Stop 1 · India
Mawsynram
It trades the wettest-place title with Cherrapunji, 15 km away. The state's name, Meghalaya, means "abode of clouds".
Places that hold a world weather record
The wettest, the driest, the coldest inhabited, the hottest ever measured, and the windiest — five places at the extremes of the possible.
The five stops
Stop 2 · Chile
Arica
The Atacama behind it is so dry that NASA tests Mars rovers there, and some riverbeds show no sign of having carried water for millions of years.
Stop 3 · United States
Death Valley
The 1913 record at Furnace Creek is still disputed by some meteorologists. Its 2020 reading of 54.4°C is the highest modern instrument has confirmed.
Stop 4 · Russia
Oymyakon
Its name is thought to mean "unfrozen water", after a hot spring nearby. Graves must be thawed with fires for days before they can be dug.
Stop 5 · New Zealand
Wellington
The Cook Strait squeezes the entire Southern Ocean westerly flow through a 22 km gap. The airport's crosswind landings are notorious among pilots.
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