Prospect Camp, Alaska holds the record for the coldest inhabited place in United States (-80°F) and that record low don’t even compare to one small town in Russia that’s internationally recognized as the coldest inhabited place on Planet Earth.
Related: The Greatest Snowfall Records of All-Time
With a population of approximately 500, the title goes to the small Siberian village of Oymyakon in Russia. In 1924 the village recorded a record-breaking low of -96.6°F. The only other place in the world with lower temperatures is Antarctica, which holds the overall record for coldest temperature– 128.6° below zero (Vostok Station, 1983).
- Kids in Oymyakon are kept in school unless temps dip below -61.6°F
- Oymyakon has never recorded an above freezing temperature between October 25th and March 17th
- On a regular winter day, a butt-naked human would freeze to death in a minute
And while some might wonder why people live in Oymyakon at all, residents have grown surprisingly accustomed to the severe weather.
Villagers are heavily dependent on meat sourced from reindeer, horses, and ice fishing while relying on furs alone to stay warm. The village itself also boasts an airport, theatre, and college.
Thanks to permafrost, burials can take up to a week to complete…
According to meteorologists, the extreme cold is caused by surrounding mountains that ultimately cause cold air to pool in the valley that includes Oymyakon.
Also read: This April Was The Hottest On Record