California’s Death Valle records 54.4 C, which is potentially the highest temperature since 1931 and is possibly the hottest temperature ever recorded on Earth.

The National Weather Service tweeted the potentially record-breaking temperature and said that it had beaten the previous August record of Death Valley.

The weather service warned of blistering, widespread excessive heat across the West.

The staff told the visitors of the Death Valley:

Drink plenty of water and carry extra. Avoid hiking (after 10 a.m.). Travel prepared to survive.

Death Valley has the current record for the hottest temperature recorded on Earth, which is at an incredible 56.6 degrees Celsius.

That temperature was recorded on July 10, 1913, however, experts doubt the accuracy of that certain reading.

A study that was conducted in 2016 found that it was essentially not possible to have such record from a meteorological perspective.

According to Randy Cerveny, who leads the World Meteorological Organisation’s weather and climate extremes team, the temperature that was recorded on Sudnay were legitimate.

During an interview with the Washington Post, he said:

I am recommending that the World Meteorological Organisation preliminary accept the observation. In the upcoming weeks, we will, of course, be examining it in detail, along with the U.S. National Climate Extremes Committee, using one of our international evaluation teams.

The National Weather Service released a statement about the incident, where they said:

Death Valley, California recorded a high temperature of 130°F at 3:41 PM PDT on Sunday, August 16, 2020. This temperature was measured at Furnace Creek near the Visitors Center using a National Weather Service owned automated observation system. This observed high temperature is considered preliminary and not yet official. If verified, this will be the hottest temperature officially verified since July of 1913, also at Death Valley. As this is an extreme temperature event, the recorded temperature will need to undergo a formal review. A Climate Extremes Committee will be formed to verify the validity of the 130°F reading.

Bob Henson, a meteorologist, said:

It’s quite possible the Death Valley high set a new global heat record. The extreme nature of the surrounding weather pattern makes such a reading plausible, so the case deserves a solid review. There are nagging questions about the validity of even hotter reports from Death Valley in 1913 and Tunisia in 1931. What we can say with high confidence is that, if confirmed, this is the highest temperature observed on Earth in almost a century.

Professor James Renwick, a climate scientist at the Victoria University of Wellington, has taken part in WMO efforts to check temperature readings.

He said that the Death Valley reading would have to be checked and verified before any record could be confidently declared.