Dead Heat: Overturning the World's Hottest Temperature

Dead Heat: Overturning the World's Hottest Temperature

Dead Heat Blog History

The Long Hot Road to Al Azizia
By: Christopher C. Burt
Published: September 13, 2012
With the official WMO announcement that the World's hottest temperature of 136.4° measured in Al Azizia, Libya is invalid, weather historian Christopher C. Burt recounts the investigation and evidence it took to overturn the record.
Update on World Heat Record (58°C/136.48F) at Al Azizia, Libya, Sept. 13, 1922
By: Christopher C. Burt
Published: November 16, 2010
I raised questions concerning the hottest officially measured temperature in the world: the 58°C (136.4°F) reading from Al Azizia, Libya on September 13, 1922. Since that post, new information has come to my attention.
Hottest air temperatures reported on Earth
By: Christopher C. Burt
Published: October 22, 2010
If, in fact, this record is not valid, then what might be the absolute maximum temperature measured on earth? There are just a handful of regions in the world that have the potential of recording temperatures of 130° or more.
A challenge to the validity of the world temperature record
By: Christopher C. Burt
Published: October 8, 2010
One of the "sacred cows" of world weather extremes has been the widely reported "hottest temperature ever recorded on earth", a reading of 58°C (136.4°F) reported from Al Azizia, Libya on Sept. 13, 1922.

Extreme Weather Blogs

Southeast Australia Struck by Anomalous Heat Wave
By: Christopher C. Burt
Published: March 15, 2013
Southern Australia has endured an anomalous ‘Summer in March’ heat wave the first two weeks of this month akin to what the eastern two-thirds of the U.S. experienced in March 2012. Temperatures have averaged as much as 10°C (18°F) above normal.
New February Heat Record for the Northern Hemisphere Set
By: Christopher C. Burt
Published: March 2, 2013
On February 27, Abu Na’Ama, Sudan measured a temperature of 44.5°C (112.1°F), the warmest reliably measured temperature on record for the month of February anywhere in the northern hemisphere.
Snow in Mexico and Southwest Texas, Record Heat in Australia
By: Christopher C. Burt
Published: January 4, 2013
El Paso, Texas picked up 3.0” of snow (officially at the NWS office) on Thursday and Friday this week and heavy snow fell in the city of Chihuahua, Mexico about 200 miles south of El Paso. How unusual is this?
Yesterday's Contiguous U.S. Extremes
City Station ID Temp.
Phoenix, AZ NONE 101 °F
MARICOPA 4 N, AZ MARA3 103 °F
Mesa, AZ KFFZ 102 °F
Phoenix, AZ KPHX 101 °F
Goodyear, AZ KGYR 100 °F
Death Valley, CA DEVC1 99 °F
Glendale, AZ KGEU 98 °F
Casa Grande, AZ KCGZ 98 °F
Chandler, AZ KCHD 98 °F
Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airpo, AZ KIWA 98 °F
City Station ID Temp.
Stanley, ID NONE 16 °F
Stanley, ID KSNT 18 °F
Ely, NV KELY 23 °F
Truckee-Tahoe, CA KTRK 23 °F
Silver Bay, MN KBFW 24 °F
Alturas, CA KAAT 24 °F
Lovelock, NV KLOL 24 °F
Tomahawk, WI KTKV 25 °F
Land O' Lakes, WI KLNL 25 °F
Eureka Airport, NV K05U 26 °F
City Station ID Wind Gust
Roswell, NM KROW 70 mph
Fort Worth Alliance, TX KAFW 85 mph
Roswell, NM KROW 70 mph
Monarch Pass, CO KMYP 59 mph
Cape Lisburne, AK PALU 56 mph
Goodland, KS KGLD 54 mph
Burlington, CO KITR 52 mph
Buffalo, SD K2WX 50 mph
Lubbock, TX KLBB 50 mph
Ozona, TX KOZA 50 mph
City Station ID Precip.
Austin, TX KATT 3.29 in
Austin Bergstrom, TX KAUS 3.13 in
San Antonio, TX KSAT 2.33 in
Raton, NM KRTN 2.21 in
Nantucket, MA KACK 2.19 in
Uvalde, TX KUVA 2.06 in
Gatesville, TX KGOP 1.84 in
Chatham, MA KCQX 1.80 in
Falfurrias, TX KBKS 1.77 in
Stephenville, TX KSEP 1.65 in
City Station ID Heat Index
Ellington Field, TX KEFD 105 °F
Tampa Macdill AFB, FL KMCF 102 °F
Panama City Tyndall AFB, FL KPAM 102 °F
Corpus Christi, TX KCRP 100 °F
McAllen, TX KMFE 99 °F
Brownsville, TX KBRO 98 °F
Harlingen, TX KHRL 98 °F
New Iberia, LA KARA 97 °F
Key West, FL KEYW 97 °F
Ft Lauderdale, FL KFLL 96 °F
  • Verified at 10:36 pm ET on May 24, 2013.
  • These reports are observations, and are not record events.
City Station ID Wind Chill
Stanley, ID KSNT 12 °F
Deadhorse, AK PASC 13 °F
Ely, NV KELY 15 °F
Cape Lisburne, AK PALU 16 °F
Kuparuk, AK PAKU 17 °F
Lovelock, NV KLOL 18 °F
Truckee-Tahoe, CA KTRK 19 °F
Tin City, AK PATC 19 °F
Barrow, AK PABR 19 °F
Eureka, NV KP68 20 °F
  • Verified at 10:36 pm ET on May 24, 2013.
  • These reports are observations, and are not record events.
Yesterday's World Extremes
City Station ID Temp.
Bikaner, India 42165 119 °F
Sibi, Pakistan OPSB 118 °F
Jhelum, Pakistan 41598 117 °F
Amritsar, India VIAR 117 °F
Faisalabad, Pakistan 41630 117 °F
Bahawalnagar, Pakistan 41678 117 °F
Makkah, Saudi Arabia OEMK 117 °F
Hissar, India VIHR 117 °F
Lahore, Pakistan OPLA 116 °F
Sialkot, Pakistan 41600 116 °F
  • Verified at 10:36 pm ET on May 24, 2013.
  • These reports are observations, and are not record events.
City Station ID Temp.
Nico, Antarctica 89799 -95 °F
Amundsen-Scott, Antarctica NZSP -81 °F
Univ. Wi Id 8918, Antarctica 89744 -79 °F
Halley, Antarctica 89022 -47 °F
Amery Ice Shelf, Antarctica 89767 -42 °F
Base Belgrano, Antarctica 89034 -41 °F
Univ. Wi Id 8925, Antarctica 89257 -35 °F
Butler Island, Antarctica 89266 -25 °F
D-47 (Univ. Wi Id 8916), Antarctica 89834 -23 °F
Mawson 67.60S 62.87E, Antarctica 89564 -16 °F
  • Verified at 10:36 pm ET on May 24, 2013.
  • These reports are observations, and are not record events.