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Snow could fall in one of the hottest and driest places on Earth later this month, according to a forecast.
Death Valley, which runs along part of central California's border with Nevada, has long dominated global heat records. The hottest temperature ever recorded on Earth was 134 degrees Fahrenheit at Furnace Creek Ranch on July 10, 1913, according to the National Weather Service, though some experts have disputed the reading.
Snow in Death Valley is extremely rare. The only time any measurable amount of snow fell there was more than 100 years ago, when a half inch of snow was recorded on , according to the NWS.
Since then, only trace amounts of snow have been recorded a handful of times, mostly recently on January 5, 1974.
But that record could be broken later in January, according to a forecast by weather-modelling service WXCharts.
According to the forecast, there could be snow accumulations of up to four inches in Death Valley on January 17 and 18.
However, it is worth noting that weather forecasts are less reliable the further out they are. A 10-day—or longer—forecast is only right about half the time, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
The National Weather Service has been contacted for comment via email.
The NWS's detailed seven-day forecast for Death Valley National Park says scattered rain and snow showers are expected on Wednesday morning, with scattered rain showers in the afternoon. The weather is predicted to be mostly clear or sunny through Tuesday night.
It comes after Tropical Storm Hilary dumped the equivalent of a year's worth of rain in the park in a single day last summer, causing flash flooding and forcing the park to close and leave hundreds of visitors stranded. More than a million people visit the park annually.
The NWS said 2.2 inches of rain was measured at the official gauge near Furnace Creek on August 20, 2023, breaking the previous record for Death Valley's single-rainiest day that was set in August the previous year. The park's annual average rainfall is 2.15 inches, according to the National Park Service.
Temperatures reached 129 degrees Fahrenheit in Death Valley during the summer of 2023, and experts have warned it could get hotter.
"With global warming, such temperatures are becoming more and more likely to occur," Randy Ceverny, the World Meteorological Organization's records coordinator, told The Associated Press last year.
He said that in the long-term, global warning "is causing higher and more frequent temperature extremes."
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About the writer
Khaleda Rahman is Newsweek's National Correspondent based in London, UK. Her focus is reporting on education and national news. Khaleda ... Read more
