Weather Records on 21 October 1973

464 weather records were set or tied worldwide on 21 October 1973. Highest significance: Swansea Post Office, AU.

Key Facts for 21 October 1973

On 21 October 1973, 464 weather records were set or tied at long-record stations worldwide.
160 were record highs and 79 were record lows, counting maximum and minimum temperature.
By timescale, 0 were all-time records, 4 monthly and 460 daily.
Swansea Post Office set a daily record precipitation of 53.3 mm (2.1 in) on 21 October 1973.
Across 167 earlier years (1795 to 2025) the same calendar date averaged 420 records.

Record Map

464 stations

464 station records on 21 October 1973 are marked on the map, coloured by record type. Dot size shows the significance score. Made with Natural Earth.

Weather records on 21 October 1973: highest significance records shown on the map
Station	Country	Type	Value	Significance
Swansea Post Office	Australia	Record daily precipitation	53.3 mm (2.1 in)	54 of 100 (Notable)
Drevja	Norway	Record snow depth	50.0 cm (19.7 in)	47 of 100 (Notable)
Jericho (Bowsden)	Australia	Record daily precipitation	37.1 mm (1.5 in)	46 of 100 (Notable)
Westbury (Valley View)	Australia	Record daily precipitation	36.8 mm (1.4 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Grootfontein	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	25.0 mm (1.0 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Riddle	United States	Record daily precipitation	38.4 mm (1.5 in)	43 of 100 (Notable)
Southport	Australia	Record daily precipitation	29.5 mm (1.2 in)	40 of 100 (Notable)
Santa Rita de Cassia	Brazil	Record daily precipitation	45.2 mm (1.8 in)	40 of 100 (Notable)
Medford Exp STN	United States	Record daily precipitation	35.6 mm (1.4 in)	38 of 100 (Notable)
Hartbeespoort Dam (Irr)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	61.5 mm (2.4 in)	37 of 100 (Notable)
Sacramento 5 ESE	United States	Record high minimum temperature	15.6 C (60.1 F)	37 of 100 (Notable)
Cygnet (Slab Road)	Australia	Record daily precipitation	32.8 mm (1.3 in)	36 of 100 (Notable)
Isidinge (Bos)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	32.0 mm (1.3 in)	36 of 100 (Notable)
Umea	Sweden	Record low maximum temperature	-3.2 C (26.2 F)	36 of 100 (Notable)
Pitea	Sweden	Record low maximum temperature	-5.5 C (22.1 F)	36 of 100 (Notable)
Oelrichs	United States	Record high minimum temperature	10.6 C (51.1 F)	36 of 100 (Notable)
De Kroon (Irr)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	53.5 mm (2.1 in)	35 of 100 (Notable)
Nevada City	United States	Record high minimum temperature	10.6 C (51.1 F)	35 of 100 (Notable)
McGrath AP	United States	Record snow depth	27.9 cm (11.0 in)	35 of 100 (Notable)
Kentfield	United States	Record high minimum temperature	13.9 C (57.0 F)	34 of 100 (Routine)
Sunnyside	United States	Record high minimum temperature	11.1 C (52.0 F)	33 of 100 (Routine)
Deloraine (Athol)	Australia	Record daily precipitation	36.8 mm (1.4 in)	32 of 100 (Routine)
Maria Island (Darlington)	Australia	Record daily precipitation	52.8 mm (2.1 in)	32 of 100 (Routine)
Sandfontein (Irr)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	45.5 mm (1.8 in)	31 of 100 (Routine)
Downieville	United States	Record high minimum temperature	8.9 C (48.0 F)	31 of 100 (Routine)
Orleans	United States	Record daily precipitation	69.9 mm (2.8 in)	31 of 100 (Routine)
Ft Meade	United States	Record high minimum temperature	15.0 C (59.0 F)	31 of 100 (Routine)
Fort Direction	Australia	Record daily precipitation	34.5 mm (1.4 in)	30 of 100 (Routine)
Mauth-Finsterau	Germany	Record daily precipitation	32.2 mm (1.3 in)	30 of 100 (Routine)
Riverside 7 SSW	United States	Record high minimum temperature	9.4 C (48.9 F)	30 of 100 (Routine)
Sorell (Whitlea)	Australia	Record daily precipitation	34.5 mm (1.4 in)	29 of 100 (Routine)
Apslawn	Australia	Record daily precipitation	38.1 mm (1.5 in)	28 of 100 (Routine)
Moosomin	Canada	Record high maximum temperature	21.1 C (70.0 F)	28 of 100 (Routine)
Liafoss	Norway	Record snow depth	31.0 cm (12.2 in)	28 of 100 (Routine)
Saint Johns	United States	Record high maximum temperature	28.3 C (82.9 F)	28 of 100 (Routine)
Talkeetna AP	United States	Record snow depth	33.0 cm (13.0 in)	28 of 100 (Routine)
Dohne	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	32.0 mm (1.3 in)	27 of 100 (Routine)
Tejon Rancho	United States	Record low minimum temperature	3.9 C (39.0 F)	27 of 100 (Routine)
Biskra	Algeria	Record high minimum temperature	24.0 C (75.2 F)	26 of 100 (Routine)
Rokeby (the Mall)	Australia	Record daily precipitation	42.2 mm (1.7 in)	26 of 100 (Routine)
Luroy	Norway	Record snow depth	54.0 cm (21.3 in)	26 of 100 (Routine)
Kjobli I Snaasa	Norway	Record snow depth	29.0 cm (11.4 in)	26 of 100 (Routine)
Waterford	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	30.5 mm (1.2 in)	26 of 100 (Routine)
Deland 1 SSE	United States	Record daily precipitation	32.8 mm (1.3 in)	26 of 100 (Routine)
Brookings	United States	Record daily precipitation	37.8 mm (1.5 in)	26 of 100 (Routine)
Condon	United States	Record high minimum temperature	7.8 C (46.0 F)	26 of 100 (Routine)
Lake 2 N	United States	Record high minimum temperature	6.7 C (44.1 F)	26 of 100 (Routine)
Reboly	Russia	Record low minimum temperature	-11.2 C (11.8 F)	25 of 100 (Routine)
Gaddede	Sweden	Record snow depth	10.0 cm (3.9 in)	25 of 100 (Routine)
Victor	United States	Record high minimum temperature	4.4 C (39.9 F)	25 of 100 (Routine)
Chiloquin 1 E	United States	Record high minimum temperature	7.2 C (45.0 F)	25 of 100 (Routine)
Davenport	United States	Record high minimum temperature	10.0 C (50.0 F)	25 of 100 (Routine)
Guanacevi (Smn)	Mexico	Record high minimum temperature	13.9 C (57.0 F)	24 of 100 (Routine)
Nesbyen-Skoglund	Norway	Record low minimum temperature	-13.2 C (8.2 F)	24 of 100 (Routine)
Oslo Blindern	Norway	Record low minimum temperature	-5.8 C (21.6 F)	24 of 100 (Routine)
Petrozawodsk	Russia	Record low minimum temperature	-10.4 C (13.3 F)	24 of 100 (Routine)
Karlstad	Sweden	Record low minimum temperature	-8.6 C (16.5 F)	24 of 100 (Routine)
Remningstorp	Sweden	Record low minimum temperature	-6.1 C (21.0 F)	24 of 100 (Routine)
Edeback	Sweden	Record low minimum temperature	-10.4 C (13.3 F)	24 of 100 (Routine)
Sacaton	United States	Record high maximum temperature	39.4 C (102.9 F)	24 of 100 (Routine)

Counts by Type and Timescale

464 records

Records set or tied on 21 October 1973 by type: Highest daily maximum 56, Lowest daily maximum 33, Highest daily minimum 104, Lowest daily minimum 46, Heaviest daily rainfall 205, Heaviest daily snowfall 4, Deepest snow cover 16.

Records on 21 October 1973 by type
Record type	Records
Highest daily maximum	56
Lowest daily maximum	33
Highest daily minimum	104
Lowest daily minimum	46
Heaviest daily rainfall	205
Heaviest daily snowfall	4
Deepest snow cover	16

Records on 21 October 1973 by timescale: all-time 0, monthly 4, daily 460.

How Much Records Were Beaten By

397 broken records

Margins by which the 397 broken records beat the old ones, in degrees Celsius for temperature and millimetres for precipitation and snow; the largest margin was 250.0. Ties are not counted.

Top 20 by Significance

21 October 1973

Top 20 records on 21 October 1973 by significance
Date	Station	Record	Value	Beat old record by	Old record stood	Significance
21 October 1973	Swansea Post Office, AU	daily rain	53.3 mm (2.1 in)	26.9 mm (1.1 in)	20 years	54 of 100 (Notable)
21 October 1973	Drevja, NO	daily snow depth	50.0 cm (19.7 in)	25.0 cm (9.8 in)	48 years	47 of 100 (Notable)
21 October 1973	Jericho (Bowsden), AU	daily rain	37.1 mm (1.5 in)	25.4 mm (1.0 in)	7 years	46 of 100 (Notable)
21 October 1973	Westbury (Valley View), AU	daily rain	36.8 mm (1.4 in)	16.2 mm (0.6 in)	56 years	45 of 100 (Notable)
21 October 1973	Grootfontein, ZA	daily rain	25.0 mm (1.0 in)	25.0 mm (1.0 in)	60 years	45 of 100 (Notable)
21 October 1973	Riddle, US	daily rain	38.4 mm (1.5 in)	25.4 mm (1.0 in)	30 years	43 of 100 (Notable)
21 October 1973	Southport, AU	daily rain	29.5 mm (1.2 in)	14.8 mm (0.6 in)	44 years	40 of 100 (Notable)
21 October 1973	Santa Rita de Cassia, BR	daily rain	45.2 mm (1.8 in)	31.2 mm (1.2 in)	28 years	40 of 100 (Notable)
21 October 1973	Medford Exp STN, US	daily rain	35.6 mm (1.4 in)	24.2 mm (1.0 in)	30 years	38 of 100 (Notable)
21 October 1973	Hartbeespoort Dam (Irr), ZA	monthly rain	61.5 mm (2.4 in)	6.1 mm (0.24 in)	52 years	37 of 100 (Notable)
21 October 1973	Sacramento 5 ESE, US	daily high min	15.6 C (60.1 F)	1.7 C (3.1 F)	74 years	37 of 100 (Notable)
21 October 1973	Cygnet (Slab Road), AU	daily rain	32.8 mm (1.3 in)	17.8 mm (0.7 in)	24 years	36 of 100 (Notable)
21 October 1973	Isidinge (Bos), ZA	daily rain	32.0 mm (1.3 in)	6.9 mm (0.27 in)	73 years	36 of 100 (Notable)
21 October 1973	Umea, SE	daily low max	-3.2 C (26.2 F)	0.7 C (1.3 F)	87 years	36 of 100 (Notable)
21 October 1973	Pitea, SE	daily low max	-5.5 C (22.1 F)	0.5 C (0.9 F)	87 years	36 of 100 (Notable)
21 October 1973	Oelrichs, US	daily high min	10.6 C (51.1 F)	2.8 C (5.0 F)	73 years	36 of 100 (Notable)
21 October 1973	De Kroon (Irr), ZA	daily rain	53.5 mm (2.1 in)	26.6 mm (1.0 in)	22 years	35 of 100 (Notable)
21 October 1973	Nevada City, US	daily high min	10.6 C (51.1 F)	1.7 C (3.1 F)	73 years	35 of 100 (Notable)
21 October 1973	McGrath AP, US	daily snow depth	27.9 cm (11.0 in)	12.7 cm (5.0 in)	28 years	35 of 100 (Notable)
21 October 1973	Kentfield, US	daily high min	13.9 C (57.0 F)	2.2 C (4.0 F)	67 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

1795 to 1973

Records set or tied on this calendar date in each year from 1795 to 1973. 1973 had 464 records.

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

Records on 10-21 in each year
Year	Records
1795	1
1802	2
1805	1
1808	1
1810	1
1834	1
1835	1
1840	1
1845	1
1847	1
1850	1
1851	2
1854	1
1859	1
1863	1
1864	1
1866	3
1867	1
1868	3
1869	2
1871	1
1872	1
1873	1
1874	1
1876	4
1877	2
1878	1
1880	3
1881	1
1883	1
1886	1
1888	2
1889	2
1890	3
1891	6
1892	6
1893	1
1894	1
1895	2
1896	5
1898	6
1899	3
1900	2
1901	9
1902	2
1903	3
1904	30
1905	15
1906	11
1907	35
1908	35
1909	19
1910	21
1911	10
1912	18
1913	59
1914	35
1915	43
1916	70
1917	208
1918	18
1919	102
1920	149
1921	58
1922	78
1923	81
1924	389
1925	150
1926	77
1927	187
1928	78
1929	200
1930	492
1931	217
1932	165
1933	733
1934	407
1935	707
1936	407
1937	132
1938	121
1939	491
1940	537
1941	644
1942	258
1943	421
1944	367
1945	538
1946	297
1947	977
1948	266
1949	1,015
1950	438
1951	382
1952	848
1953	1,579
1954	279
1955	481
1956	276
1957	511
1958	322
1959	410
1960	408
1961	553
1962	359
1963	725
1964	457
1965	465
1966	425
1967	472
1968	174
1969	881
1970	548
1971	498
1972	813
1973	464
1974	866
1975	509
1976	1,467
1977	451
1978	616
1979	1,958
1980	378
1981	667
1982	870
1983	786
1984	1,872
1985	776
1986	814
1987	852
1988	696
1989	1,668
1990	807
1991	877
1992	1,095
1993	845
1994	670
1995	1,120
1996	1,581
1997	915
1998	711
1999	688
2000	771
2001	610
2002	1,241
2003	2,066
2004	1,674
2005	949
2006	1,057
2007	916
2008	610
2009	713
2010	710
2011	662
2012	703
2013	440
2014	716
2015	493
2016	734
2017	750
2018	440
2019	757
2020	1,135
2021	574
2022	629
2023	890
2024	1,138
2025	364

Download the Data

Data for records on 1973-10-21: 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 2026-10-13 (13 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 50	389
50 to 100	3
100 to 150	3
150 to 200	0
200 to 250	2