Special Report
52 Coldest Places on Earth in the Dead of Summer
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Much of the United States just endured the hottest temperatures of the year, with many states sweltering in 100-degree-plus weather. Washington, D.C., posted temperatures of 110 degrees on July 21, and the heat was so intense in New York City that Mayor Bill de Blasio declared an emergency. As high as temperatures climbed in these cities, they aren’t the hottest in the country. These are the hottest cities in America.
July 2019 might be the hottest on record, and it came after the hottest June on record, 1.71 degrees Fahrenheit above the 20th-century average of 59.9 degrees, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The agency also reported that Antarctic sea ice coverage fell to a record low in June.
Yes, it’s hot out there, but not everywhere. There are plenty of places in the world where you need a sweater and gloves, even in summer. To identify the coldest place on Earth in the dead of summer, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed the average monthly temperature for the coldest summer month (June-August for areas in the Northern Hemisphere, December-February for areas in the Southern Hemisphere) from data compiled by the North Atlantic Atmospheric Association (NOAA).
Click here to see the coldest places on Earth in the dead of summer
In 28 places on our list the average summer temperature is less than 40 degrees Fahrenheit. Further, there are five places where the average summer temperature is at or below freezing.
The overwhelming majority of the coldest places in the dead of summer are in the Northern Hemisphere, such as places in Greenland, Russia, and Canada. The outliers from the Southern Hemisphere include locations in Chile, South Africa, and Australia. The coldest places on our list in both hemispheres are not necessarily inhabited. These are the coldest inhabited places on Earth.
To identify the coldest place on Earth in the dead of summer, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed the average monthly temperature for the coldest summer month (June-August for areas in the Northern Hemisphere, December-February for areas in the Southern Hemisphere) from a universe of 7,281 weather stations around the world for the year 2018.
Weather station data comes from The Global Historical Climatology Network-Monthly (GHCN-M) version 3, a program of the North Atlantic Atmospheric Association (NOAA). Geographic locations are listed as the closest area to the coordinates given for the weather stations whose data is used. All other data was also obtained from the GHCN-M. We chose not to include locations in Antarctica because the preponderance of coldest places on that continent would have skewed the results for the list.
Correction: Due to a transcription error, a previous version of this article incorrectly listed for the bullet point “Avg. temp. during coldest summer month.” the coldest temperature in the coldest month of the year. This data has been updated to the coldest temperature in the coldest month of the summer.
52. Goose Bay, Canada
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 47.5° F in June
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 47.3° F summer of 1991
> Latitude, Longitude: 53.3, -60.42
> Elevation: 49 feet
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51. Churchill, Canada
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 47.3° F in June
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 34.4° F summer of 1902
> Latitude, Longitude: 58.7, -94.07
> Elevation: 29 feet
50. Ayan, Russia
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 47.1° F in June
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 36.1° F summer of 1960
> Latitude, Longitude: 56.5, 138.15
> Elevation: 8 feet
49. Reykjanesbær, Iceland
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 46.9° F in June
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 44.2° F summer of 1952
> Latitude, Longitude: 64.0, -22.60
> Elevation: 54 feet
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48. Crater Lake, United States Of America
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 46.9° F in June
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 38.4° F summer of 1953
> Latitude, Longitude: 42.9, -122.13
> Elevation: 1973.5999999999999 feet
47. Nar’Jan-Mar, Russia
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 46.8° F in June
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 36.6° F summer of 1969
> Latitude, Longitude: 67.6, 53.03
> Elevation: 12 feet
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46. Marion Island, South Africa
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 46.8° F in December
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 39.7° F summer of 1956
> Latitude, Longitude: -46.9, 37.87
> Elevation: 22 feet
45. Anadyr, Russia
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 46.4° F in June
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 35.0 ° F summer of 1919
> Latitude, Longitude: 64.8, 177.57
> Elevation: 61 feet
44. Inuvik, Canada
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 46.1° F in August
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 44.4 ° F summer of 1969
> Latitude, Longitude: 68.3, -133.48
> Elevation: 68 feet
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43. Tromso, Norway
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 45.1° F in June
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 39.4° F summer of 1867
> Latitude, Longitude: 69.5, 19.00
> Elevation: 11 feet
42. Port-aux-Francais, Territory Of The French Southern And Antarctic Lands
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 45.1° F in December
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 39.7° F summer of 1976
> Latitude, Longitude: -49.4, 70.25
> Elevation: 30 feet
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41. Vardo, Norway
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 44.8° F in June
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 37.2° F summer of 1902
> Latitude, Longitude: 70.4, 31.10
> Elevation: 15 feet
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40. Île de la Possession, Territory Of The French Southern And Antarctic Lands
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 44.8° F in December
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 39.7° F summer of 1976
> Latitude, Longitude: -46.4, 51.87
> Elevation: 143 feet
39. Macquarie Island, Australia
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 44.6° F in February
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 39.4° F summer of 1963
> Latitude, Longitude: -54.5, 158.95
> Elevation: 8 feet
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38. Saint Paul Islands, United States Of America
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 44.4° F in June
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 36.1° F summer of 1971
> Latitude, Longitude: 57.2, -170.22
> Elevation: 9 feet
37. Cartwright, Canada
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 43.9° F in June
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 41.9° F summer of 1943
> Latitude, Longitude: 53.7, -57.03
> Elevation: 14 feet
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36. King Edward Point, South Georgia (U.K.)
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 43.7° F in January
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 35.6° F summer of 1911
> Latitude, Longitude: -54.3, -36.50
> Elevation: 3 feet
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35. Tanggulashan, China
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 43.3° F in June
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 39.2° F summer of 1983
> Latitude, Longitude: 34.2, 92.43
> Elevation: 4535 feet
34. Predeal, Romania
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 42.4° F in June
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 32.9° F summer of 1949
> Latitude, Longitude: 45.5, 25.45
> Elevation: 2509 feet
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33. Shoyna, Russian Federation (European Sector)
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 42.1° F in June
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 31.9° F summer of 1969
> Latitude, Longitude: 68.7, 43.30
> Elevation: 49 feet
32. Urnäsch, Switzerland
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 441.7° F in June
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 30.4° F summer of 1923
> Latitude, Longitude: 47.3, 9.35
> Elevation: 2500 feet
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31. Nikolskoye, Russia
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 41.7° F in June
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 38.7° F summer of 1903
> Latitude, Longitude: 55.2, 165.98
> Elevation: 18 feet
30. Eureka, Canada
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 41.6° F in August
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 29.1° F summer of 1974
> Latitude, Longitude: 80.0, -85.93
> Elevation: 10 feet
29. Russkoye Ustye, Russia
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 41.2° F in June
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 34.5° F summer of 1996
> Latitude, Longitude: 70.6, 147.88
> Elevation: 61 feet
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28. Baker Lake, Canada
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 39.6° F in June
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 32.7° F summer of 1950
> Latitude, Longitude: 64.3, -96.08
> Elevation: 18 feet
27. Longyearbyen, Norway
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 39.2° F in June
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 36.1° F summer of 1987
> Latitude, Longitude: 78.3, 15.47
> Elevation: 29 feet
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26. Kuujjuaq, Canada
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 39.2° F in June
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 38.1° F summer of 1956
> Latitude, Longitude: 58.1, -68.40
> Elevation: 36 feet
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25. Tasiilaq, Greenland
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 38.7° F in June
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 36.7° F summer of 2012
> Latitude, Longitude: 65.6, -37.63
> Elevation: 52 feet
24. Jan Mayen, Norway
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 38.1° F in June
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 32.5° F summer of 1951
> Latitude, Longitude: 70.9, -8.67
> Elevation: 9 feet
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23. Naukan, Russia
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 38.1° F in June
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 34.6° F summer of 1949
> Latitude, Longitude: 66.2, -169.83
> Elevation: 3 feet
22. Bear Island, Norway
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 37.9 ° F in June
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 32.6° F summer of 1982
> Latitude, Longitude: 74.5, 19.02
> Elevation: 16 feet
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21. Nuuk, Greenland
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 37.8° F in June
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 34.0 ° F summer of 1992
> Latitude, Longitude: 64.2, -51.75
> Elevation: 70 feet
20. Yuzhny Island, Russia
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 37.8° F in June
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 33.5° F summer of 1987
> Latitude, Longitude: 72.4, 52.70
> Elevation: 15 feet
19. Disko Island, Greenland
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 36.1° F in June
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 33.3° F summer of 1978
> Latitude, Longitude: 68.7, -52.75
> Elevation: 41 feet
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18. Iqaluktuuttiaq Cambridge Bay, Canada
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 36.1° F in June
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 28.0° F summer of 1978
> Latitude, Longitude: 69.1, -105.12
> Elevation: 27 feet
17. Leskino, Russia
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 36.0° F in June
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 27.8° F summer of 1926
> Latitude, Longitude: 73.5, 80.40
> Elevation: 47 feet
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16. Ehrwald, Germany
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 35.8° F in June
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 27.2° F summer of 1956
> Latitude, Longitude: 47.4, 10.98
> Elevation: 2962 feet
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15. Lyakhovsky Islands, Russia
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 35.8° F in June
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 28.3° F summer of 1949
> Latitude, Longitude: 76.0, 137.87
> Elevation: 8 feet
14. Coral Harbour, Canada
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 35.1° F in June
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 27.9° F summer of 1972
> Latitude, Longitude: 64.2, -83.37
> Elevation: 64 feet
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13. Iqakuit, Canada
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 35.1° F in June
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 31.8° F summer of 1972
> Latitude, Longitude: 63.8, -68.60
> Elevation: 21 feet
12. Inukjuak, Canada
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 34.9° F in June
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 31.1° F summer of 1922
> Latitude, Longitude: 58.5, -78.12
> Elevation: 6 feet
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11. Hall Beach, Canada
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 34.2° F in June
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 25.2° F summer of 1972
> Latitude, Longitude: 68.8, -81.25
> Elevation: 8 feet
10. Wrangel Island, Russia
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 34.2° F in June
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 29.3° F summer of 1965
> Latitude, Longitude: 71.0, -178.48
> Elevation: 5 feet
9. Browerville, United States Of America
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 33.6° F in June
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 32.0 ° F summer of 1947
> Latitude, Longitude: 71.3, -156.78
> Elevation: 4 feet
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8. Bolshevik Island, Russia
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 33.4° F in June
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 27.8° F summer of 1933
> Latitude, Longitude: 77.7, 104.30
> Elevation: 15 feet
7. Barter Island, United States Of America
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 33.3° F in June
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 32.5° F summer of 2005
> Latitude, Longitude: 70.1, -143.63
> Elevation: 15 feet
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6. South Coast of Nelson Island, Chile
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 33.3° F in December
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 29.5° F summer of 2013
> Latitude, Longitude: -62.4, -58.88
> Elevation: 10 feet
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5. Resolute Bay Airport, Canada
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 32.0° F in June
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 24.8 ° F summer of 1974
> Latitude, Longitude: 74.7, -94.98
> Elevation: 67 feet
4. Danmarkshavn Landing Strip, Greenland
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 31.1° F in June
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 29.3° F summer of 2006
> Latitude, Longitude: 76.8, -18.67
> Elevation: 12 feet
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3. Dikson, Russia
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 30.6 ° F in June
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 28.2° F summer of 2014
> Latitude, Longitude: 79.5, 76.98
> Elevation: 11 feet
2. Talazhskiy Aviagorodok, Russia
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 30.6° F in June
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 27.5° F summer of 2014
> Latitude, Longitude: 80.6, 58.05
> Elevation: 20 feet
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1. North Greenland Coast, Greenland
> Avg. temp. during coldest summer month: 27.9° F in June
> Coldest avg. summer temp on record: 27.9° F summer of 2018
> Latitude, Longitude: 81.6, -16.67
> Elevation: 34 feet
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