Temperature Hits 100 F Degrees in Arctic Russian Town

Temperature Hits 100 F Degrees in Arctic Russian Town
An outside thermometer shows 30 Celsius (86 F) around 11 p.m in Verkhoyansk, the Sakha Republic, about 2,900 miles northeast of Moscow, Russia, on June 21, 2020. (Olga Burtseva via AP)
The Associated Press
6/21/2020
Updated:
6/21/2020

MOSCOW—A Siberian town with the world’s widest temperature range has recorded a new high amid a heat wave that is contributing to severe forest fires.

The temperature in Verkhoyansk hit 100.4 F on Saturday, according to Pogoda i Klimat, a website that compiles Russian meteorological data.

The town is located above the Arctic Circle in the Sakha Republic, about 2,900 miles northeast of Moscow.

The town of about 1,300 residents is recognized by the Guinness World Records for the most extreme temperature range, with a low of minus-90 F and a previous high of 98.96 F.

Much of Siberia this year has had unseasonably high temperatures, leading to sizable wildfires.

In the Sakha Republic, more than 680,000 acres are burning, according to Avialesokhrana, the government agency that monitors forest fires.