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31 incredible facts about extreme weather

Meteorological gems
It has the sunniest place on Earth
And the unofficial hottest-ever recorded temperature
2020 nearly topped it
Maryland holds the record for the most rainfall in a minute
But Mobile, Alabama, is the rainiest city
Syracuse is the snowiest city
It was once so cold that the Mississippi River froze along its entire length
February 2021 was the coldest in 30 years
Over 1,200 tornadoes happen a year
But until 1950, American weather forecasters were forbidden from talking about tornadoes
Alaska, Rhode Island and Massachusetts have the least tornadoes
It’s uncommon for twisters to hit major cities but not unheard of
The widest tornado ever recorded measured 2.6 miles (4.2km)
A town destroyed by a tornado harnessed the power of wind
It can rain frozen iguanas in Florida
Over a third of the country is in drought
Hurricane Harvey changed US rain maps forever
You can see moonbows
Waterspouts are a common sight in the Florida Keys
Sometimes the Grand Canyon is covered in a sea of fog
Hurricane Andrew unleashed giant pythons into the Everglades
Largest hailstone fell in South Dakota
A Vermont farmer unlocked the magic of snowflakes
2020 was a record-breaking hurricane season
2020 was California’s worst wildfire season ever
The groundhog has a 50:50 chance
Mount Washington holds the record for the fastest wind gust ever recorded in the US
Lightning hits the Empire State Building 23 times a year
California has record-breaking snow
It also has pink snow
In 2020, the world's longest lightning bolt struck the US
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Francois Roux/Shutterstock

Meteorological gems

Spanning many climate zones, the United States experiences extreme hot and cold temperatures and everything in between. Which makes the country a fascinating place when it comes to weird and wonderful weather events. We round up some of the most amazing meteorological factoids from the US in the past and present that you might not know, including the newly certified megaflash lightning record.
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Rachel Truman

24 April 2022

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