Weather Records on 16 January 1940

284 weather records were set or tied worldwide on 16 January 1940. Highest significance: Ida, ZA.

Key Facts for 16 January 1940

On 16 January 1940, 284 weather records were set or tied at long-record stations worldwide.
28 were record highs and 151 were record lows, counting maximum and minimum temperature.
By timescale, 12 were all-time records, 8 monthly and 264 daily.
Ida set an all-time record daily precipitation of 104.9 mm (4.1 in) on 16 January 1940.
Across 161 earlier years (1795 to 2026) the same calendar date averaged 501 records.

Record Map

284 stations

284 station records on 16 January 1940 are marked on the map, coloured by record type. Dot size shows the significance score. Made with Natural Earth.

Weather records on 16 January 1940: highest significance records shown on the map
Station	Country	Type	Value	Significance
Ida	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	104.9 mm (4.1 in)	46 of 100 (Notable)
St. Petersburg	Russia	Record low maximum temperature	-31.1 C (-24.0 F)	44 of 100 (Notable)
Velikie Luki	Russia	Record low maximum temperature	-34.0 C (-29.2 F)	44 of 100 (Notable)
Velikie Luki	Russia	Record low minimum temperature	-45.7 C (-50.3 F)	44 of 100 (Notable)
Horton	United States	Record snow depth	22.9 cm (9.0 in)	40 of 100 (Notable)
Tartu	Estonia	Record low minimum temperature	-35.0 C (-31.0 F)	39 of 100 (Notable)
Tartu-Toravere	Estonia	Record low maximum temperature	-28.6 C (-19.5 F)	36 of 100 (Notable)
Tartu	Estonia	Record low maximum temperature	-28.6 C (-19.5 F)	36 of 100 (Notable)
St Joseph Wbo	United States	Record snow depth	33.0 cm (13.0 in)	36 of 100 (Notable)
Sion	Canada	Record daily snowfall	10.2 cm (4.0 in)	34 of 100 (Routine)
Oksoey Fyr	Norway	Record low minimum temperature	-16.3 C (2.7 F)	34 of 100 (Routine)
Rushville	United States	Record snow depth	17.8 cm (7.0 in)	34 of 100 (Routine)
Vilnius	Lithuania	Record low minimum temperature	-36.2 C (-33.2 F)	33 of 100 (Routine)
Carmel	United States	Record daily precipitation	65.3 mm (2.6 in)	33 of 100 (Routine)
Chemnitz	Germany	Record snow depth	18.0 cm (7.1 in)	32 of 100 (Routine)
Colby	United States	Record snow depth	17.8 cm (7.0 in)	32 of 100 (Routine)
Minsk	Belarus	Record low minimum temperature	-35.4 C (-31.7 F)	31 of 100 (Routine)
Faerder Fyr	Norway	Record low minimum temperature	-16.2 C (2.8 F)	31 of 100 (Routine)
Liepaja	Latvia	Record low minimum temperature	-26.6 C (-15.9 F)	29 of 100 (Routine)
Vastervik	Sweden	Record low maximum temperature	-13.1 C (8.4 F)	29 of 100 (Routine)
Tartu-Toravere	Estonia	Record low minimum temperature	-35.0 C (-31.0 F)	28 of 100 (Routine)
Vilnius	Lithuania	Record low maximum temperature	-19.5 C (-3.1 F)	28 of 100 (Routine)
Lares	Puerto Rico [United States]	Record daily precipitation	38.1 mm (1.5 in)	28 of 100 (Routine)
Dunwich Post Office	Australia	Record daily precipitation	102.9 mm (4.1 in)	27 of 100 (Routine)
Raleigh Post Office	Australia	Record daily precipitation	64.0 mm (2.5 in)	27 of 100 (Routine)
Verhojansk	Russia	Record high minimum temperature	-34.9 C (-30.8 F)	27 of 100 (Routine)
Contest	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	31.8 mm (1.3 in)	27 of 100 (Routine)
Fairbury 7S	United States	Record snow depth	35.6 cm (14.0 in)	27 of 100 (Routine)
Mistassini Post	Canada	Record daily snowfall	8.9 cm (3.5 in)	26 of 100 (Routine)
Parnu	Estonia	Record low minimum temperature	-31.4 C (-24.5 F)	26 of 100 (Routine)
Lockport 2SE	United States	Record daily snowfall	16.5 cm (6.5 in)	26 of 100 (Routine)
Carabost	Australia	Record daily precipitation	31.8 mm (1.3 in)	25 of 100 (Routine)
Bathurst	Canada	Record high minimum temperature	-4.4 C (24.1 F)	25 of 100 (Routine)
St. Petersburg	Russia	Record low minimum temperature	-34.7 C (-30.5 F)	25 of 100 (Routine)
Cet Central England	United Kingdom	Record low maximum temperature	-2.1 C (28.2 F)	25 of 100 (Routine)
Boras	Sweden	Record low maximum temperature	-15.0 C (5.0 F)	24 of 100 (Routine)
Ulricehamn	Sweden	Record low maximum temperature	-16.8 C (1.8 F)	24 of 100 (Routine)
Belle Isle	Canada	Record high minimum temperature	-2.8 C (27.0 F)	23 of 100 (Routine)
Yarmouth	Canada	Record daily snowfall	14.5 cm (5.7 in)	22 of 100 (Routine)
Ulricehamn	Sweden	Record low minimum temperature	-22.0 C (-7.6 F)	22 of 100 (Routine)
Healy	United States	Record snow depth	20.3 cm (8.0 in)	22 of 100 (Routine)
Warren	United States	Record daily snowfall	11.4 cm (4.5 in)	22 of 100 (Routine)
Willapa Harbor	United States	Record high maximum temperature	14.4 C (57.9 F)	22 of 100 (Routine)
Alliance 1WNW	United States	Record snow depth	15.2 cm (6.0 in)	21 of 100 (Routine)
Frankfurt/Main (Feldbergstr.)	Germany	Record daily precipitation	20.9 mm (0.8 in)	20 of 100 (Routine)
Aberdeen Rd (Sar)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	17.8 mm (0.7 in)	20 of 100 (Routine)
Sion	Canada	Record daily precipitation	10.2 mm (0.4 in)	20 of 100 (Routine)
Albertvale	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	21.1 mm (0.8 in)	20 of 100 (Routine)
Cordillo Downs	Australia	Record daily precipitation	9.1 mm (0.36 in)	20 of 100 (Routine)
Mistassini Post	Canada	Record daily precipitation	8.9 mm (0.35 in)	20 of 100 (Routine)
Jena Sternwarte	Germany	Record daily precipitation	9.2 mm (0.36 in)	20 of 100 (Routine)
Nalia	India	Record daily precipitation	10.2 mm (0.4 in)	20 of 100 (Routine)
Yarmouth	Canada	Record daily precipitation	14.5 mm (0.6 in)	20 of 100 (Routine)
Klipfontein	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	3.6 mm (0.14 in)	20 of 100 (Routine)
Verhojansk	Russia	Record daily precipitation	2.3 mm (0.09 in)	20 of 100 (Routine)
Ekaterinburg	Russia	Record low minimum temperature	-39.0 C (-38.2 F)	20 of 100 (Routine)
Syferfontein	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	41.4 mm (1.6 in)	20 of 100 (Routine)
Linkoeping-Malmslaett	Sweden	Record low maximum temperature	-15.5 C (4.1 F)	20 of 100 (Routine)
Sheffield	United Kingdom	Record low maximum temperature	-1.7 C (28.9 F)	20 of 100 (Routine)
Jerrys Plains Post Office	Australia	Record daily precipitation	21.6 mm (0.9 in)	19 of 100 (Routine)

Counts by Type and Timescale

284 records

Records set or tied on 16 January 1940 by type: Highest daily maximum 12, Lowest daily maximum 87, Highest daily minimum 16, Lowest daily minimum 64, Heaviest daily rainfall 52, Heaviest daily snowfall 12, Deepest snow cover 41.

Records on 16 January 1940 by type
Record type	Records
Highest daily maximum	12
Lowest daily maximum	87
Highest daily minimum	16
Lowest daily minimum	64
Heaviest daily rainfall	52
Heaviest daily snowfall	12
Deepest snow cover	41

Records on 16 January 1940 by timescale: all-time 12, monthly 8, daily 264.

How Much Records Were Beaten By

232 broken records

Margins by which the 232 broken records beat the old ones, in degrees Celsius for temperature and millimetres for precipitation and snow; the largest margin was 610.0. Ties are not counted.

Top 20 by Significance

16 January 1940

Top 20 records on 16 January 1940 by significance
Date	Station	Record	Value	Beat old record by	Old record stood	Significance
16 January 1940	Ida, ZA	all-time rain	104.9 mm (4.1 in)	20.8 mm (0.8 in)	8 years	46 of 100 (Notable)
16 January 1940	St. Petersburg, RU	all-time low max	-31.1 C (-24.0 F)	2.8 C (5.0 F)	47 years	44 of 100 (Notable)
16 January 1940	Velikie Luki, RU	all-time low max	-34.0 C (-29.2 F)	5.5 C (9.9 F)	35 years	44 of 100 (Notable)
16 January 1940	Velikie Luki, RU	all-time low min	-45.7 C (-50.3 F)	8.9 C (16.0 F)	25 years	44 of 100 (Notable)
16 January 1940	Horton, US	daily snow depth	22.9 cm (9.0 in)	17.8 cm (7.0 in)	2 years	40 of 100 (Notable)
16 January 1940	Tartu, EE	all-time low min	-35.0 C (-31.0 F)	0.1 C (0.2 F)	46 years	39 of 100 (Notable)
16 January 1940	Tartu-Toravere, EE	all-time low max	-28.6 C (-19.5 F)	2.1 C (3.8 F)	32 years	36 of 100 (Notable)
16 January 1940	Tartu, EE	all-time low max	-28.6 C (-19.5 F)	2.1 C (3.8 F)	32 years	36 of 100 (Notable)
16 January 1940	St Joseph Wbo, US	daily snow depth	33.0 cm (13.0 in)	17.8 cm (7.0 in)	9 years	36 of 100 (Notable)
16 January 1940	Sion, CA	daily snowfall	10.2 cm (4.0 in)	9.4 cm (3.7 in)	28 years	34 of 100 (Routine)
16 January 1940	Oksoey Fyr, NO	all-time low min	-16.3 C (2.7 F)	1.2 C (2.2 F)	24 years	34 of 100 (Routine)
16 January 1940	Rushville, US	daily snow depth	17.8 cm (7.0 in)	10.2 cm (4.0 in)	34 years	34 of 100 (Routine)
16 January 1940	Vilnius, LT	daily low min	-36.2 C (-33.2 F)	10.4 C (18.7 F)	46 years	33 of 100 (Routine)
16 January 1940	Carmel, US	daily rain	65.3 mm (2.6 in)	28.5 mm (1.1 in)	16 years	33 of 100 (Routine)
16 January 1940	Chemnitz, DE	daily snow depth	18.0 cm (7.1 in)	10.0 cm (3.9 in)	34 years	32 of 100 (Routine)
16 January 1940	Colby, US	daily snow depth	17.8 cm (7.0 in)	17.8 cm (7.0 in)	39 years	32 of 100 (Routine)
16 January 1940	Minsk, BY	daily low min	-35.4 C (-31.7 F)	9.4 C (16.9 F)	46 years	31 of 100 (Routine)
16 January 1940	Faerder Fyr, NO	monthly low min	-16.2 C (2.8 F)	3.8 C (6.8 F)	29 years	31 of 100 (Routine)
16 January 1940	Liepaja, LV	monthly low min	-26.6 C (-15.9 F)	3.3 C (5.9 F)	32 years	29 of 100 (Routine)
16 January 1940	Vastervik, SE	monthly low max	-13.1 C (8.4 F)	0.1 C (0.2 F)	46 years	29 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

1795 to 1940

Records set or tied on this calendar date in each year from 1795 to 1940. 1940 had 284 records.

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

Records on 01-16 in each year
Year	Records
1795	1
1799	1
1804	1
1818	1
1820	2
1826	2
1836	1
1838	1
1839	1
1845	3
1847	1
1849	2
1851	1
1852	2
1858	1
1864	1
1866	1
1867	1
1868	1
1869	1
1871	1
1873	2
1875	3
1877	1
1878	2
1881	4
1886	1
1890	2
1891	1
1892	1
1893	8
1895	5
1896	4
1897	2
1898	2
1899	17
1900	1
1901	1
1902	5
1904	6
1905	22
1906	26
1907	17
1908	14
1909	19
1910	21
1911	15
1912	38
1913	52
1914	16
1915	29
1916	28
1917	30
1918	89
1919	50
1920	249
1921	36
1922	29
1923	47
1924	277
1925	237
1926	69
1927	250
1928	327
1929	130
1930	680
1931	160
1932	605
1933	343
1934	99
1935	426
1936	349
1937	186
1938	549
1939	539
1940	284
1941	601
1942	585
1943	628
1944	252
1945	434
1946	430
1947	597
1948	299
1949	933
1950	855
1951	679
1952	614
1953	1,040
1954	882
1955	318
1956	519
1957	795
1958	459
1959	462
1960	349
1961	864
1962	387
1963	996
1964	577
1965	910
1966	464
1967	516
1968	536
1969	630
1970	729
1971	628
1972	1,724
1973	1,134
1974	1,957
1975	717
1976	593
1977	1,430
1978	1,399
1979	1,043
1980	965
1981	815
1982	1,121
1983	759
1984	1,376
1985	846
1986	785
1987	1,465
1988	597
1989	835
1990	1,692
1991	897
1992	1,150
1993	1,351
1994	2,003
1995	1,381
1996	995
1997	1,016
1998	884
1999	816
2000	1,073
2001	753
2002	605
2003	691
2004	1,446
2005	654
2006	746
2007	1,962
2008	777
2009	1,328
2010	739
2011	996
2012	569
2013	990
2014	534
2015	424
2016	453
2017	1,104
2018	1,045
2019	512
2020	1,098
2021	544
2022	576
2023	646
2024	2,401
2025	684
2026	506

Download the Data

Data for records on 1940-01-16: 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 2026-10-17 (17 October 2026). Records are computed by this site and are not official.

Data as of 2026-10-15. Last revised 15 October 2026 (2026-10-15).

Margin	Records
0 to 100	221
100 to 200	8
200 to 300	0
300 to 400	0
400 to 500	1
500 to 600	1
600 to 700	1