Description: The Flaming Mountains are a famous landmark in China, featured in the novel “Journey to the West” (also known as "The Travels of Monkey"). One of the local tourist traps is an underground ‘museum’ full of statues and relief carvings, many from a popular TV series. The centerpiece of the museum is the giant thermometer, which tells you how hot it is. We eventually decided that the temperature shown must be based on the temperature of a thermocouple on top of the pole, exposed to the sun. It was hot, but only 47°, not 80°!
Location: just east of Turpan (تۇرپان, Tǔlǔfān, 吐魯番), Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (شىنجاڭ ئۇيغۇر ئاپتونوم رايونى, Xīnjiāng Wéiwú'ěr Zìzhìqū, 新疆维吾尔自治区), People’s Republic of China (Zhōnghuá Rénmín Gònghéguó, 中华人民共和国).
