6 Things You Probably Didn't Know About Death Valley

The Death Valley is located in the northern sector of the Mojave Desert, at the border of The Great Basin. One of its locations, the Badwater Basin, is the point of lowest elevation in the entire North American continent, resting at some 282 feet below sea level.

Recently, the hot and dry spot between California and Nevada posted one of the highest temperatures in history. Posting a preliminary temperature of 130 degrees Fahrenheit on Sunday, August 16, it was close to breaking its previous record of 134 degrees - recorded over a hundred years ago in 1913.

To know more about the world-renowned location, here are six things you probably didn't know about Death Valley:

1. It still holds the record for the highest recorded air temperature

On July 10, 1913, Furnace Creek Ranch recorded the hottest air temperature on Earth. The World Meteorological Organization recognizes the 134.1 degrees Fahrenheit (56.7°C) as such, after retracting the record from a September 13, 1922 reading from Aziziya, Libya, at 136.0 degree Fahrenheit. The organization cited evidence of a faulty reading.

2. Its lowest point is a neighbor the US' highest point

Aside from the Badwater Basin being the lowest point of elevation in the landlocked United States (excluding Alaska and Hawaii), it is also located at only 76 miles from Mt. Whitney. The Death Valley mountain peaks at 14,505 feet above sea level, west-northwest of the basin.

3. The Death Valley name is a product of the California Gold Rush

Natives who lived in the valley, the Native American tribe of the Timbisha, called the valley "tumpisa," which translates to rock paint - owing to the red paint from naturally occurring clay in the valley. Its modern English name, Death Valley, came from prospectors wary of its story where 13 pioneers died from one early expedition to cross the valley.

4. The Sailing Stones - Solved

One of the attractions in the Death Valley is its famous sailing stones. Large, heavy stones seem to be traveling across the desert, even leaving visible trails behind them in the dirt. Theories have varied from dust devils pushing them. A team might have solved the sailing stones mystery back in 2013, but people seem to prefer keeping their mysteries.

5. Humans Have Lived In Death Valley

Since it only got its modern name from a fairly recent traveling mishap, it's no surprise that humans have actually lived within the Death Valley. Rock arts and artifacts were dated to reveal the humans have inhabited the valley for at least as far as 9,000 years. The Timbisha Shoshone Tribe are known to have lived in the valley for at least the last thousand years.

6. A four-year period marked its driest record

From 1931 to 1934, including the day its hottest temperature was recorded, marked the driest period in the entire recorded history of Death Valley. On average, the rainfall was only 0.64 inches, or 16 mm, over an extended period of 40 months.