What's inside Death Valley: Earth's hottest 'pan of fire', peaking at 54 degrees Celsius?

The national park, located in southeastern California, reached 130 degrees Fahrenheit (54 degrees Celsius) on August 16, 2020, the hottest temperature on record on Earth. However, a devastating drought and heatwave in the American West caused Death Valley to reach 130 degrees Fahrenheit again on Sunday, July 11, 2021. It's like frying an egg!

In July 1913, Death Valley set the unofficial temperature record at 134 degrees Fahrenheit, summers regularly surpassing the 100-degree Fahrenheit threshold (37.7 degrees Celsius). Death Valley's masterpieces don't stop at the heat. This is the lowest and driest strip of land in North America. Its lowest point, Badwater Basin, lies at a depth of 86 meters below sea level. The valley has no recorded rainfall in either 1929 and 1953, with the longest rainfall lasting only 1.6 cm. for 40 months from 1931 to 1934.

 Death Valley has set the unofficial temperature record at 134 degrees Fahrenheit.

It's a 3.4 million-acre (1.3 million ha) park and a rift valley, with the landscape changing between deserts, salt flats, dunes, and mountains. This diverse landscape is also responsible for the valley's unbearable heat, which regularly tops 120 degrees Fahrenheit (48 degrees Celsius). The trees here are sparse and the fresh, dry air gives the sunlight plenty of time to warm the entire desert. The heat dissipates back and gets trapped in the deep valley, then in the turn of Death Valley's mountainous border, the hot air descends and gets even hotter with the low-altitude cycle.

The temperature may sound harsh, but Death Valley is hotter than a fireplace. The massive park - the largest national park in southern Alaska - attracted 1.7 million visitors in 2019 alone. Here are the attractions that the high-temperature headlines still haven't given you enough of. know about this incredible natural wonder.

1. Death Valley is surprisingly colorful

 Artist's Drive - a colorful range of mountains that looks like spray paint in Death Valley.

Sunrises and sunsets paint a picture full of warm colors for this desert, but Death Valley's colors aren't just about those landscapes. Artist's Drive - a 9-mile (14.4 km) stretch of mountains with spray-painted colors, the result of the wild and wonderful geology of Death Valley.

Pink, purple, teal, and blue colors are the result of oxidation of metals in the valley's Black Mountains. These colors are most apparent on the Artist's Palette range of the Black Mountains, which is not only a beautiful painting but also proof of Death Valley's violent volcanic history.

2. Thousand-star hotel

The crisp, clear, and almost free of light pollution night sky is one of the reasons Death Valley attracts stargazers flocking to it. According to Rachel Urban, founder of Bindlestiff Tours, which organizes Death Valley adventures for small groups, this is one of the park's most captivating features.

Anyone can see the Milky Way clearly visible one night here.

Death Valley is a certified "thousand-star hotel". It is far enough away from any light pollution to be an astronomer's paradise. Anyone can see the Milky Way clearly visible one night here. To celebrate these nights, the park hosts the annual Night Sky Festival. Events include guided hikes, astrophotography meetups, star parties, and talks with rangers.

3. Death Valley is like science fiction

The landscape of Death Valley alone looks like the setting of a sci-fi movie - which is probably why the Star Wars makers shot the "Episode IV" and "Episode" seasons. VI" here. But its surreal geological features have gone beyond human imagination. At Eureka Dunes, a 3-mile (4.8 km) stretch of California's highest dunes, the sands can really "sing". According to the National Park Service, when the sand slides down to the highest dunes, you can hear a sound that resembles the pipe of a harp or drone.

The walking stone in Death Valley.

Not to mention the strange moving sounds in the desert "music", when some of the rocks in Racetrack Playa move on their own, rocks in the nearby mountains fall into Racetrack - a dry lake in the desert. northwest of Death Valley - rocks that move across the surface leave tracks as they go.

Some of the rocks have gone as deep as 457 meters, they are known as "sailing rocks". These are not pebbles; sizes range from just a few ounces to hundreds of pounds. This phenomenon occurs when enough water and ice form in Racetrack Playa, eventually the rock drifts through the muddy bottom with the help of a gentle breeze.

4. Rich flora and fauna exist in hot and sunny environment

With the name Death Valley, it's hard to imagine any life thriving here, but surprisingly there's so much going on. Death Valley is home to more than 1,000 species of plants and more than 50 species of mammals, including bighorn sheep, jackals and coyotes. Birds like the hoe live here year-round, and an unusual species, the iridescent blue little devilfish - they live in a body of water as warm as 33 degrees Celsius - a segregated geological system just outside National Parks.

 Death Valley is home to more than 1,000 species of plants and more than 50 species of mammals.

5. Safety is a must when visiting Death Valley

Experienced people recommend visiting Death Valley between November and April every year, this is when the heat subsides and the temperature hovers around 23.8 degrees Celsius in November and 18 .3 degrees Celsius in December. Death Valley travelers are also urged to take precautions seriously as it is easy to get lost in this massive park.

Stop relying solely on your PS, because the mountains make it unreliable. Signal is often lost and this includes cell phone service. Ideally, bring a map to know where you are. If you're traveling during the hottest months of the year, drink plenty of water, shade, electrolytes, and salty snacks.