Documented record · well documented
Lytton, British Columbia
June peak daily maximum · Canada
Lytton recorded 49.6 °C during the western North America heat dome — the highest temperature ever measured in Canada. The village was destroyed by fire the following day.
Why a record is measured against the place
A number on its own says very little. 49.6 °C would be unremarkable in one climate and unthinkable in another. What makes a record matter is its distance from what that place, at that time of year, has historically produced — its own normal.
Not Normal expresses that distance in standard deviations (σ) from a thirty-year baseline. Two σ above normal is reached in roughly 1 year in 44 under the baseline climate; four σ above, roughly 1 year in 32,000.
Modelled demonstration series · not observed data
The same place on the field
Not Normal carries a modelled 75-year series for Lytton, British Columbia (June peak daily maximum) that demonstrates the reasoning above. It is synthesised from published climatology, not observed, and is kept apart from the documented record on this page.
The season here
The Fraser Canyon funnels and compresses air; late June is when a stalled ridge can pin heat into the valley for days.
Other documented records
Open Lytton on the field →