The coverage is strange as the reason Death Valley is so hot is due to its particular geography. With Telescope Peak at 11,000 feet on one side of the valley an

The coverage is strange as the reason Death Valley is so hot is due to its particular geography. With Telescope Peak at 11,000 feet on one side of the valley and a steep drop to Badwater below sea level the hot air is unable to escape/disperse and is instead repeatedly heated like an oven. Panamint Springs in the neighboring Panamint Valley is not nearly as hot.