How hot or cold is that?
The habitable range for humans is a sliver of the range the planet routinely produces.
Almost exactly a comfortable room
20 °C is hotter than 3 of the 10 references on this page.
Reference figures are measurements and are rounded; the unit conversion behind them is exact.
| Reference | Size | Yours ÷ theirs | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| coldest recorded on Earth | -89 °C | 1.59× | −89 °C, Vostok Station, 1983 |
| domestic freezer | -18 °C | 1.15× | |
| water freezes | 0 °C | 1.07× | |
| comfortable room | 21 °C | 0.997× | |
| human body | 37 °C | 0.945× | |
| hottest recorded on Earth | 56.7 °C | 0.889× | 56.7 °C, Death Valley, 1913 |
| water boils | 100 °C | 0.786× | |
| domestic oven | 200 °C | 0.62× | |
| lava | 1,200 °C | 0.199× | |
| lightning channel | 30,000 °C | 1/103 |
Worth knowing
- A lightning channel reaches about 30 000 °C — five times the surface of the Sun — for a few microseconds.
- The largest natural temperature range recorded on Earth is 146 °C, between Vostok Station and Death Valley.
Frequently asked
What is the hottest temperature ever recorded on Earth?
56.7 °C at Furnace Creek, Death Valley, in 1913 — though that reading is disputed. The highest reliably measured is 54.4 °C, also in Death Valley, in 2020 and 2021.
Why does the same air temperature feel different?
Because humidity, wind and radiation change how fast you lose heat. At 100% humidity, 35 °C is lethal; at 10%, it is a pleasant dry day.