Antarctica hits -119.4°F, its coldest temperature in 16 years

While much of the Northern Hemisphere grappled with scorching summer temperatures, the interior of Antarctica was experiencing the opposite extreme. According to LiveScience, citing data from the French Polar Institute Paul-Émile Victor (IPEV) and officials at Concordia Research Station, the remote research base recorded a temperature of minus 119.4 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 84.1 degrees Celsius) on July 18, making it the station's coldest reading in 16 years and the lowest temperature officially reported anywhere on Earth since 2012. Scientists say the extraordinary cold was caused by a combination of Antarctica's polar winter, high elevation and exceptionally stable weather conditions.Why Concordia becomes one of the coldest places on EarthConcordia Research Station is jointly operated by France and Italy and sits atop the East Antarctic Plateau at an elevation of about 3,200 metres (10,500 feet).