What is the coldest temperature ever recorded in Canada?

-63.0°C (-81.4°F) at Snag in Yukon, on 3 February 1947. This is also the all-time North American cold record. Snag sits in an interior valley near the Alaskan border that traps cold Arctic air during winter inversions.

Why is Mount Washington in New Hampshire so windy?

Mount Washington sits at the convergence of three major storm tracks and its summit shape accelerates wind through a funnel effect. On 12 April 1934 the Observatory recorded 372 km/h (231 mph), which held the world record for 76 years until Barrow Island in 1996. The Observatory has been continually staffed since 1932.

North America

Q: What is the hottest temperature ever recorded in North America?

56.7°C (134.1°F) at Furnace Creek Ranch in Death Valley, California, on 10 July 1913. This is also the WMO-recognised world record for highest air temperature. Death Valley sits below sea level in a desert basin where heat radiates off canyon walls and the dry floor provides no evaporative cooling.

North America spans from the Arctic Circle to the tropics, from the driest desert on the continent to some of the wettest rainforest coastline on Earth. Its weather records include several world extremes.

Highest Temperatures

CONTINENTAL AND WORLD RECORD HIGH

56.7°C

134.1°F · WMO world record

Furnace Creek Ranch, Death Valley

California, USA · 10 July 1913

The WMO-recognised world record for highest air temperature. Death Valley sits below sea level in a desert basin where heat radiates off the canyon walls, air sinks and compresses, and the dry desert floor provides no evaporative cooling. See the World Records page for full context.

CANADA ALL-TIME RECORD HIGH

49.6°C

121.3°F · Previous record was 45.0°C

Lytton

British Columbia, Canada · 29 June 2021

Canada's all-time temperature record, set during the catastrophic Pacific Northwest heat dome event. Lytton broke its own record for three consecutive days before being largely destroyed by wildfire the following day.

MEXICO EXTREME HEAT

~48.0°C

~118.4°F

Mexicali

Baja California, Mexico · July 1995 area

The Mexico-US border region regularly produces some of North America's highest temperatures, with the Sonoran Desert reaching extremes that rival Death Valley on hot summer days.

Lowest Temperatures

CONTINENTAL RECORD LOW

-63.0°C

-81.4°F

Snag

Yukon, Canada · 3 February 1947

The lowest temperature ever recorded in North America. Snag is a small settlement near the Alaskan border in an interior valley that traps cold Arctic air during winter inversions. The reading was made by a weather observer using a standard thermometer -- there was no automatic equipment.

USA ALL-TIME RECORD LOW

-56.5°C

-69.7°F

Prospect Creek

Alaska, USA · 23 January 1971

The lowest recorded temperature in the United States. Interior Alaska experiences extreme cold in winter as the subarctic continental air mass stagnates under high pressure, with no maritime influence to moderate temperatures.

Precipitation

USA 24-HOUR RAINFALL RECORD

1,099 mm

43.3 inches in 24 hours

Alvin, Texas

USA · 25-26 July 1979

Recorded during Tropical Storm Claudette. Gulf Coast storms can stall over land and produce extraordinary totals as moisture-laden air from the warm Gulf of Mexico feeds the system continuously.

WETTEST LOCATION IN NORTH AMERICA

~6,655 mm

~262 inches annual average

Henderson Lake

British Columbia, Canada

The Coast Mountains force moist Pacific air upwards, extracting vast quantities of precipitation. The Olympic Peninsula of Washington State and the Oregon Coast have comparably high annual totals.

Wind

CONTINENTAL WIND RECORD (FORMER WORLD RECORD)

372 km/h

231 mph · Held world record for 76 years

Mount Washington Observatory

New Hampshire, USA · 12 April 1934

Held the world record for 76 years until Barrow Island in 1996. Mount Washington sits at the convergence of three major storm tracks and its summit funnel-shape accelerates wind. The Observatory has been continually staffed since 1932 and publishes hourly conditions.