The world’s highest officially measured air temperature is 56.7 °C, recorded at Furnace Creek in California’s Death Valley.
The measurement was taken on 10 July 1913 at Greenland Ranch, now associated with Furnace Creek. Death Valley’s exceptionally low elevation, clear skies, dry air, and surrounding mountains can produce intense heating of the desert floor. The site lies below sea level, which contributes to its extreme summer conditions.
The World Meteorological Organization recognizes the 56.7 °C value as the official world record. An earlier record of 58 °C reported from El Azizia, Libya, in 1922 was invalidated in 2012 after a review found problems with the instrument, location, and observation conditions.
Air temperature records must be measured in standardized instruments and sheltered conditions; exposed ground surfaces can become much hotter than the air above them.