Weather Records on 17 March 1953

236 weather records were set or tied worldwide on 17 March 1953. Highest significance: Bloemhof, ZA.

Key Facts for 17 March 1953

On 17 March 1953, 236 weather records were set or tied at long-record stations worldwide.
78 were record highs and 26 were record lows, counting maximum and minimum temperature.
By timescale, 0 were all-time records, 3 monthly and 233 daily.
Bloemhof set a daily record precipitation of 41.4 mm (1.6 in) on 17 March 1953.
Across 161 earlier years (1825 to 2026) the same calendar date averaged 476 records.

Record Map

236 stations

236 station records on 17 March 1953 are marked on the map, coloured by record type. Dot size shows the significance score. Made with Natural Earth.

Weather records on 17 March 1953: highest significance records shown on the map
Station	Country	Type	Value	Significance
Bloemhof	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	41.4 mm (1.6 in)	51 of 100 (Notable)
Saaifontein	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	27.8 mm (1.1 in)	39 of 100 (Notable)
Umtata	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	52.0 mm (2.0 in)	35 of 100 (Notable)
Ardmore	United States	Record daily precipitation	50.3 mm (2.0 in)	35 of 100 (Notable)
Vauxhall	Canada	Record daily snowfall	16.5 cm (6.5 in)	34 of 100 (Routine)
Leeupoort	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	45.0 mm (1.8 in)	33 of 100 (Routine)
Harrison	United States	Record daily precipitation	42.7 mm (1.7 in)	33 of 100 (Routine)
Nylsvley	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	54.0 mm (2.1 in)	28 of 100 (Routine)
Ft Sumner	United States	Record high minimum temperature	12.2 C (54.0 F)	28 of 100 (Routine)
Moola Bulla	Australia	Record daily precipitation	54.1 mm (2.1 in)	26 of 100 (Routine)
Arhangelsk	Russia	Record high maximum temperature	3.4 C (38.1 F)	26 of 100 (Routine)
Rooiberg	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	40.5 mm (1.6 in)	26 of 100 (Routine)
Robe Comparison	Australia	Record high minimum temperature	18.3 C (64.9 F)	25 of 100 (Routine)
Karesuando	Sweden	Record high minimum temperature	-1.0 C (30.2 F)	25 of 100 (Routine)
Conway	United States	Record daily precipitation	45.5 mm (1.8 in)	25 of 100 (Routine)
Elk Point	Canada	Record daily snowfall	8.9 cm (3.5 in)	24 of 100 (Routine)
Melbourne Regional Office	Australia	Record high maximum temperature	36.3 C (97.3 F)	23 of 100 (Routine)
Strasbourg	Canada	Record daily snowfall	14.0 cm (5.5 in)	23 of 100 (Routine)
Sterkfontein	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	71.5 mm (2.8 in)	23 of 100 (Routine)
Hot Springs 1 NNE	United States	Record daily precipitation	54.4 mm (2.1 in)	23 of 100 (Routine)
Redding Fire STN 2	United States	Record low minimum temperature	-1.1 C (30.0 F)	23 of 100 (Routine)
Northfield	United States	Record high minimum temperature	2.2 C (36.0 F)	23 of 100 (Routine)
Mochudi	Botswana	Record daily precipitation	95.5 mm (3.8 in)	22 of 100 (Routine)
Rankins Pass	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	53.5 mm (2.1 in)	22 of 100 (Routine)
Roswell Muni AP	United States	Record high minimum temperature	10.0 C (50.0 F)	22 of 100 (Routine)
Otto FAA AP	United States	Record high minimum temperature	4.4 C (39.9 F)	22 of 100 (Routine)
Launceston (Pumping Station)	Australia	Record high maximum temperature	29.4 C (84.9 F)	21 of 100 (Routine)
Hobart (Ellerslie Road)	Australia	Record high maximum temperature	32.1 C (89.8 F)	21 of 100 (Routine)
Pennant	Canada	Record daily snowfall	5.1 cm (2.0 in)	21 of 100 (Routine)
Waseca	Canada	Record daily snowfall	10.7 cm (4.2 in)	21 of 100 (Routine)
Tortosa - Observatorio del Ebr	Spain	Record low maximum temperature	11.5 C (52.7 F)	21 of 100 (Routine)
Dordrecht - Tnk 14	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	21.2 mm (0.8 in)	20 of 100 (Routine)
Chattanooga	United States	Record daily precipitation	13.5 mm (0.5 in)	20 of 100 (Routine)
Wellwood	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	17.0 mm (0.7 in)	20 of 100 (Routine)
Walters	United States	Record daily precipitation	21.3 mm (0.8 in)	20 of 100 (Routine)
Stamford 1	United States	Record daily precipitation	14.2 mm (0.6 in)	20 of 100 (Routine)
Oranjeville (Skl)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	14.5 mm (0.6 in)	20 of 100 (Routine)
Pauls Valley 4 WSW	United States	Record daily precipitation	9.1 mm (0.36 in)	20 of 100 (Routine)
Morstone Station	Australia	Record daily precipitation	19.3 mm (0.8 in)	20 of 100 (Routine)
Ostrov Sosnovez	Russia	Record daily precipitation	4.5 mm (0.18 in)	20 of 100 (Routine)
Stillwater 2 W	United States	Record daily precipitation	14.7 mm (0.6 in)	20 of 100 (Routine)
Elk Point	Canada	Record daily precipitation	8.9 mm (0.35 in)	20 of 100 (Routine)
Groenfontein "Montagu"	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	18.0 mm (0.7 in)	20 of 100 (Routine)
Kriel (Pol)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	19.1 mm (0.8 in)	20 of 100 (Routine)
Barguzin	Russia	Record daily precipitation	1.0 mm (0.04 in)	20 of 100 (Routine)
Superior	United States	Record daily snowfall	4.1 cm (1.6 in)	20 of 100 (Routine)
Strasbourg	Canada	Record daily precipitation	14.0 mm (0.6 in)	20 of 100 (Routine)
Pennant	Canada	Record daily precipitation	5.1 mm (0.20 in)	20 of 100 (Routine)
Waseca	Canada	Record daily precipitation	10.7 mm (0.4 in)	20 of 100 (Routine)
Apache	United States	Record daily precipitation	13.5 mm (0.5 in)	20 of 100 (Routine)
Port Lincoln	Australia	Record high maximum temperature	36.7 C (98.1 F)	20 of 100 (Routine)
Port Lincoln	Australia	Record high minimum temperature	19.4 C (66.9 F)	20 of 100 (Routine)
Ipira (Camisao)	Brazil	Record daily precipitation	31.3 mm (1.2 in)	20 of 100 (Routine)
Brocken	Germany	Record high maximum temperature	13.1 C (55.6 F)	20 of 100 (Routine)
Buxa	India	Record daily precipitation	50.8 mm (2.0 in)	20 of 100 (Routine)
Obsidian 3 SSE	United States	Record daily snowfall	12.7 cm (5.0 in)	20 of 100 (Routine)
Rosedale	United States	Record daily precipitation	48.3 mm (1.9 in)	20 of 100 (Routine)
Academy 2NE	United States	Record high maximum temperature	23.3 C (73.9 F)	20 of 100 (Routine)
Nhill	Australia	Record high minimum temperature	21.1 C (70.0 F)	19 of 100 (Routine)
Birtle	Canada	Record daily snowfall	10.2 cm (4.0 in)	19 of 100 (Routine)

Counts by Type and Timescale

236 records

Records set or tied on 17 March 1953 by type: Highest daily maximum 31, Lowest daily maximum 10, Highest daily minimum 47, Lowest daily minimum 16, Heaviest daily rainfall 108, Heaviest daily snowfall 24.

Records on 17 March 1953 by type
Record type	Records
Highest daily maximum	31
Lowest daily maximum	10
Highest daily minimum	47
Lowest daily minimum	16
Heaviest daily rainfall	108
Heaviest daily snowfall	24
Deepest snow cover	0

Records on 17 March 1953 by timescale: all-time 0, monthly 3, daily 233.

How Much Records Were Beaten By

192 broken records

Margins by which the 192 broken records beat the old ones, in degrees Celsius for temperature and millimetres for precipitation and snow; the largest margin was 114.0. Ties are not counted.

Top 20 by Significance

17 March 1953

Top 20 records on 17 March 1953 by significance
Date	Station	Record	Value	Beat old record by	Old record stood	Significance
17 March 1953	Bloemhof, ZA	daily rain	41.4 mm (1.6 in)	36.1 mm (1.4 in)	20 years	51 of 100 (Notable)
17 March 1953	Saaifontein, ZA	daily rain	27.8 mm (1.1 in)	27.8 mm (1.1 in)	38 years	39 of 100 (Notable)
17 March 1953	Umtata, ZA	daily rain	52.0 mm (2.0 in)	25.6 mm (1.0 in)	34 years	35 of 100 (Notable)
17 March 1953	Ardmore, US	daily rain	50.3 mm (2.0 in)	31.0 mm (1.2 in)	28 years	35 of 100 (Notable)
17 March 1953	Vauxhall, CA	daily snowfall	16.5 cm (6.5 in)	11.4 cm (4.5 in)	3 years	34 of 100 (Routine)
17 March 1953	Leeupoort, ZA	daily rain	45.0 mm (1.8 in)	25.2 mm (1.0 in)	34 years	33 of 100 (Routine)
17 March 1953	Harrison, US	daily rain	42.7 mm (1.7 in)	17.6 mm (0.7 in)	48 years	33 of 100 (Routine)
17 March 1953	Nylsvley, ZA	daily rain	54.0 mm (2.1 in)	22.2 mm (0.9 in)	32 years	28 of 100 (Routine)
17 March 1953	Ft Sumner, US	daily high min	12.2 C (54.0 F)	6.1 C (11.0 F)	31 years	28 of 100 (Routine)
17 March 1953	Moola Bulla, AU	daily rain	54.1 mm (2.1 in)	29.7 mm (1.2 in)	12 years	26 of 100 (Routine)
17 March 1953	Arhangelsk, RU	daily high max	3.4 C (38.1 F)	0.7 C (1.3 F)	62 years	26 of 100 (Routine)
17 March 1953	Rooiberg, ZA	daily rain	40.5 mm (1.6 in)	13.3 mm (0.5 in)	34 years	26 of 100 (Routine)
17 March 1953	Robe Comparison, AU	daily high min	18.3 C (64.9 F)	0.9 C (1.6 F)	52 years	25 of 100 (Routine)
17 March 1953	Karesuando, SE	daily high min	-1.0 C (30.2 F)	0.5 C (0.9 F)	62 years	25 of 100 (Routine)
17 March 1953	Conway, US	daily rain	45.5 mm (1.8 in)	9.9 mm (0.39 in)	48 years	25 of 100 (Routine)
17 March 1953	Elk Point, CA	daily snowfall	8.9 cm (3.5 in)	3.8 cm (1.5 in)	28 years	24 of 100 (Routine)
17 March 1953	Melbourne Regional Office, AU	daily high max	36.3 C (97.3 F)	2.8 C (5.0 F)	31 years	23 of 100 (Routine)
17 March 1953	Strasbourg, CA	daily snowfall	14.0 cm (5.5 in)	8.9 cm (3.5 in)	2 years	23 of 100 (Routine)
17 March 1953	Sterkfontein, ZA	monthly rain	71.5 mm (2.8 in)	1.4 mm (0.06 in)	27 years	23 of 100 (Routine)
17 March 1953	Hot Springs 1 NNE, US	daily rain	54.4 mm (2.1 in)	0.6 mm (0.02 in)	55 years	23 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

1825 to 1953

Records set or tied on this calendar date in each year from 1825 to 1953. 1953 had 236 records.

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

Records on 03-17 in each year
Year	Records
1825	2
1839	1
1845	1
1850	2
1852	1
1853	1
1856	1
1857	1
1863	1
1866	2
1867	1
1869	1
1870	1
1872	1
1874	3
1876	1
1877	2
1878	3
1879	1
1881	1
1882	4
1883	1
1884	3
1885	3
1886	1
1887	3
1888	2
1889	3
1890	2
1892	1
1895	5
1896	2
1897	9
1898	14
1899	5
1900	5
1901	4
1902	16
1903	10
1904	11
1905	10
1906	15
1907	14
1908	20
1909	20
1910	17
1911	7
1912	7
1913	31
1914	28
1915	22
1916	40
1917	52
1918	26
1919	86
1920	50
1921	96
1922	49
1923	130
1924	78
1925	143
1926	185
1927	369
1928	230
1929	85
1930	306
1931	124
1932	484
1933	198
1934	368
1935	259
1936	601
1937	455
1938	394
1939	583
1940	250
1941	689
1942	783
1943	500
1944	288
1945	1,345
1946	810
1947	332
1948	340
1949	178
1950	1,105
1951	489
1952	527
1953	236
1954	365
1955	385
1956	573
1957	327
1958	535
1959	471
1960	814
1961	679
1962	321
1963	738
1964	241
1965	1,115
1966	970
1967	856
1968	849
1969	651
1970	768
1971	361
1972	1,013
1973	943
1974	837
1975	475
1976	534
1977	479
1978	787
1979	507
1980	658
1981	679
1982	1,315
1983	912
1984	599
1985	662
1986	551
1987	1,362
1988	1,325
1989	1,082
1990	1,916
1991	756
1992	740
1993	1,608
1994	822
1995	989
1996	689
1997	895
1998	972
1999	688
2000	792
2001	1,349
2002	1,210
2003	1,244
2004	1,406
2005	1,475
2006	579
2007	1,470
2008	955
2009	717
2010	584
2011	926
2012	2,715
2013	723
2014	1,039
2015	1,145
2016	545
2017	847
2018	891
2019	738
2020	454
2021	502
2022	452
2023	875
2024	668
2025	722
2026	2,522

Download the Data

Data for records on 1953-03-17: 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 20	170
20 to 40	16
40 to 60	3
60 to 80	1
80 to 100	1
100 to 120	1