Cold outbreak in Australia, 5 to 11 May 2022

Name: Cold outbreak in Australia, 5 to 11 May 2022
Start: 2022-05-05
End: 2022-05-11
Location: Australia

Cold outbreak in Australia, 5 to 11 May 2022: 127 records at 87 stations, peak on 6 May 2022. Closed.

Data as of 2026-10-12. Last revised 12 October 2026 (2026-10-12).

Key Facts

Cold outbreak in Australia, 5 to 11 May 2022 set or tied 127 station records at 87 stations.
It ran from 5 May 2022 to 11 May 2022 (7 days) and its peak day was 6 May 2022.
Status: closed.
Townsville Aero set a daily record low maximum temperature of 23.3 C (73.9 F) on 11 May 2022.
The busiest day was 6 May 2022 with 48 records.
The oldest broken record in the ranked list had stood for 72 years.

Footprint

5 to 11 May 2022

The area covered by Cold outbreak in Australia, 5 to 11 May 2022 is outlined, with 18 of the stations that set records marked, coloured by record type. Made with Natural Earth.

Footprint of Cold outbreak in Australia, 5 to 11 May 2022: stations that set records in the event
Station	Type	Value	Date
Townsville Aero	Record low maximum temperature	23.3 C (73.9 F)	2022-05-11
Mount Gambier Post Office	Record low maximum temperature	11.6 C (52.9 F)	2022-05-05
Robe Comparison	Record low maximum temperature	12.0 C (53.6 F)	2022-05-05
Ouyen (Post Office)	Record low maximum temperature	11.5 C (52.7 F)	2022-05-05
Kerang	Record low maximum temperature	12.7 C (54.9 F)	2022-05-06
Oodnadatta Airport	Record low minimum temperature	4.7 C (40.5 F)	2022-05-08
Wynyard Airport	Record low maximum temperature	12.3 C (54.1 F)	2022-05-06
Collinsville Post Office	Record low maximum temperature	22.4 C (72.3 F)	2022-05-11
Narooma Rvcp	Record low minimum temperature	5.6 C (42.1 F)	2022-05-07
Tumbarumba Post Office	Record low maximum temperature	9.2 C (48.6 F)	2022-05-07
Ceduna AMO	Record low minimum temperature	0.2 C (32.4 F)	2022-05-11
Menindee Post Office	Record low maximum temperature	17.1 C (62.8 F)	2022-05-06
Hawker	Record low maximum temperature	14.0 C (57.2 F)	2022-05-06
Oakey Aero	Record low maximum temperature	17.8 C (64.0 F)	2022-05-09
Keith	Record low maximum temperature	13.4 C (56.1 F)	2022-05-05
Neptune Island	Record low minimum temperature	10.4 C (50.7 F)	2022-05-06
Warooka	Record low minimum temperature	6.5 C (43.7 F)	2022-05-06
Dalby Airport	Record low maximum temperature	16.2 C (61.2 F)	2022-05-07

Records per Day

Peak day 48

Records set or tied each day from 5 May 2022 to 11 May 2022. The most in one day was 48 on 6 May 2022.

Top Records by Margin

Margin over the record replaced

Top records of Cold outbreak in Australia, 5 to 11 May 2022 ranked by margin
Dalby Airport, 05-07	3.9 C (7.0 F)
Kerang, 05-06	2.8 C (5.0 F)
Oakey Aero, 05-09	2.0 C (3.6 F)
Tumbarumba Post Office, 05-07	1.9 C (3.4 F)
Hawker, 05-06	1.9 C (3.4 F)
Ouyen (Post Office), 05-05	1.7 C (3.1 F)
Townsville Aero, 05-11	1.6 C (2.9 F)
Ceduna AMO, 05-11	1.5 C (2.7 F)
Hawker, 05-06	1.5 C (2.7 F)
Menindee Post Office, 05-05	1.3 C (2.3 F)
Narooma Rvcp, 05-07	1.1 C (2.0 F)
Wynyard Airport, 05-06	1.0 C (1.8 F)
Collinsville Post Office, 05-11	0.9 C (1.6 F)
Warooka, 05-06	0.6 C (1.1 F)
Keith, 05-05	0.3 C (0.5 F)

Margin is how far the new value is beyond the record it replaced. Ties are not shown.

Margin Against Age of the Broken Record

127 records plotted by how far they beat the old record (across) and how many years the old record had stood (up). Long standing records beaten by a wide margin sit in the top right.

Margin against age of the broken record in Cold outbreak in Australia, 5 to 11 May 2022
Margin (C)	Years the old record stood
1.6	49
0.1	67
0.2	67
0.1	72
1.7	61
2.8	51
1.0	56
0.9	56
1.5	45
1.1	56
1.9	52
1.5	52
2.0	43
0.1	61
1.9	45
0.3	59
0.2	52
0.6	52
3.9	20
1.3	45
0.7	56
0.9	51
0.4	52
2.4	27
1.6	40
0.9	44
0.6	37
1.0	45
1.0	37
1.2	43
0.3	52
1.2	37
0.9	43
2.8	11
1.5	32
0.6	37
0.3	43
0.3	43
0.8	37
0.3	37
1.6	24
2.2	21
1.8	24
1.9	28
1.1	32
0.5	37
0.1	37
1.8	24
1.8	28
1.4	27
1.2	20
0.5	31
1.9	20
0.8	32
0.2	27
0.7	27
0.5	16
1.2	16
0.2	31
3.1	7
0.7	27
1.4	17
0.2	32
0.6	27
0.7	24
0.3	27
2.0	16
1.7	16
0.3	27
0.3	19
0.7	24
0.4	27
0.5	21
0.3	21
2.8	7
2.5	7
0.5	28
0.7	24
0.7	17
1.1	7
0.9	12
0.2	11
0.6	24
1.7	12
1.8	12
0.7	19
0.3	21
0.4	16
1.2	12
0.8	11
0.8	19
1.0	19
0.4	12
0.2	17
0.5	16
1.1	7
0.7	12
0.7	7
0.8	9
0.5	16
0.2	16
1.1	4
1.3	4
0.6	16
0.8	12
1.0	9
0.7	12
0.1	17
0.5	11
0.6	12
0.8	4
1.1	0
0.3	4
0.5	3
0.5	8
0.3	12
0.7	8
0.1	11
0.2	4
0.5	7
0.4	9
0.2	8
0.3	9
0.4	4
0.5	3
0.1	4
0.1	1

Compared With Other Events

Station records per event

Station records in Cold outbreak in Australia, 5 to 11 May 2022 compared with similar events
Cold outbreak in United States and Mexico, 6 February to 5 March 2021	12,118 records
Cold outbreak in United States and Mexico, 13 October to 5 November 2020	9,841 records
Cold outbreak in United States and Mexico, 23 December 2017 to 8 January 2018	8,263 records
Cold outbreak in United States and Mexico, 3 to 23 January 2024	7,675 records
Cold outbreak in United States, 15 January to 10 February 2026	5,568 records
Cold outbreak in Australia, 5 to 11 May 2022 (this event)	127 records

Every Record Set

20 of 127

Every record set or tied during Cold outbreak in Australia, 5 to 11 May 2022, in date order
Date	Station	Record	Value	Margin	Years stood	Significance
2022-05-05	Mount Gambier Post Office	Record low maximum temperature	11.6 C (52.9 F)	0.1 C (0.2 F)	67	30 of 100 (Routine)
2022-05-05	Robe Comparison	Record low maximum temperature	12.0 C (53.6 F)	0.2 C (0.4 F)	67	30 of 100 (Routine)
2022-05-05	Ouyen (Post Office)	Record low maximum temperature	11.5 C (52.7 F)	1.7 C (3.1 F)	61	29 of 100 (Routine)
2022-05-05	Keith	Record low maximum temperature	13.4 C (56.1 F)	0.3 C (0.5 F)	59	23 of 100 (Routine)
2022-05-05	Menindee Post Office	Record low maximum temperature	16.7 C (62.1 F)	1.3 C (2.3 F)	45	22 of 100 (Routine)
2022-05-06	Kerang	Record low maximum temperature	12.7 C (54.9 F)	2.8 C (5.0 F)	51	29 of 100 (Routine)
2022-05-06	Wynyard Airport	Record low maximum temperature	12.3 C (54.1 F)	1.0 C (1.8 F)	56	28 of 100 (Routine)
2022-05-06	Hawker	Record low maximum temperature	14.0 C (57.2 F)	1.5 C (2.7 F)	52	24 of 100 (Routine)
2022-05-06	Menindee Post Office	Record low maximum temperature	17.1 C (62.8 F)	0.1 C (0.2 F)	61	24 of 100 (Routine)
2022-05-06	Hawker	Record low minimum temperature	1.6 C (34.9 F)	1.9 C (3.4 F)	45	23 of 100 (Routine)
2022-05-06	Neptune Island	Record low minimum temperature	10.4 C (50.7 F)	0.2 C (0.4 F)	52	22 of 100 (Routine)
2022-05-06	Warooka	Record low minimum temperature	6.5 C (43.7 F)	0.6 C (1.1 F)	52	22 of 100 (Routine)
2022-05-07	Narooma Rvcp	Record low minimum temperature	5.6 C (42.1 F)	1.1 C (2.0 F)	56	25 of 100 (Routine)
2022-05-07	Tumbarumba Post Office	Record low maximum temperature	9.2 C (48.6 F)	1.9 C (3.4 F)	52	25 of 100 (Routine)
2022-05-07	Dalby Airport	Record low maximum temperature	16.2 C (61.2 F)	3.9 C (7.0 F)	20	22 of 100 (Routine)
2022-05-08	Oodnadatta Airport	Record low minimum temperature	4.7 C (40.5 F)	0.1 C (0.2 F)	72	29 of 100 (Routine)
2022-05-09	Oakey Aero	Record low maximum temperature	17.8 C (64.0 F)	2.0 C (3.6 F)	43	24 of 100 (Routine)
2022-05-11	Townsville Aero	Record low maximum temperature	23.3 C (73.9 F)	1.6 C (2.9 F)	49	31 of 100 (Routine)
2022-05-11	Collinsville Post Office	Record low maximum temperature	22.4 C (72.3 F)	0.9 C (1.6 F)	56	26 of 100 (Routine)
2022-05-11	Ceduna AMO	Record low minimum temperature	0.2 C (32.4 F)	1.5 C (2.7 F)	45	25 of 100 (Routine)

The daily ledgers keep a limited number of records per day, so this list has 20 of the 127 records the event counts. The counts above use the full total.

Download the Data

Source: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Global Historical Climatology Network Daily (GHCN-Daily). Records are computed by World Extreme Weather Monitor and are not official NOAA products. (US Government open data (NOAA NCEI)) Data as of 2026-10-12. Events are found by this site from station records and are not official designations. Records are provisional until reprocessed.

Margin (C)	Years the old record stood
1.6	49
0.1	67
0.2	67
0.1	72
1.7	61
2.8	51
1.0	56
0.9	56
1.5	45
1.1	56
1.9	52
1.5	52
2.0	43
0.1	61
1.9	45
0.3	59
0.2	52
0.6	52
3.9	20
1.3	45
0.7	56
0.9	51
0.4	52
2.4	27
1.6	40
0.9	44
0.6	37
1.0	45
1.0	37
1.2	43
0.3	52
1.2	37
0.9	43
2.8	11
1.5	32
0.6	37
0.3	43
0.3	43
0.8	37
0.3	37
1.6	24
2.2	21
1.8	24
1.9	28
1.1	32
0.5	37
0.1	37
1.8	24
1.8	28
1.4	27
1.2	20
0.5	31
1.9	20
0.8	32
0.2	27
0.7	27
0.5	16
1.2	16
0.2	31
3.1	7
0.7	27
1.4	17
0.2	32
0.6	27
0.7	24
0.3	27
2.0	16
1.7	16
0.3	27
0.3	19
0.7	24
0.4	27
0.5	21
0.3	21
2.8	7
2.5	7
0.5	28
0.7	24
0.7	17
1.1	7
0.9	12
0.2	11
0.6	24
1.7	12
1.8	12
0.7	19
0.3	21
0.4	16
1.2	12
0.8	11
0.8	19
1.0	19
0.4	12
0.2	17
0.5	16
1.1	7
0.7	12
0.7	7
0.8	9
0.5	16
0.2	16
1.1	4
1.3	4
0.6	16
0.8	12
1.0	9
0.7	12
0.1	17
0.5	11
0.6	12
0.8	4
1.1	0
0.3	4
0.5	3
0.5	8
0.3	12
0.7	8
0.1	11
0.2	4
0.5	7
0.4	9
0.2	8
0.3	9
0.4	4
0.5	3
0.1	4
0.1	1

Margin (C)	Years the old record stood
1.6	49
0.1	67
0.2	67
0.1	72
1.7	61
2.8	51
1.0	56
0.9	56
1.5	45
1.1	56
1.9	52
1.5	52
2.0	43
0.1	61
1.9	45
0.3	59
0.2	52
0.6	52
3.9	20
1.3	45
0.7	56
0.9	51
0.4	52
2.4	27
1.6	40
0.9	44
0.6	37
1.0	45
1.0	37
1.2	43
0.3	52
1.2	37
0.9	43
2.8	11
1.5	32
0.6	37
0.3	43
0.3	43
0.8	37
0.3	37
1.6	24
2.2	21
1.8	24
1.9	28
1.1	32
0.5	37
0.1	37
1.8	24
1.8	28
1.4	27
1.2	20
0.5	31
1.9	20
0.8	32
0.2	27
0.7	27
0.5	16
1.2	16
0.2	31
3.1	7
0.7	27
1.4	17
0.2	32
0.6	27
0.7	24
0.3	27
2.0	16
1.7	16
0.3	27
0.3	19
0.7	24
0.4	27
0.5	21
0.3	21
2.8	7
2.5	7
0.5	28
0.7	24
0.7	17
1.1	7
0.9	12
0.2	11
0.6	24
1.7	12
1.8	12
0.7	19
0.3	21
0.4	16
1.2	12
0.8	11
0.8	19
1.0	19
0.4	12
0.2	17
0.5	16
1.1	7
0.7	12
0.7	7
0.8	9
0.5	16
0.2	16
1.1	4
1.3	4
0.6	16
0.8	12
1.0	9
0.7	12
0.1	17
0.5	11
0.6	12
0.8	4
1.1	0
0.3	4
0.5	3
0.5	8
0.3	12
0.7	8
0.1	11
0.2	4
0.5	7
0.4	9
0.2	8
0.3	9
0.4	4
0.5	3
0.1	4
0.1	1