Arizona gets hot during the summer. Really hot. This isn't breaking news, almost everyone in the United States knows that the Grand Canyon State is one of the most unbearable when it comes to heat.

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While the 100 degree days may be getting to you, it's nowhere near the worst it can get.

Hottest Day on Record

Arizona has one of the highest average temperatures in the country. Even a tame summer can bring weeks of triple digit heat. The issues begin to hit critical mass when the surface temperature reaches over 120 degrees, which has happened quite a few times in recent history.

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These were very common occurances in the 1990s and 2010s, with 7 different instances of the surface temperature reaching above 120 in Phoenix and Yuma. The hottest temperature ever recorded in the state was not in either of those cities, however. A temperature of 128 degrees was recorded outside of Lake Havasu City on June 29th, 1994.

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Read More: Government Tells Arizonans to Cut Back on Alcohol This Summer

Let's Cook

One of Arizona's biggest urban legends is the "sidewalk grill". The concept being that the state gets so hot you can cook on the pavement. I personally heard these stories my whole life before I'd moved here, but it's no legend.

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Steaks, cookies, and other foods have been made with nothing but ingredients and a sidewalk on a summers day. To prove this, Saguaro National Park Rangers decided to hit the kitchen. And by kitchen, I mean a car dashboard. The rangers used a dashboard to cook a full loaf of banana bread, while tracking the heat inside and outside the car. While the outer temperature sat around 100 degrees, the interior rapidly increased until it reached as high as 211 degrees.

They wanted to make a point about car safety, stating that it takes no longer than 10 to 20 minutes for a car's interior heat top become life threatening.

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No matter what, make sure to keep animals, kids, or anyone else in a car during the heat of the day.

[National Weather Service]

[Fox News]

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