Dear Tom,
I have a friend in Blythe, California, who claims it’s the hottest inhabited place in the world in July. I’m skeptical.
Buzz Williamson
Dear Buzz,
Blythe, sitting in the Sonoran Desert 215 miles to the east of Los Angeles, is certainly one of the world’s summer hot spots, but your skepticism is justified. Hotter inhabited places do exist, though not by much.
National Weather Service statistics indicate that Blythe simmers with an average high temperature of 109(degrees) in July, but many towns in the Sahara Desert of North Africa register higher July temperatures. Adrar, Algeria (population 326,000) tops the list with 115(degrees). The Arabian Peninsula also sizzles in July: Abadan, Iran, 112(degrees); Baghdad, Iraq, 110(degrees).
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Tom Skilling is chief meteorologist at WGN-TV. His forecasts can be seen Monday through Friday on WGN-TV News at noon and 9 p.m.
WGN-TV meteorologists Steve Kahn, Richard Koeneman and Paul Dailey plus weather producer Bill Snyder contribute to this page.
