Weather Records on 2 December 1956

594 weather records were set or tied worldwide on 2 December 1956. Highest significance: Durban-Botanical Gardens, ZA.

Key Facts for 2 December 1956

On 2 December 1956, 594 weather records were set or tied at long-record stations worldwide.
300 were record highs and 69 were record lows, counting maximum and minimum temperature.
By timescale, 2 were all-time records, 14 monthly and 578 daily.
Durban-Botanical Gardens set a daily record precipitation of 89.0 mm (3.5 in) on 2 December 1956.
Across 164 earlier years (1797 to 2025) the same calendar date averaged 470 records.

Record Map

594 stations

594 station records on 2 December 1956 are marked on the map, coloured by record type. Dot size shows the significance score. Made with Natural Earth.

Weather records on 2 December 1956: highest significance records shown on the map
Station	Country	Type	Value	Significance
Durban-Botanical Gardens	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	89.0 mm (3.5 in)	70 of 100 (Major)
Kokpekty	Kazakhstan	Record daily precipitation	37.1 mm (1.5 in)	59 of 100 (Notable)
Big Creek	Canada	Record daily snowfall	45.0 cm (17.7 in)	50 of 100 (Notable)
Cuddapah	India	Record daily precipitation	43.2 mm (1.7 in)	50 of 100 (Notable)
Skukuza	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	102.0 mm (4.0 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Sandbaken	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	44.0 mm (1.7 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Valemount	Canada	Record daily precipitation	25.4 mm (1.0 in)	44 of 100 (Notable)
Olds	Canada	Record daily snowfall	12.7 cm (5.0 in)	44 of 100 (Notable)
Virden	Canada	Record high maximum temperature	4.4 C (39.9 F)	43 of 100 (Notable)
Premier Mine-Cullinan	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	50.8 mm (2.0 in)	42 of 100 (Notable)
Hanna	Canada	Record daily snowfall	12.7 cm (5.0 in)	40 of 100 (Notable)
Kuranda Railway Station	Australia	Record daily precipitation	83.1 mm (3.3 in)	39 of 100 (Notable)
Big Creek	Canada	Record daily precipitation	45.0 mm (1.8 in)	39 of 100 (Notable)
Uitzicht	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	62.0 mm (2.4 in)	38 of 100 (Notable)
Mowbray	Australia	Record daily precipitation	64.8 mm (2.6 in)	37 of 100 (Notable)
Sidhout(Siddavat)	India	Record daily precipitation	68.6 mm (2.7 in)	36 of 100 (Notable)
Wonderfontein (Skl)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	44.0 mm (1.7 in)	36 of 100 (Notable)
Brisco	Canada	Record daily snowfall	20.3 cm (8.0 in)	35 of 100 (Notable)
Valemount	Canada	Record daily snowfall	25.4 cm (10.0 in)	35 of 100 (Notable)
Springkell	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	53.5 mm (2.1 in)	34 of 100 (Routine)
Aurukun Shire Council	Australia	Record daily precipitation	84.6 mm (3.3 in)	33 of 100 (Routine)
Georgetown Post Office	Australia	Record daily precipitation	97.8 mm (3.9 in)	33 of 100 (Routine)
Vavenby	Canada	Record daily snowfall	23.4 cm (9.2 in)	33 of 100 (Routine)
Ficksburg	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	38.0 mm (1.5 in)	33 of 100 (Routine)
Bergzicht	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	51.0 mm (2.0 in)	33 of 100 (Routine)
Erie Intl AP	United States	Record snow depth	50.8 cm (20.0 in)	33 of 100 (Routine)
Devon (Pol)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	43.0 mm (1.7 in)	32 of 100 (Routine)
Rustplaats	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	39.9 mm (1.6 in)	32 of 100 (Routine)
Landsborough Downs	Australia	Record daily precipitation	36.8 mm (1.4 in)	31 of 100 (Routine)
Riva	Italy	Record high maximum temperature	14.0 C (57.2 F)	31 of 100 (Routine)
Corvallis State UNIV	United States	Record low minimum temperature	-5.6 C (21.9 F)	31 of 100 (Routine)
Vauxhall	Canada	Record daily snowfall	6.4 cm (2.5 in)	30 of 100 (Routine)
Zwartruggens (Pol)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	40.0 mm (1.6 in)	30 of 100 (Routine)
Ashland	United States	Record low minimum temperature	-7.8 C (18.0 F)	30 of 100 (Routine)
El-Golea	Algeria	Record low minimum temperature	-1.8 C (28.8 F)	29 of 100 (Routine)
Revelstoke	Canada	Record daily precipitation	48.5 mm (1.9 in)	29 of 100 (Routine)
Revelstoke	Canada	Record daily snowfall	48.5 cm (19.1 in)	29 of 100 (Routine)
Leslie (Mun)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	52.0 mm (2.0 in)	29 of 100 (Routine)
Ellendale	United States	Record high minimum temperature	2.8 C (37.0 F)	29 of 100 (Routine)
Lihue 1020	United States	Record low minimum temperature	11.7 C (53.1 F)	29 of 100 (Routine)
Kaslo	Canada	Record daily snowfall	14.7 cm (5.8 in)	28 of 100 (Routine)
Tg Jiu	Romania	Record daily precipitation	31.8 mm (1.3 in)	28 of 100 (Routine)
Phillipsburg 1 SSE	United States	Record high maximum temperature	21.7 C (71.1 F)	28 of 100 (Routine)
Cythera	Australia	Record daily precipitation	30.7 mm (1.2 in)	27 of 100 (Routine)
Avoca	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	46.0 mm (1.8 in)	27 of 100 (Routine)
Jonkersdam	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	47.0 mm (1.9 in)	27 of 100 (Routine)
McKenzie Rvr Rs	United States	Record high maximum temperature	13.9 C (57.0 F)	27 of 100 (Routine)
Itaete (Iguacu)	Brazil	Record daily precipitation	42.0 mm (1.7 in)	26 of 100 (Routine)
Brandon Cda	Canada	Record high minimum temperature	-0.6 C (30.9 F)	26 of 100 (Routine)
Virden	Canada	Record high minimum temperature	3.3 C (37.9 F)	26 of 100 (Routine)
Grants Pass	United States	Record low maximum temperature	0.0 C (32.0 F)	26 of 100 (Routine)
Bishop AP	United States	Record high maximum temperature	22.2 C (72.0 F)	26 of 100 (Routine)
Palmerville	Australia	Record daily precipitation	66.3 mm (2.6 in)	25 of 100 (Routine)
Einasleigh Township	Australia	Record daily precipitation	27.9 mm (1.1 in)	25 of 100 (Routine)
Ebor (Wongwibinda)	Australia	Record daily precipitation	54.6 mm (2.1 in)	25 of 100 (Routine)
Eagle Bay	Canada	Record daily snowfall	19.1 cm (7.5 in)	25 of 100 (Routine)
Garden Head	Canada	Record daily snowfall	8.9 cm (3.5 in)	25 of 100 (Routine)
Matehuala (Smn)	Mexico	Record low minimum temperature	0.0 C (32.0 F)	25 of 100 (Routine)
Zinder	Niger	Record high minimum temperature	21.4 C (70.5 F)	25 of 100 (Routine)
Elliotdale (Tnk)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	35.0 mm (1.4 in)	25 of 100 (Routine)

Counts by Type and Timescale

594 records

Records set or tied on 2 December 1956 by type: Highest daily maximum 186, Lowest daily maximum 20, Highest daily minimum 114, Lowest daily minimum 49, Heaviest daily rainfall 170, Heaviest daily snowfall 45, Deepest snow cover 10.

Records on 2 December 1956 by type
Record type	Records
Highest daily maximum	186
Lowest daily maximum	20
Highest daily minimum	114
Lowest daily minimum	49
Heaviest daily rainfall	170
Heaviest daily snowfall	45
Deepest snow cover	10

Records on 2 December 1956 by timescale: all-time 2, monthly 14, daily 578.

How Much Records Were Beaten By

459 broken records

Margins by which the 459 broken records beat the old ones, in degrees Celsius for temperature and millimetres for precipitation and snow; the largest margin was 305.0. Ties are not counted.

Top 20 by Significance

2 December 1956

Top 20 records on 2 December 1956 by significance
Date	Station	Record	Value	Beat old record by	Old record stood	Significance
2 December 1956	Durban-Botanical Gardens, ZA	daily rain	89.0 mm (3.5 in)	50.1 mm (2.0 in)	81 years	70 of 100 (Major)
2 December 1956	Kokpekty, KZ	monthly rain	37.1 mm (1.5 in)	14.7 mm (0.6 in)	14 years	59 of 100 (Notable)
2 December 1956	Big Creek, CA	all-time snowfall	45.0 cm (17.7 in)	6.9 cm (2.7 in)	38 years	50 of 100 (Notable)
2 December 1956	Cuddapah, IN	daily rain	43.2 mm (1.7 in)	33.5 mm (1.3 in)	27 years	50 of 100 (Notable)
2 December 1956	Skukuza, ZA	daily rain	102.0 mm (4.0 in)	70.0 mm (2.8 in)	22 years	45 of 100 (Notable)
2 December 1956	Sandbaken, ZA	daily rain	44.0 mm (1.7 in)	38.4 mm (1.5 in)	14 years	45 of 100 (Notable)
2 December 1956	Valemount, CA	daily rain	25.4 mm (1.0 in)	15.2 mm (0.6 in)	24 years	44 of 100 (Notable)
2 December 1956	Olds, CA	daily snowfall	12.7 cm (5.0 in)	10.2 cm (4.0 in)	7 years	44 of 100 (Notable)
2 December 1956	Virden, CA	daily high max	4.4 C (39.9 F)	13.8 C (24.8 F)	65 years	43 of 100 (Notable)
2 December 1956	Premier Mine-Cullinan, ZA	daily rain	50.8 mm (2.0 in)	41.7 mm (1.6 in)	27 years	42 of 100 (Notable)
2 December 1956	Hanna, CA	daily snowfall	12.7 cm (5.0 in)	10.2 cm (4.0 in)	14 years	40 of 100 (Notable)
2 December 1956	Kuranda Railway Station, AU	daily rain	83.1 mm (3.3 in)	52.4 mm (2.1 in)	57 years	39 of 100 (Notable)
2 December 1956	Big Creek, CA	all-time rain	45.0 mm (1.8 in)	4.1 mm (0.16 in)	21 years	39 of 100 (Notable)
2 December 1956	Uitzicht, ZA	daily rain	62.0 mm (2.4 in)	34.1 mm (1.3 in)	15 years	38 of 100 (Notable)
2 December 1956	Mowbray, AU	daily rain	64.8 mm (2.6 in)	42.7 mm (1.7 in)	32 years	37 of 100 (Notable)
2 December 1956	Sidhout(Siddavat), IN	daily rain	68.6 mm (2.7 in)	36.8 mm (1.4 in)	15 years	36 of 100 (Notable)
2 December 1956	Wonderfontein (Skl), ZA	daily rain	44.0 mm (1.7 in)	21.1 mm (0.8 in)	50 years	36 of 100 (Notable)
2 December 1956	Brisco, CA	daily snowfall	20.3 cm (8.0 in)	15.2 cm (6.0 in)	7 years	35 of 100 (Notable)
2 December 1956	Valemount, CA	daily snowfall	25.4 cm (10.0 in)	15.2 cm (6.0 in)	24 years	35 of 100 (Notable)
2 December 1956	Springkell, ZA	daily rain	53.5 mm (2.1 in)	29.6 mm (1.2 in)	18 years	34 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

1797 to 1956

Records set or tied on this calendar date in each year from 1797 to 1956. 1956 had 594 records.

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

Records on 12-02 in each year
Year	Records
1797	2
1807	2
1810	2
1817	1
1823	1
1828	1
1829	2
1846	1
1847	1
1852	1
1856	4
1857	1
1858	1
1859	1
1863	2
1867	1
1870	3
1871	1
1872	4
1873	1
1874	2
1875	4
1876	5
1878	1
1879	9
1884	2
1886	2
1887	2
1888	1
1889	1
1890	4
1892	1
1893	4
1894	3
1895	2
1896	3
1897	4
1898	10
1899	5
1900	1
1901	5
1902	6
1903	9
1904	1
1905	17
1906	10
1907	8
1908	15
1909	37
1910	18
1911	56
1912	81
1913	67
1914	101
1915	19
1916	169
1917	40
1918	50
1919	99
1920	43
1921	113
1922	59
1923	28
1924	168
1925	156
1926	167
1927	460
1928	77
1929	545
1930	272
1931	305
1932	525
1933	485
1934	194
1935	143
1936	331
1937	265
1938	335
1939	345
1940	551
1941	752
1942	835
1943	179
1944	276
1945	222
1946	198
1947	633
1948	211
1949	254
1950	598
1951	629
1952	614
1953	482
1954	317
1955	561
1956	594
1957	217
1958	442
1959	412
1960	410
1961	341
1962	1,144
1963	250
1964	726
1965	496
1966	1,117
1967	804
1968	753
1969	548
1970	1,232
1971	764
1972	547
1973	1,031
1974	1,019
1975	721
1976	920
1977	723
1978	1,056
1979	862
1980	1,428
1981	739
1982	3,111
1983	1,041
1984	701
1985	3,666
1986	887
1987	1,118
1988	613
1989	981
1990	616
1991	1,970
1992	719
1993	632
1994	632
1995	1,002
1996	1,180
1997	816
1998	1,732
1999	706
2000	735
2001	639
2002	615
2003	554
2004	798
2005	944
2006	1,388
2007	1,704
2008	871
2009	1,013
2010	1,602
2011	730
2012	1,265
2013	557
2014	546
2015	818
2016	269
2017	737
2018	1,152
2019	615
2020	534
2021	1,988
2022	771
2023	591
2024	715
2025	889

Download the Data

Data for records on 1956-12-02: 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 2026-10-16. Last revised 16 October 2026 (2026-10-16).

Margin	Records
0 to 50	437
50 to 100	17
100 to 150	2
150 to 200	2
200 to 250	0
250 to 300	0
300 to 350	1