Weather Records on 21 May 1938

348 weather records were set or tied worldwide on 21 May 1938. Highest significance: Double Island Point Lighthouse, AU.

Key Facts for 21 May 1938

On 21 May 1938, 348 weather records were set or tied at long-record stations worldwide.
169 were record highs and 49 were record lows, counting maximum and minimum temperature.
By timescale, 0 were all-time records, 14 monthly and 334 daily.
Double Island Point Lighthouse set a daily record precipitation of 83.3 mm (3.3 in) on 21 May 1938.
Across 156 earlier years (1793 to 2026) the same calendar date averaged 461 records.

Record Map

348 stations

348 station records on 21 May 1938 are marked on the map, coloured by record type. Dot size shows the significance score. Made with Natural Earth.

Weather records on 21 May 1938: highest significance records shown on the map
Station	Country	Type	Value	Significance
Double Island Point Lighthouse	Australia	Record daily precipitation	83.3 mm (3.3 in)	51 of 100 (Notable)
Waimanalo 794	United States	Record daily precipitation	84.6 mm (3.3 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Huntingburg AP	United States	Record daily precipitation	88.9 mm (3.5 in)	44 of 100 (Notable)
Juandah	Australia	Record daily precipitation	51.6 mm (2.0 in)	40 of 100 (Notable)
Coraopolis Neville Is	United States	Record daily precipitation	40.9 mm (1.6 in)	39 of 100 (Notable)
Janwada	India	Record daily precipitation	35.6 mm (1.4 in)	36 of 100 (Notable)
Jacksonville Wb City	United States	Record high maximum temperature	37.2 C (99.0 F)	36 of 100 (Notable)
Dulacca Truck Stop	Australia	Record daily precipitation	43.9 mm (1.7 in)	35 of 100 (Notable)
Gudur(Guduru)	India	Record daily precipitation	41.9 mm (1.6 in)	34 of 100 (Routine)
Alur	India	Record daily precipitation	29.0 mm (1.1 in)	33 of 100 (Routine)
Burnett Heads Niell St	Australia	Record daily precipitation	45.7 mm (1.8 in)	32 of 100 (Routine)
Graz	Austria	Record daily precipitation	55.0 mm (2.2 in)	32 of 100 (Routine)
Bamberg	Germany	Record daily precipitation	26.1 mm (1.0 in)	32 of 100 (Routine)
Irvington	United States	Record daily precipitation	31.0 mm (1.2 in)	32 of 100 (Routine)
Chinchilla Water Treatment Pla	Australia	Record daily precipitation	32.8 mm (1.3 in)	31 of 100 (Routine)
Butte Bert Mooney AP	United States	Record low minimum temperature	-11.1 C (12.0 F)	31 of 100 (Routine)
Sonnblick	Austria	Record daily precipitation	47.6 mm (1.9 in)	30 of 100 (Routine)
Hohenpeissenberg	Germany	Record low maximum temperature	3.4 C (38.1 F)	30 of 100 (Routine)
Samastipur	India	Record daily precipitation	52.1 mm (2.1 in)	30 of 100 (Routine)
Sfax El-Maou	Tunisia	Record low maximum temperature	15.0 C (59.0 F)	30 of 100 (Routine)
Washington 1 W	United States	Record daily precipitation	36.8 mm (1.4 in)	30 of 100 (Routine)
Woolgoolga (Clear Place)	Australia	Record daily precipitation	50.3 mm (2.0 in)	29 of 100 (Routine)
Tadpatri	India	Record daily precipitation	29.5 mm (1.2 in)	29 of 100 (Routine)
Moores Hill	United States	Record daily precipitation	36.6 mm (1.4 in)	29 of 100 (Routine)
1 WSW Princeton	United States	Record daily precipitation	39.6 mm (1.6 in)	28 of 100 (Routine)
Salzburg	Austria	Record low maximum temperature	9.5 C (49.1 F)	27 of 100 (Routine)
Gainesville UNIV of Fl	United States	Record high maximum temperature	37.8 C (100.0 F)	27 of 100 (Routine)
Calhoun (1)	United States	Record daily precipitation	30.5 mm (1.2 in)	27 of 100 (Routine)
Lancaster 2 NW	United States	Record daily precipitation	37.6 mm (1.5 in)	27 of 100 (Routine)
Kalna	India	Record daily precipitation	38.1 mm (1.5 in)	26 of 100 (Routine)
Scottsburg	United States	Record daily precipitation	27.4 mm (1.1 in)	26 of 100 (Routine)
Dwtn Charleston	United States	Record high maximum temperature	37.2 C (99.0 F)	26 of 100 (Routine)
Serampore	India	Record daily precipitation	38.6 mm (1.5 in)	25 of 100 (Routine)
St Augustine	United States	Record high maximum temperature	36.1 C (97.0 F)	25 of 100 (Routine)
Chazy	United States	Record daily precipitation	27.9 mm (1.1 in)	25 of 100 (Routine)
Yadki	India	Record daily precipitation	42.4 mm (1.7 in)	24 of 100 (Routine)
Budge Budge	India	Record daily precipitation	54.6 mm (2.1 in)	24 of 100 (Routine)
Deland 1 SSE	United States	Record high maximum temperature	36.7 C (98.1 F)	24 of 100 (Routine)
Waycross 4 NE	United States	Record high maximum temperature	38.3 C (100.9 F)	24 of 100 (Routine)
Haina 214	United States	Record high minimum temperature	22.2 C (72.0 F)	24 of 100 (Routine)
Maunawili Rch	United States	Record daily precipitation	126.0 mm (5.0 in)	24 of 100 (Routine)
Munchen-Nymphenburg	Germany	Record low maximum temperature	8.0 C (46.4 F)	23 of 100 (Routine)
Arnsberg	Germany	Record low maximum temperature	7.7 C (45.9 F)	23 of 100 (Routine)
Weissenburg	Germany	Record low maximum temperature	9.5 C (49.1 F)	23 of 100 (Routine)
Urvakonda	India	Record daily precipitation	33.8 mm (1.3 in)	23 of 100 (Routine)
Bamberg	Germany	Record low maximum temperature	10.9 C (51.6 F)	22 of 100 (Routine)
Magdeburg	Germany	Record low maximum temperature	8.6 C (47.5 F)	22 of 100 (Routine)
Waren	Germany	Record low maximum temperature	7.5 C (45.5 F)	22 of 100 (Routine)
Indian Mills 2 W	United States	Record high minimum temperature	22.2 C (72.0 F)	22 of 100 (Routine)
Honomanu 450	United States	Record daily precipitation	93.0 mm (3.7 in)	22 of 100 (Routine)
Pahala 21	United States	Record daily precipitation	31.8 mm (1.3 in)	22 of 100 (Routine)
Bundaberg Post Office	Australia	Record daily precipitation	27.2 mm (1.1 in)	21 of 100 (Routine)
Mount Tenandra	Australia	Record daily precipitation	44.5 mm (1.8 in)	21 of 100 (Routine)
Innsbruck	Austria	Record low maximum temperature	9.8 C (49.6 F)	21 of 100 (Routine)
Stuttgart-Stadt	Germany	Record low maximum temperature	7.5 C (45.5 F)	21 of 100 (Routine)
Soro	India	Record daily precipitation	30.5 mm (1.2 in)	21 of 100 (Routine)
Calcutta/Barracks	India	Record daily precipitation	25.4 mm (1.0 in)	21 of 100 (Routine)
Basel Binningen	Switzerland	Record low maximum temperature	8.5 C (47.3 F)	21 of 100 (Routine)
Lugano	Switzerland	Record low maximum temperature	12.4 C (54.3 F)	21 of 100 (Routine)
Alapaha Exp STN	United States	Record high maximum temperature	38.3 C (100.9 F)	21 of 100 (Routine)

Counts by Type and Timescale

348 records

Records set or tied on 21 May 1938 by type: Highest daily maximum 83, Lowest daily maximum 39, Highest daily minimum 86, Lowest daily minimum 10, Heaviest daily rainfall 130.

Records on 21 May 1938 by type
Record type	Records
Highest daily maximum	83
Lowest daily maximum	39
Highest daily minimum	86
Lowest daily minimum	10
Heaviest daily rainfall	130
Heaviest daily snowfall	0
Deepest snow cover	0

Records on 21 May 1938 by timescale: all-time 0, monthly 14, daily 334.

How Much Records Were Beaten By

270 broken records

Margins by which the 270 broken records beat the old ones, in degrees Celsius for temperature and millimetres for precipitation and snow; the largest margin was 71.1. Ties are not counted.

Top 20 by Significance

21 May 1938

Top 20 records on 21 May 1938 by significance
Date	Station	Record	Value	Beat old record by	Old record stood	Significance
21 May 1938	Double Island Point Lighthouse, AU	daily rain	83.3 mm (3.3 in)	55.4 mm (2.2 in)	45 years	51 of 100 (Notable)
21 May 1938	Waimanalo 794, US	daily rain	84.6 mm (3.3 in)	71.1 mm (2.8 in)	7 years	45 of 100 (Notable)
21 May 1938	Huntingburg AP, US	daily rain	88.9 mm (3.5 in)	69.8 mm (2.7 in)	3 years	44 of 100 (Notable)
21 May 1938	Juandah, AU	daily rain	51.6 mm (2.0 in)	27.5 mm (1.1 in)	45 years	40 of 100 (Notable)
21 May 1938	Coraopolis Neville Is, US	daily rain	40.9 mm (1.6 in)	21.1 mm (0.8 in)	20 years	39 of 100 (Notable)
21 May 1938	Janwada, IN	daily rain	35.6 mm (1.4 in)	28.5 mm (1.1 in)	27 years	36 of 100 (Notable)
21 May 1938	Jacksonville Wb City, US	monthly high max	37.2 C (99.0 F)	0.5 C (0.9 F)	63 years	36 of 100 (Notable)
21 May 1938	Dulacca Truck Stop, AU	daily rain	43.9 mm (1.7 in)	27.6 mm (1.1 in)	24 years	35 of 100 (Notable)
21 May 1938	Gudur(Guduru), IN	daily rain	41.9 mm (1.6 in)	38.6 mm (1.5 in)	1 year	34 of 100 (Routine)
21 May 1938	Alur, IN	daily rain	29.0 mm (1.1 in)	23.4 mm (0.9 in)	36 years	33 of 100 (Routine)
21 May 1938	Burnett Heads Niell St, AU	daily rain	45.7 mm (1.8 in)	33.8 mm (1.3 in)	16 years	32 of 100 (Routine)
21 May 1938	Graz, AT	monthly rain	55.0 mm (2.2 in)	12.7 mm (0.5 in)	5 years	32 of 100 (Routine)
21 May 1938	Bamberg, DE	daily rain	26.1 mm (1.0 in)	9.1 mm (0.36 in)	25 years	32 of 100 (Routine)
21 May 1938	Irvington, US	daily rain	31.0 mm (1.2 in)	18.3 mm (0.7 in)	38 years	32 of 100 (Routine)
21 May 1938	Chinchilla Water Treatment Pla, AU	daily rain	32.8 mm (1.3 in)	14.5 mm (0.6 in)	45 years	31 of 100 (Routine)
21 May 1938	Butte Bert Mooney AP, US	monthly low min	-11.1 C (12.0 F)	2.2 C (4.0 F)	42 years	31 of 100 (Routine)
21 May 1938	Sonnblick, AT	daily rain	47.6 mm (1.9 in)	21.8 mm (0.9 in)	0 years	30 of 100 (Routine)
21 May 1938	Hohenpeissenberg, DE	daily low max	3.4 C (38.1 F)	4.7 C (8.5 F)	50 years	30 of 100 (Routine)
21 May 1938	Samastipur, IN	daily rain	52.1 mm (2.1 in)	45.5 mm (1.8 in)	12 years	30 of 100 (Routine)
21 May 1938	Sfax El-Maou, TN	daily low max	15.0 C (59.0 F)	5.0 C (9.0 F)	36 years	30 of 100 (Routine)

Significance is a score from 0 to 100 combining margin, the age of the old record and the length of the station's record. How it is computed.

The Same Date in Other Years

1793 to 1938

Records set or tied on this calendar date in each year from 1793 to 1938. 1938 had 348 records.

Counts for years before the ledger starts come from the same station rules.

Records on 05-21 in each year
Year	Records
1793	1
1795	1
1811	1
1837	2
1842	1
1847	2
1854	1
1857	1
1858	1
1865	1
1866	1
1870	2
1875	1
1876	1
1880	2
1882	1
1885	1
1886	2
1887	3
1889	5
1890	3
1891	6
1892	1
1893	1
1894	4
1895	4
1896	5
1897	2
1898	1
1899	5
1900	1
1901	3
1902	4
1903	26
1904	8
1905	7
1906	12
1907	36
1908	13
1909	13
1910	14
1911	87
1912	24
1913	13
1914	26
1915	24
1916	13
1917	76
1918	51
1919	170
1920	39
1921	158
1922	39
1923	125
1924	148
1925	250
1926	221
1927	207
1928	173
1929	247
1930	133
1931	488
1932	343
1933	290
1934	590
1935	190
1936	328
1937	227
1938	348
1939	355
1940	456
1941	525
1942	482
1943	463
1944	310
1945	515
1946	324
1947	485
1948	312
1949	593
1950	403
1951	271
1952	385
1953	501
1954	961
1955	507
1956	409
1957	709
1958	511
1959	684
1960	615
1961	306
1962	553
1963	598
1964	788
1965	238
1966	296
1967	1,022
1968	549
1969	832
1970	449
1971	536
1972	557
1973	493
1974	847
1975	1,160
1976	393
1977	756
1978	575
1979	787
1980	857
1981	1,550
1982	599
1983	1,106
1984	950
1985	610
1986	908
1987	1,242
1988	819
1989	671
1990	947
1991	1,065
1992	1,143
1993	1,197
1994	656
1995	749
1996	1,461
1997	953
1998	1,200
1999	544
2000	897
2001	1,187
2002	2,048
2003	807
2004	898
2005	1,020
2006	810
2007	894
2008	740
2009	1,315
2010	962
2011	959
2012	848
2013	884
2014	522
2015	956
2016	567
2017	780
2018	525
2019	1,668
2020	707
2021	1,131
2022	1,512
2023	794
2024	751
2025	776
2026	356

Download the Data

Data for records on 1938-05-21: CSV or JSON. Field meanings are on the data page.

Sources: 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)) Made with Natural Earth. Public domain map data. Borders are Natural Earth's de facto depiction. Data as of 2026-10-14 (14 October 2026). Records are computed by this site and are not official.

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

Margin	Records
0 to 10	227
10 to 20	20
20 to 30	16
30 to 40	3
40 to 50	1
50 to 60	1
60 to 70	1
70 to 80	1