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The Highest Temperature Extremes Greenland Ranch, Calif., with 134°F on July 10, 1913, holds the record for the highest temperature ever officially observed in the United States. This station was located in barren Death Valley, 178 ft below sea level. Death Valley is about 140 mi long, 4 to 6 mi wide, and oriented north to south in southwest California. Much of the valley is below sea level and is flanked by towering mountain ranges with Mt. Whitney, the highest landmark in the 48 conterminous states, rising to 14,495 ft above sea level, less than 100 mi to the west. Death Valley has the hottest summers in the Western Hemisphere, and is the only known place in the United States where nighttime temperatures sometimes remain above 100°F. The highest annual normal (1941–1970 mean) temperature in the United States, 78.2°F, and the highest summer (June–August) normal temperature, 92.8°F, are for Death Valley, Calif. The highest winter (December–February) normal temperature is 72.8°F for Honolulu, Hawaii. Amazing temperature rises of 40° to 50°F in a few minutes occasionally may be brought about by chinook winds.1 1. A warm, dry wind that descends from the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains, causing a rapid rise in temperature.
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