Death Valley Explained

Death Valley
Photo Size:224
Map:California
Map Size:224
Relief:1
Label Position:bottom
Location:California
Elevation:−282 ft (−86 m)
Elevation Ref:[1]
Area:3000sqmi
Watercourses:Furnace Creek
Amargosa River

Death Valley is a desert valley in Eastern California, in the northern Mojave Desert, bordering the Great Basin Desert. It is thought to be the hottest place on Earth during summer.[2]

Death Valley's Badwater Basin is the point of lowest elevation in North America, at below sea level.[1] It is 84.6miles east-southeast of Mount Whitney — the highest point in the contiguous United States, with an elevation of 14,505 feet (4,421 m).[3] On the afternoon of July10, 1913, the United States Weather Bureau recorded a high temperature of 134 °F (56.7 °C) at Furnace Creek in Death Valley,[4] which stands as the highest ambient air temperature ever recorded on the surface of the Earth.[5] This reading, however, and several others taken in that period are disputed by some modern experts.[6]

Lying mostly in Inyo County, California, near the border of California and Nevada, in the Great Basin, east of the Sierra Nevada mountains, Death Valley constitutes much of Death Valley National Park and is the principal feature of the Mojave and Colorado Deserts Biosphere Reserve. It runs from north to south between the Amargosa Range on the east and the Panamint Range on the west. The Grapevine Mountains and the Owlshead Mountains form its northern and southern boundaries, respectively.[7] It has an area of about 3000sqmi.[8] The highest point in Death Valley National Park is Telescope Peak, in the Panamint Range, which has an elevation of .[9]

A group of European-American pioneers got lost here in the winter of 1849-1850, while looking for a shortcut to the gold fields of California, giving Death Valley its grim name. Although only one of the group members died here, they all assumed that the valley would be their grave.[10] [11] Death Valley is home to the Timbisha tribe of Native Americans, formerly known as the Panamint Shoshone, who have inhabited the valley for at least the past millennium.

Geology

See main article: Geology of the Death Valley area.

Death Valley is a graben—a downdropped block of land between two mountain ranges.[12] It lies at the southern end of a geological trough, Walker Lane, which runs north to Oregon. The valley is bisected by a right lateral strike slip fault system, comprising the Death Valley Fault and the Furnace Creek Fault. The eastern end of the left lateral Garlock Fault intersects the Death Valley Fault. Furnace Creek and the Amargosa River flow through part of the valley and eventually disappear into the sands of the valley floor.

Death Valley also contains salt pans. According to current geological consensus, at various times during the middle of the Pleistocene era, which ended roughly 10,000–12,000 years ago, an inland lake, Lake Manly, formed in Death Valley. The lake was nearly 100miles long and 600feet deep. The end-basin in a chain of lakes that began with Mono Lake, in the north, and continued through basins down the Owens River Valley, through Searles and China Lakes and the Panamint Valley, to the immediate west.[13]

As the area turned to desert, the water evaporated, leaving an abundance of evaporitic salts, such as common sodium salts and borax, which were later exploited during the modern history of the region, primarily 1883 to 1907.[14]

Climate

Death Valley has a subtropical, hot desert climate (Köppen: BWh), with long, extremely hot summers; short, warm winters; and little rainfall.

The valley is extremely dry because it lies in the rain shadow of four major mountain ranges (including the Sierra Nevada and Panamint Range). Moisture moving inland from the Pacific Ocean must pass eastward over the mountains to reach Death Valley; as air masses are forced upward by each range, they cool and moisture condenses, to fall as rain or snow on the western slopes. When the air masses reach Death Valley, most of the moisture in the air has already been lost and thus there is little left to fall as precipitation.[15]

The extreme heat of Death Valley is attributable to a confluence of geographic and topographic factors. Scientists have identified a number of key contributors:

Severe heat and dryness contribute to perpetual drought-like conditions in Death Valley and prevent much cloud formation from passing through the confines of the valley, where precipitation is often in the form of a virga.[18]

The depth and shape of Death Valley strongly influence its climate. The valley is a long, narrow basin that descends below sea level and is walled by high, steep mountain ranges. The clear, dry air and sparse plant cover allow sunlight to heat the desert surface. Summer nights provide little relief: overnight lows may dip just into the 82F98F range. Moving masses of super-heated air blow through the valley, creating extremely high ambient temperatures.[19]

The hottest air temperature ever recorded in Death Valley was 134°F, on July 10, 1913, at Greenland Ranch (now Furnace Creek), which, as of 2022, is the highest atmospheric temperature ever recorded on the Earth's surface. (A report of a temperature of 58C in Libya in 1922 was later determined to be inaccurate.) During the heat wave that peaked with that record, five consecutive days reached or higher. Some modern meteorologists now dispute the accuracy of the 1913 temperature measurement.[20] On June 30, 2013, a verified temperature of was recorded and is tied with Mitribah, Kuwait, for the hottest reliably measured air temperature ever recorded on Earth.[21] A temperature of 130°F was recorded at the Furnace Creek weather station on August 16, 2020, but has not yet been officially verified.[22] [23] The valley again recorded that temperature on July 9, 2021;[24] [25] however, that temperature has not yet been officially verified either.[26] The valley's lowest temperature, recorded at Greenland Ranch (now Furnace Creek) on January 2, 1913, was .[27]

The highest surface temperature ever recorded in Death Valley was 201°F, on July 15, 1972, at Furnace Creek, which is the highest ground surface temperature ever recorded on earth, as well as the only recorded surface temperature of above 200°F.[28]

The greatest number of consecutive days with a maximum temperature of at least was 154, in the summer of 2001. The summer of 1996 had 40 days over, and 105 days over . The summer of 1917 had 52 days when the temperature reached or above, 43 of them consecutive.

The highest overnight or low temperature recorded in Death Valley is 110°F, recorded on July 5, 1918.[29] However this value is disputed; a record high low of 107°F on July 12, 2012, is considered reliable.[30] This is one of the highest values ever recorded.[31] Also on July 12, 2012, the mean 24-hour temperature recorded at Death Valley was 117.5°F, which makes it the world's warmest 24-hour temperature on record.[32] July 2024 was the hottest month ever recorded in Death Valley, with a mean daily average temperature over the month of 108.5°F.[33]

Four major mountain ranges lie between Death Valley and the ocean, each one adding to an increasingly drier rain shadow effect, and in 1929, 1953, and 1989, no rain was recorded for the whole year.[19] The period from 1931 to 1934 was the driest stretch on record, with only 0.64inches of rain over a 40-month period.[18] The average annual precipitation in Death Valley is 2.36inches, while the Greenland Ranch station averaged 1.58inches.[34] The wettest month on record is January 1995, when 2.59inches fell on Death Valley.[18] The wettest period on record was mid-2004 to mid-2005, in which nearly 6inches of rain fell in total, leading to ephemeral lakes in the valley and the region and tremendous wildflower blooms.[35] Snow with accumulation has only been recorded in January 1922, while scattered flakes have been recorded on other occasions.

Flooding

In 2005, Death Valley received four times its average annual rainfall of 1.5inches. As it has done before for hundreds of years, the lowest spot in the valley filled with a wide, shallow lake, but the extreme heat and aridity immediately began evaporating the ephemeral lake.

The pair of images (seen at right) from NASA's Landsat 5 satellite documents the short history of Death Valley's Lake Badwater: formed in February 2005 (top) and evaporated by February 2007 (bottom). In 2005, a big pool of greenish water stretched most of the way across the valley floor. By May 2005, the valley floor had resumed its more familiar role as Badwater Basin, salt-coated salt flats. In time, this freshly dissolved and recrystallized salt will darken.[36]

The western margin of Death Valley is traced by alluvial fans. During flash floods, rainfall from the steep mountains to the west pours through narrow canyons, picking up everything from fine clay to large rocks. When these torrents reach the mouths of the canyons, they widen and slow, branching out into distributary channels. The paler the fans, the younger they are.

Ecology

In spite of the overwhelming heat and sparse rainfall, Death Valley exhibits considerable biodiversity. Flowers, watered by snowmelt, carpet the desert floor each spring, continuing into June.[35] Bighorn sheep, red-tailed hawks, and wild donkeys may be seen. Death Valley has over 600 springs and ponds. Salt Creek, a mile-long shallow depression in the center of the valley, supports Death Valley Pupfish.[37] These isolated pupfish populations are remnants of the wetter Pleistocene climate.[37]

Darwin Falls, on the western edge of Death Valley Monument, falls 100feet into a large pond surrounded by willows and cottonwood trees. Over 80 species of birds have been recorded around the pond.[38]

Efflorescence, also known as salt flowers, is a rare occurrence in Death Valley that occurs when rain soaks into the soil and dissolves salt beneath the surface causing the ground to appear as if there is a light dusting of snow.[39]

History

Death Valley is home to the Timbisha tribe of Native Americans, formerly known as the Panamint Shoshone, who have inhabited the valley for at least the past millennium. The Timbisha name for the valley, tümpisa, means "rock paint" and refers to the red ocher paint that can be made from a type of clay found in the valley. Some families still live in the valley at Furnace Creek. Another village was in Grapevine Canyon near the present site of Scotty's Castle. It was called maahunu in the Timbisha language, whose meaning is uncertain, although it is known that hunu means 'canyon'.[40]

The valley received its English name in 1849 during the California Gold Rush. It was called Death Valley by prospectors[41] and others who sought to cross the valley on their way to the gold fields, after 13 pioneers perished from one early expedition of wagon trains.[42] [43] During the 1850s, gold and silver were extracted in the valley. In the 1880s, borax was discovered and extracted by mule-drawn wagons.

Death Valley National Monument was proclaimed on February 11, 1933, by President Herbert Hoover, placing the area under federal protection. In 1994, the monument was redesignated as Death Valley National Park, as well as being substantially expanded to include Saline and Eureka Valleys.

Notable attractions and locations

See main article: Places of interest in the Death Valley area.

In popular culture

Films

A number of movies have been filmed in Death Valley, including:[44] [45]

Music

Television

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: USGS National Elevation Dataset (NED) 1 meter Downloadable Data Collection from The National Map 3D Elevation Program (3DEP) – National Geospatial Data Asset (NGDA) National Elevation Data Set (NED). United States Geological Survey. September 21, 2015. September 22, 2015. March 25, 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190325085854/https://catalog.data.gov/dataset/usgs-national-elevation-dataset-ned-1-meter-downloadable-data-collection-from-the-national-map-. dead.
  2. Web site: World Heat Record Overturned – A Personal Account. WunderBlog. October 24, 2016. Consequently, the WMO assessment is that the official highest recorded surface temperature of 56.7°C (134°F) was measured on July 10, 1913 at Greenland Ranch (Death Valley) CA.
  3. Web site: Find Distance and Azimuths Between 2 Sets of Coordinates. Federal Communications Commission. August 13, 2010. Entered coordinates for Badwater 36-15-01-N, 116-49-33-W; and Mount Whitney 36-34-43-N, 118-17-31-W. May 28, 2010. https://web.archive.org/web/20100528045915/http://www.fcc.gov/mb/audio/bickel/distance.html. dead.
  4. Web site: World Meteorological Organization World Weather / Climate Extremes Archive . April 14, 2017 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20130104143844/http://wmo.asu.edu/world-highest-temperature . January 4, 2013.
  5. El Fadli. KI. World Meteorological Organization Assessment of the Purported World Record 58°C Temperature Extreme at El Azizia, Libya (13 September 1922). Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society. September 2012. 10.1175/BAMS-D-12-00093.1. 94. 2. 199. etal. 2013BAMS...94..199E. free.
  6. News: August 17, 2020. 'Highest temperature on Earth' recorded in US. BBC News. August 17, 2020.
  7. Book: Death Valley National Monument: Proposed Natural and Cultural Resources Management Plan and Draft Environmental Impact Statement. U.S. Department of the Interior. 1981. 72.
  8. Book: JW. Wright. 2006. The New York Times Almanac. registration. 2007. Penguin Books. New York, New York. 0-14-303820-6. 456.
  9. Book: Hiking Death Valley National Park. Bill. Cunningham. Polly. Cunningham. Rowman & Littlefield. 2016. 209.
  10. Web site: Valley . Mailing Address: P. O. Box 579 Death . Us . CA 92328 Phone: 760 786-3200 Contact . Frequently Asked Questions - Death Valley National Park (U.S. National Park Service) . 2024-06-03 . www.nps.gov . en.
  11. Web site: Dotson . Danny . Research Guides: National Parks: Death Valley National Park . 2024-06-03 . guides.osu.edu . en.
  12. Book: Geology Underfoot in Death Valley and Owens Valley. RP. Sharp. AF. Glazner. Mountain Press Publishing. 1997. 195.
  13. Web site: Image of the Day: Lake Badwater, Death Valley. NASA. Earth Observing System. March 18, 2009. April 16, 2009.
  14. Web site: Celeste Cosby . Jeanette Hawkins . Jani Kushla . Molly Robinson . Boron Minerals of Death Valley . https://web.archive.org/web/20080317215452/http://www.science.smith.edu/departments/Geology/dv/Boron/home.html . March 17, 2008 . Clark Science Center, Smith College . 2009 . dead.
  15. Roof. Steven. Callagan. Charlie. The Climate of Death Valley, California. 2003. https://web.archive.org/web/20190421230215/http://stormbruiser.com/chase/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/bams-84-12-1725.pdf . April 21, 2019 . live. Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society. 84. 12. 1725–1739. 10.1175/bams-84-12-1725. 2003BAMS...84.1725R.
  16. Web site: Why is it colder at higher elevations? A thorough and visual explanation.. Fischer. Barry. December 20, 2018. Medium.
  17. Web site: Death Valley Weather. US National Park Service.
  18. Web site: Death Valley National Park. Weather and Climate. U.S. National Park Service. May 23, 2008. April 16, 2009.
  19. Web site: National Park Service. Death Valley. Weather and Climate. https://web.archive.org/web/20061011102522/http://www.nps.gov/deva/planyourvisit/upload/Weather%20and%20Climate.pdf . October 11, 2006 . live. NPS.gov. May 29, 2009.
  20. Web site: Historic Heat Wave for Death Valley's 129°F Gradually Weakening. Wunderground. Jeff. Masters. WunderBlog. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20131105060318/http://www.wunderground.com/blog/JeffMasters/comment.html?entrynum=2451. November 5, 2013.
  21. News: New analysis shreds claim that Death Valley recorded Earth's highest temperature in 1913 . Sumenow . Jason . October 25, 2016 . live . The Washington Post . https://web.archive.org/web/20161027134608/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/capital-weather-gang/wp/2016/10/25/new-analysis-shreds-claim-that-death-valley-recorded-earths-hottest-temperature-in-1913/ . October 27, 2016.
  22. Web site: Death Valley temperature rises to 54.4C – possibly the hottest ever reliably recorded. Graham Readfearn. The Guardian. August 17, 2020.
  23. Web site: 'Highest temperature on Earth' as Death Valley, US hits 54.4C . BBC News . August 17, 2020 . July 30, 2021 . live. https://web.archive.org/web/20200817171540/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-53788018 . August 17, 2020 .
  24. 1413659717126160390 . NWSVegas . DEATH VALLEY UPDATE Thermometer High temp at Death Valley today = 130F. Warning sign If this says anything about how hot SAT-SUN will be, HEED THESE WARNINGS. Do not put yourself, nor first responders in danger this weekend! This observed high temp is considered preliminary & not yet validated. . NWS Las Vegas.
  25. Web site: Death Valley, California, breaks the all-time world heat record for the second year in a row . . July 12, 2021. yaleclimateconnections.org . Yale climate connections . September 1, 2021.
  26. Web site: Death Valley, California, breaks the all-time world heat record for the second year in a row . . July 12, 2021. yaleclimateconnections.org . Yale climate connections . September 1, 2021.
  27. Web site: Period of Record General Climate Summary – Temperature. Desert Research Institute. WRCC. Greenland Ranch, California. June 17, 2011.
  28. Kubecka . Paul . 2001 . A possible world record maximum natural ground surface temperature . Weather . 56 . 7. 218–221 . 10.1002/j.1477-8696.2001.tb06577.x . 2001Wthr...56..218K. 120698040 .
  29. Web site: July Daily Normals And Records . https://web.archive.org/web/20150417051253/http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/vef/climate/DeathValleyClimateBook/July%20Normal%20and%20Record%20Temperatures.pdf . April 17, 2015 . live . The Death Valley Climate Book . . March 26, 2017 .
  30. Web site: Death Valley records a low of 107°F (41.7°C): a world record . Jeff . Masters . July 16, 2013 . Weather Underground . https://web.archive.org/web/20130507235845/http://www.wunderground.com/blog/JeffMasters/article.html?entrynum=2153 . May 7, 2013 . dead.
  31. Web site: Masters . Jeff . Jeff Masters . A World Record Low Humidity? 116°F With a 0.36% Humidity in Iran by Dr. Jeff Masters Category 6 . . June 10, 2018 . June 21, 2017.
  32. Web site: Jeff Masters. Blog. Death Valley records a low of 107°F (41.7°C): a world record. Weather Underground. September 19, 2012.
  33. Web site: Almanac for DEATH VALLEY NATIONAL PARK, CA - July 31, 2024. National Weather Service. August 1, 2024. August 1, 2024.
  34. Web site: WRCC. Monthly Climate Summary. Desert Research Institute. June 8, 2009.
  35. Web site: Wet Winter Brings Life to Death Valley. NPR.
  36. Daley, Jason (2019). Flooding Creates a 10-Mile-Long Lake in Death Valley. Smithsonian Magazine. Retrieved June 29, 2020.
  37. Phenotypic Plasticity of Death Valley's Pupfish. Sean. Lema. American Scientist. 2008.
  38. Not So Dead . Smithsonian Magazine . May 2008. 30. Matt. Kettmann. Paul. Grondahl. Monica. Watrous. Nan. Chase.
  39. Web site: Snow in Death Valley, the hottest place on Earth? It's not what it looks like . Los Angeles Times . Hayley Smith . September 16, 2021 . November 26, 2021 .
  40. Jon P. Dayley, Tümpisa (Panamint) Shoshone Dictionary, University of California Publications in Linguistics Volume 116 (1989, University of California Press), page 89.
  41. Book: Lingenfelter, Richard E.. Dwyer, Richard A.. Death Valley Lore, Classic Tales of Fantasy, Adventure and Mystery. Reno. University of Nevada Press. 1988. 0-87417-136-9.
  42. Book: Manly. William Lewis. Death Valley in '49. Project Gutenberg. The Pacific Tree and Vine Co.. 1894.
  43. Web site: Reynolds. Jerry. Paradise Found. Santa Clarita Valley Historical Society. October 7, 2017.
  44. Book: Schneider, Jerry L.. Western Filming Locations California Book 6. 2016. Barnes & Noble. 978-1-9870-7242-6. 132–133.
  45. Web site: Death Valley in Movies and Television. National Park Service. April 2, 2022. December 8, 2022.
  46. Cops Chase Zombies in MTV's Goofy Death Valley. Wired. Hart, Hugh . August 29, 2011.