8 52.0 °C – Jeddah, Saudi Arabia and Mexicali area, Mexico

Mexicali boasts one of Mexico’s most extreme climates, experiencing average high temperatures of 42.2 °C (107.96 °F) in July. The city’s most sweat-inducing day occurred on July 28, 1995, when the mercury peaked at 52 °C(125.6 °F).

Later, in 2010, amidst Saudi Arabia’s hottest year since 1901, the city of Jeddah also felt the heat, setting a record-high temperature of 52° C. (1,2,3)

7 52.1 °C – Al Jazeera Border Gate, UAE 

The United Arab Emirates (UAE), known for its opulent skyscrapers, vast deserts, and modern infrastructure, is also famous for its hot weather.

It has a hyper-arid climate, with the summer months, typically from June to September, witnessing the most intense heat. The highest temperature ever recorded here was in July 2002, at the Al Jazeera Border Gate, when the thermometer reading went as high as 52.1 °C (125.78 °F)! (1,2,3)

6  52.2 °C – Sanbao Township in Turpan, Xinjiang, China 

Turpan City, appropriately dubbed China’s “Fire Land,” witnessed a record-breaking temperature of 52.2 °C(125.96 °F) at Sanbao Township on 16th July, 2023. The hot weather has made the place flourish in sand therapy. People come here to treat chronic diseases and improve their overall health by burying themselves in burning sand. (1,2,3)

5  53.7 °C in Turbat, Pakistan

The highest temperature recorded in Pakistan stands at 53.5 °C (128.3 °F). The heat anomaly was documented on May 28, 2017, in the city of Turbat, located in southern Balochistan.

It is the fourth-highest temperature ever recorded that is officially recognized by The World Meteorological Organization (WMO). (1,2)

4 53.9 °C in Basra, Iraq and Mitribah, Kuwait

On July 21, 2016, Kuwait became the hottest place on earth as Mitribah’s weather station documented an astounding temperature of 53.9 °C (129 °F)!

Just a day later, across the border in Iraq, Basra experienced a matching temperature of 53.9 °C.

Mitribah, a remote town in northwest Kuwait with a sparse population, found itself at the epicenter of this heatwave. In these isolated areas, where access to air conditioners is limited, the arid desert air plays a crucial role in aiding humans to survive such extreme heat. (1,2)

3 54.0 °C – Ahzav Airport, Iran and Tirat Zvi, Israel

On 29th June 2017, Ahzav in Iran recorded the hottest temperature reading of modern times. This record-tying feat placed it on par with Tirat Zvi in Israel, where a temperature of 54 °C (129.2 °F) was measured on 21 June 1942, marking the highest temperature ever recorded in Asia. (1,2)

2 55 °C in Kebili, Tunisia 

Africa, the hottest continent in the world, has the highest temperature reading of 55° C (131.0 °F) in Kebili, Tunisia.

Kebili, an oasis in southern Tunisia, is part of the Sahara Desert. It recorded the above temperature on 7 July 1931. Interestingly, between 1920 and 1933, Kebili reported extreme, maximum temperatures of above 50 °C almost every summer. But in modern records, the absolute maximum has been only 48.5 °C (119.3 °F). (Source)

1 56.7 °C in Furnace Creek in Death Valley, California, USA 

With an average daily high of 46.1 °C (115 °F), Death Valley takes the title of the hottest place on Earth. However, it was on July 10, 1913, that Furnace Creek in the Valley registered a blistering 56.7 °C (134 °F) – the highest temperature ever documented on our planet.

For years, El Azizia in Libya held the honor of recording the highest temperature at a staggering 58 °C (136.4 °F). It wasn’t until 2012 that the WMO invalidated the Libyan measurement, deeming it unreliable. (Source)