Death Valley

 

SE Calif. and SW Nev., a deep, arid basin, 140 mi (225 km) long, bordered on the W by the Panamint Range and on the E by the Amargosa Range. In summer the valley has recorded some of the world's highest air temperatures (134°F/57°C) and ground temperatures (165°F/74°C). Less than 2 in. (5 cm) of rain falls annually; the small Amargosa River and Furnace Creek disappear into the sands. Salt and alkali flats, unique rock formations, and briny pools are found there. Badwater, in the south central part of Death Valley, is 282 ft (86 m) below sea level, the lowest point in the Americas; Telescope Peak, in the Panamint Range, is 11,049 ft (3,368 m) high. In spite of the harsh environment, a large variety of small animals and desert plants are found in Death Valley; they have attracted much scientific attention. Native Americans of Panamint descent, an offshoot of the Shoshone, are the only group ever to be self-subsisting in the region.

Death Valley was named by gold seekers who undertook to cross this desolate region in 1849 on their way to the California gold fields. The valley yielded gold and silver in the 1850s, and in the 1880s borax was discovered and taken out by mule-drawn wagons. The valley was much publicized by the American adventurer Walter Scott (“Death Valley Scotty”), and it remains a popular tourist attraction. Death Valley National Park, 3,367,628 acres (1,363,412 hectares), a protected region of Death Valley, was established as a national monument in 1933 and designated a national park in 1994. See also National Parks and Monuments (table).

Death Valley is a valley in the U.S. states of California and Nevada, and is the location of the lowest elevation in North America at 282 ft (86 m) below sea level. It is one of many places on land which fall below mean sea level. Located southeast of the Sierra Nevada range in the Great Basin and the Mojave Desert, it constitutes much of Death Valley National Park. It runs north-south between the Amargosa Range to the east and the Panamint Range to the west; the Sylvania Mountains and the Owlshead Mountains form its northern and southern boundaries, respectively. It has an area of about 3,000 square miles (~7,800 km²).^[1]

Geography

Geologically, Death Valley is considered one of the best examples of the Basin and Range configuration. Located on the border of California and Nevada, Death Valley is the principal feature of the Mojave and Colorado Deserts Biosphere Reserve.

Temperatures in the Valley can range from up to 130°F (54 °C) in the day in the summer, to below freezing at night in the winter.

Many of Death Valley's narrow, serpentine roads were built in the 1930s and cannot be driven at high speed. Badwater, located within Death Valley, is the specific location of the lowest point in North America. (Surprisingly, the highest point in the contiguous United States, Mount Whitney, is just 76 miles (123 km) west of Death Valley.) At 282 feet (86 m) below sea level, Death Valley shares most of the characteristics found in other places around the world that lie below sea level.

Generally, the lower the altitude of a place, the higher the temperatures tend to be. This is especially true in Death Valley, due to the mountains that encircle the valley. The valley radiates extreme amounts of heat, creating temperatures that are among the hottest on earth. The hottest temperature ever recorded in the United States was 134 °F (56.7 °C) at Furnace Creek on July 10, 1913. The highest average high temperature in July is 117 °F (47 °C) with temperatures of 122 °F (50 °C) or higher being very common. The valley receives less than 2 in (50 mm) of rain annually. The Amargosa River and Furnace Creek flow through the valley, disappearing into the sands of the valley floor.

While Death Valley gets very little rain, it is prone to flooding during heavy rains because the soil is unable to absorb the bulk of the water. The runoff can produce dangerous flash floods. In August 2004, such flooding caused two deaths and shut down the national park.

During the late Pleistocene, the valley was inundated by prehistoric Lake Manly. The valley received its name in 1849 during the California Gold Rush by emigrants who sought to cross the valley on their way to the gold fields. During the 1850s, gold and silver were extracted in the valley. In the 1880s, borax was discovered and extracted by mule-drawn wagons.

Climate Table

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Mean daily maximum temperature	64 °F 18 °C	71 °F 22 °C	80 °F 27 °C	89 °F 32 °C	98 °F 37 °C	107 °F 42 °C	114 °F 46 °C	113 °F 45 °C	105 °F 41 °C	91 °F 33 °C	75 °F 24 °C	64 °F 18 °C	89 °F 32 °C
Mean daily minimum temperature	37 °F 3 °C	44 °F 7 °C	51 °F 11 °C	60 °F 16 °C	69 °F 21 °C	78 °F 26 °C	86 °F 30 °C	84 °F 29 °C	73 °F 23 °C	59 °F 15 °C	46 °F 8 °C	37 °F 3 °C	60 °F 16 °C
Mean monthly rainfall	0.3" 7.6mm	0.4" 10.2mm	0.3" 7.6mm	0.1" 2.5mm	0.1" 2.5mm	0.0" 0.0mm	0.1" 2.5mm	0.1" 2.5mm	0.2" 5.1mm	0.1" 2.5mm	0.2" 5.1mm	0.2" 5.1mm	2.1" 53.3mm
Source: Weatherbase

Native population

Death Valley is home to the Timbisha tribe, who have inhabited the valley for at least the past 1000 years. Some families still live in the valley at Furnace Creek. The name of the valley, tümpisa, means 'rock paint' and refers to the valley as a source of red ochre paint. Another village in the valley was located in Grapevine Canyon near the present site of Scotty's Castle. It was called maahunu in the Timbisha language, the meaning of which is uncertain although hunu means 'canyon'.

In popular culture

• Death Valley Days, a 532-episode television series ran from 1952 until 1975. However, it was shot in Apache Junction, Arizona.^{[citation needed]}
• The final chapters of Frank Norris's 1899 novel McTeague are set in Death Valley.
• Death Valley is shown in the movies Death Valley, Queen of the Damned, and Zabriskie Point (the location of the film's famous desert love scene).^{[citation needed]}
• It was a location for filming in the Star Wars films.^{[citation needed]}
• WWE wrestler The Undertaker is billed from Death Valley.

Pictures

Zabriskie Point and Manly Beacon

Death Valley at night

Landsat 7 imagery of Death Valley.

Death Valley entrance sign

See also

• Places of interest in the Death Valley area
• Death Valley National Park
• Geology of the Death Valley area
• Death Valley pupfish
• Racetrack Playa
• Richard Benyo
• Stan Jones (songwriter)
• Mark Calaway

References

External links

• Death Valley on the PBS show Nature
• Death Valley travel guide from Wikitravel
• Pictures from Death Valley

Death Valley and surrounding national park
Fauna, Flora and Minerals	Borax • Chuckwalla • Death Valley monkeyflower • Death Valley pupfish • Devil's Hole pupfish • Salt Creek Pupfish
History	Death Valley Railroad • Greenwater • Lake Manly • Skidoo • Tonopah and Tidewater Railroad • Twenty mule team
Places	Amargosa Range / River / Valley • Ash Meadows NWR • Badwater • Ballarat • Beatty • Chloride City • Death Valley Junction • Eureka Dunes • Furnace Creek • Panamint City / Range / Springs / Valley • Racetrack • Rhyolite • Scotty's Castle • Stovepipe Wells • Telescope Peak • Trona • Ubehebe Crater • Zabriskie Point
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Coordinates: 36°14′N, 116°46′W

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