This map of the United States shows the coldest days and temperatures that every state and territory has experienced.
The state of Alaska has the lowest recorded temperature of any state. A record low of -70 degrees Fahrenheit (-57 degrees Celsius) was observed in Prospect Creek on January 23, 1971. Seven more states recorded at least -60 deg. F (-51 deg. C), the coldest range in the chart.
Noticeably, those with their coldest days above zero Fahrenheit (more than -18 Celsius) are outside the mainland U.S. and are mostly island territories that are tropical in nature, in addition to the state of Hawaii. On May 31, 1987, Inarajan in the U.S. territory of Guam registered its lowest temperature of 56 deg. F (13.3 deg. C), which is the warmest in this list.
Illinois has the most recent coldest day when on January 31, 2019, the city of Mount Carroll documented the state’s record low of -38 Fahrenheit (-39 Celsius). Meanwhile, January 22, 1885 is the earliest on record, when the Mt. Washington peak in New Hampshire felt a shivering -50 deg. F (-46 deg. C) that day.
These books detail how weather systems work:
- The AMS Weather Book: The Ultimate Guide to America’s Weather
- Americans and Their Weather
- The Weather Handbook: An Essential Guide to How Weather is Formed and Develops
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