El Paso, TEXAS -

I received a question about the hottest temperature on earth. Larry thought the record went to El Aziziyah, Libya at 136 degrees. But, recently he heard that the record was set in Death Valley, California with a temperature of 134 degrees.
Well, the hottest place on the planet had been in the desert of Azizyah, Libya (northwest corner of the country) until new evidence surfaced that the temperature reading was inaccurate. The World Meteorological Organization determined the reading was an error due to questionable instruments and an inexperienced observer that recorded the data in 1922.
The new record holder is now Death Valley, California, located in the Eastern part of the state in the Mojave Desert, where a temperature reading of 134 degrees was recorded on July 10, 1913. The instruments used in this area were the best in the world at that time and maintained properly.
According to the National Weather Service, Death Valley typically experiences triple digit temperatures from May to early October. The average daily high temperature for the month of July is 115 degrees. The reason this area gets so blistering hot is that it’s primarily below sea level and most of the moisture from the Pacific Ocean is blocked by the Sierra Nevada mountains.