14th May: Daniel Fahrenheit: Temperature

Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit, who invented the Fahrenheit temperature scale, was born on this date in 1686. So some temperature and weather related facts today - temperature records. These have been obtained using the standard conditions of having the instruments two meters above ground and not in direct sunlight.

1. The highest temperature ever recorded was on 10 July 1913 at Furnace Creek Ranch, Death Valley, California: 134°F (56.7°C)
2. The highest temperature ever recorded in the UK was 101.3°F (38.5°C) in Faversham, Kent on 10 August 2003.
3. Antarctica has only managed to get up to 59°F (15°C) (on 5 January 1974) whereas at the South Pole, the recorded temperature has never been higher than 9.9°F (-12.3°F) (on Christmas Day 2011.)
4. The hottest temperature recorded in Africa was in Kebili, Tunisia, where it reached 131°F (55°C) on 7 July 1931.
5. If you want consistent heat, the place to be is Australia - Marble Bar, Western Australia to be exact, which holds the record for the most consecutive days with a temperature above 100°F: 160 days, from 31 October 1923 to 7 April 1924.
6. The coldest temperature on record was at Vostok Station, Antarctica: -128.6°F (-89.2°C).
7. In terms of inhabited places, the record for being coldest is a tie between Verkhoyansk in Russia on February 7 1892, and Oymyakon, also in Russia, on 6 February 1933: -90°F (-68°C).
8. In the UK, the coldest temperature ever recorded was in Scotland where it has reached -17°F (-27.2°C) three times. Twice in Braemar, Aberdeenshire (11 February 1895 and 10 January 1982) and once in Altnaharra, Sutherland on 30 December 1995.
9. The fastest temperature rise took place in Spearfish, South Dakota when the temperature rose by 49°F (27°C) in two minutes on 22 January 1943.
10. South Dakota also holds the record for the fastest temperature drop. In Rapid City on 10 January 1911 the temperature fell by 49°F in fifteen minutes.