Death Valley Heat Shatters 101-Year-Old Temperature Record

DEATH VALLEY, CA — Death Valley, once again, lived up to its name over the weekend with temperatures that climbed above 120 degrees, shattering a 101-year-old record.

The deadly heat comes more than a week before the official start of summer. The unseasonably warm weather can be blamed on a northward bulge in the jet stream that "unfolded over the Southwestern states this week, allowing air more typical of the middle of summer to spread over the region," according to AccuWeather. "This push of unseasonably hot air sent thermometers across the Southwest to impressive levels as some cities recorded the highest temperatures of the year so far."

According to AccuWeather, the high temperature in Death Valley soared to 122 degrees Saturday, shattering a record high for the day set in 1921. On the day before, the mercury reached 123 degrees on Friday.

Though notorious for its otherworldly heat, Death Valley has managed to put up shocking numbers in recent years. In 2020, officials at Death Valley National Park recorded a scorching high temperature of 130 degrees Fahrenheit. That was the hottest temperature recorded on Earth in the better part of a century, according to the National Weather Service.