Looking for some Death Valley National Park fun facts? You’re in for a treat! This unique park protects an extreme landscape full of surprises, from record-breaking heat to stunning desert scenery.
Join us as we dive into the fascinating facts that make Death Valley a place unlike any other, and get ready to be amazed by its bizarre beauty and harsh extremes!
Podcast Episode Overview
Let’s head out to Death Valley for some fascinating fun facts! This national park protects an extreme landscape that will surprise you at every turn.
From the sand dunes to the extremely hot and dry climate, visiting Death Valley will transport you into the bizarre and beautiful. What you see may seem like it’s straight out of a movie, but Scout’s honor, all of the fun facts we are sharing today about this national park are true!
In this episode, we discuss:
- What makes this park the hottest place on earth
- The shocking amount of precipitation that this park gets each year
- Why this is the lowest place in North America
- The mind-bending phenomenon that happens in this park
- How Death Valley became the first and only national park to return lands to the Native Americans
Death Valley is truly unlike any other park, and we hope you get a chance to get out there and experience it for yourself.
Listen to the Full Podcast Episode:
1. Death Valley National Park is the hottest place on Earth
Some people will contest where the hottest temperature on planet Earth has been recorded, but we are sticking by Death Valley on this fun fact! How cool is it that one of our national parks can claim to be the driest, lowest, and hottest place in North America?
The hottest air temperature was recorded at Furnace Creek in Death Valley on July 10th, 1913, at 134 degrees Fahrenheit. That temperature is a good reminder that the best time to visit Death Valley is during the winter, which we discuss in detail in Episode 92: Exploring Death Valley National Park: Best Tips + Activities. The National Park Service has a giant temperature sign at the Furnace Creek Visitor Center, so you always know how hot it is. They don’t recommend hiking after 10:00 AM on most days.
The hottest ground temperature was also recorded at Furnace Creek in Death Valley on July 15, 1972, at 201 degrees Fahrenheit. If you touched the surface where it was recorded, your skin would burn!
In 2001, Death Valley had 154 consecutive days above 100 degrees Fahrenheit. But in 1917, Death Valley had 43 straight days with temperatures 120 degrees Fahrenheit or above. The list goes on! It’s unreal how hot Death Valley is.
We’d love to teleport to Death Valley for just an hour in July to experience how hot summer temperatures can get.
2. Death Valley is the driest place in North America
Death Valley’s average annual rainfall is less than two inches, and there have even been years with zero precipitation. Even the tiniest bit of rain can create flash floods, which have shut down a few areas of the park, like Scotty’s Castle.
Why exactly is Death Valley so dry? The Mojave desert valley that forms much of the park’s valley floor is in the rain shadow of the Sierra Nevada Mountains. Just under 90 miles separate Mount Whitney, the tallest mountain in the contiguous United States (14,505 feet above sea level), and Badwater Basin, the lowest point in North America (282 feet below sea level).
All the rain falls on the west side of the Sierra Nevada Mountains, which is why giant Sequoia trees and lush pine forests thrive in places like Yosemite, Sequoia, and Kings Canyon National Parks. Less than 140 miles separate the closest Sequoia Grove and Death Valley!
Mountain ranges worldwide experience the rain shadow effect, but the Sierra Nevada Mountains and Death Valley are some of the most extreme examples, running from highest point to lowest point within such a small stretch of land. The average rainfall in Sequoia National Park is around 26 inches a year, compared to Death Valley’s two inches.
But why is Death Valley also one of the hottest areas in the world? To understand these scorching hot temperatures, we have to dive into fun fact number three!
3. Death Valley National Park is the lowest point in North America
The lowest point in North America can be found in Death Valley at Badwater Basin. The salt flats here dip down to a staggering 282 feet below sea level!
The depth and shape of Death Valley contribute to its hotness. The valley itself is long and narrow, boxed in on all sides by tall mountain ranges. The higher elevations of Death Valley reach 11,049 feet above sea level at Telescope Peak. When you stand at Badwater Basin and look up, it’s staggering how far up Telescope Peak is!
Death Valley is like a chasm absorbing the Sun’s energy and catching all the air falling from the mountains. The temperature spirals hotter and hotter, and then it gets trapped in the valley. Nighttime temperatures do not drop much in Death Valley, as you might expect to experience in a desert landscape.
High temperatures persist day and night, making Death Valley like a convection oven. Hot air rises like in any other desert, but the distance between the park’s higher and lower elevations is so great that no hot air can escape. The air rises, and then it drops back down again. In the summer months, there’s nothing to interrupt this superheating process.
This is just another reason why the park earns the name Death Valley.
4. The lowest point in Death Valley is still getting lower
Do you remember the scene in Inception where Leonardo DiCaprio bends Paris to his will? Death Valley is pulling its own Inception and bending the land in and around the park.
Death Valley sits on a tectonic plate that is stretching, causing it to try its best to stay together. Under these massive forces, Telescope Peak is getting taller, and Badwater Basin is getting lower. It’s essentially corkscrewing clockwise to the east.
Geology can be complex to understand because it occurs on such a large scale and over a long period. Just imagine that when people visit Death Valley in 1,000 years, they’ll have to put up new signs to show just how low the lowest point is!
5. Death Valley is the only national park in the United States to have returned lands and created a reservation
It’s hard to imagine anyone thriving in Death Valley, but the Timbisha Shoshone learned to live with the harsh conditions. They knew how to live off the land, how to find springs, how to make a shelter, and so much more. They were a thriving community.
As miners and settlers came through the Death Valley region, things changed for the Timbisha Shoshone. Mining claims encroached on their home, and in 1933, Death Valley National Monument was established around them. They weren’t federally recognized as a tribe, so they couldn’t qualify for any assistance.
The government and park staff repeatedly tried to force the Timbisha Shoshone tribe out of the park. Luckily, the government found it hard to make living in Death Valley any more uncomfortable.
In 2000, legislation was finally signed, making Death Valley National Park the first and only U.S. National Park to return lands and create a reservation within its boundaries. The Timbisha Shoshone fought tirelessly over many decades to get this legislation passed.
Don’t forget your task for this week! Head over to the Dirt in My Shoes Facebook or Instagram page and let us know which of the Death Valley extremes you’re most excited to experience.
Links mentioned in this podcast episode:
- Death Valley National Park
- Weather Conditions in Death Valley
- Current Conditions and Closures in Death Valley
- Telescope Peak
- Badwater Basin
- Mt. Whitney
- Geology of Death Valley
- The Timbisha Shoshone
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