The dog days of summer are finally upon us after a long and snowy winter. As the mercury rises, we all begin to hear (and ask) that famous age-old, sarcastic question: “Can it possibly get any hotter?” Special Collections is here to forever lay that question to rest by providing the answer.
Yes. Much hotter.
One hundred years ago today, on July 10, 1913, the hottest temperature ever was recorded, right here in the USA. The appropriately named Furnace Creek Ranch in Death Valley, California reported a sizzling 134 °F (56.7 °C). According to the National Park Service, summer temperatures in Death Valley average 120 °F throughout the day, before dropping into the nineties at night.
A century-old Washington Post headline shows off the new world record.
Swing on in to Special Collections to escape our own summer heat wave. Access to any of our books, microfilms or comics (along with our air conditioning) is, of course, free of charge.