The United States contains nearly every climate on Earth, and its record book shows it. These are the long-standing, officially recognized extremes (NOAA / state climate extremes committees).
Heat and cold
| Record | Value | Where & when |
|---|---|---|
| Hottest | 134°F | Furnace Creek, Death Valley, CA — July 10, 1913 (also the world record) |
| Coldest (US) | −80°F | Prospect Creek, AK — January 23, 1971 |
| Coldest (lower 48) | −70°F | Rogers Pass, MT — January 20, 1954 |
| Hottest state avg. contender | 124°F in several states | AZ, CA, KS, OK and others share marks in the 120s |
Rain and snow
| Record | Value | Where & when |
|---|---|---|
| Most rain in 24 hours | 43 inches | Alvin, TX — July 25–26, 1979 |
| Most rain in one storm | 60.58 inches | Hurricane Harvey, Nederland, TX — August 2017 (US tropical-cyclone record) |
| Wettest place (annual avg.) | ~460+ inches | Mt. Waialeale, Kauai, HI — among the wettest spots on Earth |
| Most snow in 24 hours (US) | 75.8 inches | Silver Lake, CO — April 14–15, 1921 |
| Most snow in a season | 1,140 inches (95 ft) | Mt. Baker, WA — 1998–99 season (world record) |
Why these records stand for decades
An official record needs a calibrated instrument, a documented site and a review committee — plus weather that almost never repeats. Death Valley's 134°F has survived a century of challenges and re-analysis; it endures because the valley's geography (below sea level, ringed by mountains, bone dry) is a machine for making heat. Records are the climate's outliers, not its averages — interesting precisely because your forecast will never look like them.