The lowest officially recorded air temperature at Earth’s surface is −89.2 °C.
The measurement was taken at Vostok Station in Antarctica on 21 July 1983. Vostok is a Russian research station located on the East Antarctic Ice Sheet at an elevation of about 3,488 metres. The high elevation, extremely dry air, long polar night, and a surface covered by reflective snow all favor severe cooling.
During the Antarctic winter, the Sun remains below the horizon for months. Cold, dense air can settle over the ice sheet, while clear skies allow infrared energy to escape to space. These conditions can produce temperatures far lower than those normally experienced at lower-altitude polar stations.
Satellite instruments have detected even colder surface temperatures in Antarctic snow hollows, but those are remote-sensing surface estimates rather than standard thermometer measurements of near-surface air. That distinction explains why the official air record remains the Vostok observation.