Scorching temperature in US's Death Valley could be global high

A temperature of 130 degrees Fahrenheit (54.4 degrees Celsius) -- recorded in California's Death Valley on Sunday by the US National Weather Service -- could be the hottest global temperature ever measured with modern instruments, officials say.

The reading was registered by an automated observation system at 3:41 pm at the Furnace Creek Visitor Center in the US national park.

The Geneva-based World Meteorological Organization said Monday it would start the process to verify the reading, which it said "would be the hottest global temperature officially recorded since 1931."

The US National Weather Service says it would be the highest temperature recorded since 1913 -- those readings were also taken in Death Valley, but some experts doubt their reliability.

"This observed high temperature is considered preliminary and not yet official," the NWS said.

The southwestern United States is currently enduring an intense heat wave.

Worldwide, the five hottest years in history have occurred in the last five years, heightening fears about the impact of climate change and gas emissions.

Under the 2015 Paris Agreement, nations committed to limit temperature rises to "well below" two degrees Celsius (3.6 Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial levels, mainly through sweeping emissions cuts.