Death Valley, otherwise known as the hottest place on Earth, is awash in yellow and pink wildflowers this month. Park rangers suspect that, given the torrential autumn rainfall that Death Valley experienced, the park may be due for a rare “super bloom,” after years of drought and barren bloom seasons.

 

What makes this bloom so special is its location. Death Valley holds the record for the hottest temperature ever recorded on Earth: 134 degrees on July 10, 1913. It can get so searingly hot in part because it’s the lowest elevation in North America. At 282 feet below sea level, Death Valley is the eighth-lowest location in the world.

 

It’s also the driest location in North America. But in October, Death Valley received an astonishing amount of rain — approximately 1½ inches, which doesn’t seem like much until you consider that the park’s average rainfall for an entire year is just two inches. It received all of that two inches as of mid-February, with another four months left in the water year.

 

A series of torrential October downpours caused significant flooding and damage in the national park. Scotty’s Castle, also known as Death Valley Ranch, was overwhelmed by the flash flooding and has been shut down ever since. Now four months later, the seeds that took root during all that rain are finally blossoming, providing a little cheer to what has been a dispiriting event.

 

October’s stormy weather — which can be linked to El Niño’s wet weather influence over southern California — may have been just right to produce a super bloom in Death Valley this year. (The Washington Post)

 

 

PHOTO CREDIT: Kurt Asplindh via Instagram.