Death Valley, one of America's great national parks, is a place of strange and silent beauty. As beautiful as this place is, its name provides evidence of very real danger. Death Valley is a land of beautiful yet dangerous extremes. There are mountains that reach more than 3,000 meters into the sky. There is a place called Badwater that is the lowest area of land in the Western Hemisphere. If there were water there, it would be 86 meters below the level of the ocean. Death Valley can be dangerously cold during the winter months. Storms in the mountains can produce sudden flooding on the floor of the Valley. The air temperature during the summer has been as high as 57degC. The sun can heat the ground so that the temperature of the rocks and soil can be as high as 74degC. The extreme heat of Death Valley has killed people in the past. It will continue to kill those who do not honor this extreme climate. Death Valley does not forgive those who are not careful. Death Valley is a good example of the violence of nature. It contains evidence of several ancient volcanoes that caused huge explosions. Evidence of one of these explosions is called Ubehebe Crater. The explosion left a huge hole in the ground almost a kilometer and a half wide. In many areas of Death Valley it is easy to see where the ground has been pushed up violently by movement deep in the Earth. This movement has created unusual and beautiful rock formations. Some are red. Others are dark brown, gray, yellow or black. Other areas of rock look as if some huge creature violently broke and _ the Earth to create unusual, sometimes frightening shapes. In other parts of Death Valley there are lines in the rock that show clearly that this area was deep under an ocean for many thousands of years. Much of the Valley is flat and extremely dry. In fact, scientists believe it is the driest place in the United States. Death Valley, part of the Great Mojave Desert, is a huge place. It extends more than 225 kilometers across the southern part of California, and across the border with Nevada. Why were some people killed by Death Valley?
Because they didn't respect Death Valley and thus they were punished. Because it is extremely hot in summer and dangerously cold in winter. Because they were not careful enough to take with them what they needed. Because several volcanoes erupted and caused huge explosions.