the Furnace Creek Observatory in Death Valley reached 129.3°F. Death Valley is notorious for being the most consistently hot place on Earth with regular, reliable weather observations. (Note that the widely known Furnace Creek temperature of 134°F on July 10, 1913—still listed as the current world high temperature record by the World Meteorological Organization—is patently false, as Chris Burt writes conducted a detailed investigation.
Below is a list of the top 12 most reliably measured temperatures on Earth, in degrees Celsius and Fahrenheit, including ties. Readings (bold) from Death Valley's Furnace Creek dominate the list.
1) 54.4℃ (130.0°F), July 9, 2021, Furnace Creek (California, USA)
2) 54.4℃ (129.9°F), August 16, 2020, Furnace Creek (California, USA)
3) 54.1℃ (129.4°F), July 10, 2021, Furnace Creek (California, USA)
4) 54.06℃ (129.3°F), July 7, 2024, Furnace Creek (California, USA)
5) 54℃ (129.2°F), June 30, 2013, Furnace Creek (California, USA)
5) 54°C (129.2°F), July 21, 2016, Mitribah (Kuwait)
7) 53.9°C (129.0°F), July 16, 2023, Saratoga Springs (California, USA)
7) 53.9°C (129.0°F), July 17, 1998, Furnace Creek (California, USA)
7) 53.9°C (129.0°F), July 19, 2005, Furnace Creek (California, USA)
10) 53.9°C (129.0°F), July 6, 2007, Furnace Creek (California, USA)
10) July 22, 2016, 53.9°C (129.0°F), Basra International Airport (Iraq)
12) 53.8°C (128.8°F), July 22, 2016, Basra-Hussen (Iraq)
As the week continues, more entries on this list may be eliminated. As of Tuesday morning, the National Weather Service expects temperatures in Furnace Creek to reach 128°F on Tuesday and Thursday and 127°F on Wednesday and Friday. We'll add updates here as needed.
We help millions of people understand climate change and what to do about it. Help us reach more people like you.
