Death Valley Just Registered a Brutal Heat Milestone

It's probably been a hot summer where you are, but nothing like this: California's Death Valley registered an average temperature of 107.4 degrees for the month of July, per the National Weather Service. The previous record, set in 1917, was 107.2 degrees. It's not only a record for Death Valley: "It should be noted that this is the hottest average monthly temperature ever measured in the US, or, for that matter, anywhere in the Western Hemisphere," a climatologist tells the Washington Post.

If 107.4 doesn't seem insanely high, keep in mind that was the average temperature of both days and nights, notes the Los Angeles Times. During the day, it typically got up to 120 degrees before cooling down to about 95 at night. The hottest day came on July 7, which saw a temperature of 127. Fortunately, few people were affected: As USA Today notes, Death Valley is a national park with no permanent residents save for park rangers. (More heat wave stories.)