A satellite map of the US Southwest and Northern Mexico shows scorching air temperatures as an early summer heatwave broke records in Nevada, Arizona and California.
On June 6 and 7, 2024, high temperatures broke calendar-day records across all three states.
Mexico experienced high temperatures for most May, breaking heat records there.
Then, by early June, high temperatures expanded into the U.S. at the same time as a low-pressure blocking system in the Pacific Ocean.
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The above map was released by NASA and was produced using observations by satellites and other sources.
Darkest reds represent temperatures of over 108° Fahrenheit (42° Celsius) at about 6.5 feet (2 metres) above the ground.
The temperatures recorded in this part of the US are staggering: 111°F (44°C) in Las Vegas, Nevada on 6 June 2024, above the previous record for that date.
The same day, Phoenix, Arizona experienced highs of 112°F (44.5°C) and Death Valley, California saw temperatures reach 122°F (50°C).
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"Heat waves like this one have become more frequent in the United States in recent decades", according to a team of researchers at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center.
Data shows summer heat waves in the US doubled in number between 1980 and 2023, increasing from an average of two to four per month.
NASA Earth Observatory image by Michala Garrison, using GEOS data from the Global Modeling and Assimilation Office at NASA GSFC. Analysis by Adam Voiland.
