Weather Records on 31 December 1973

1,370 weather records were set or tied worldwide on 31 December 1973. Highest significance: Warrumbungle (Cheddington), AU.

Key Facts for 31 December 1973

On 31 December 1973, 1,370 weather records were set or tied at long-record stations worldwide.
247 were record highs and 333 were record lows, counting maximum and minimum temperature.
By timescale, 10 were all-time records, 79 monthly and 1,281 daily.
Warrumbungle (Cheddington) set a daily record precipitation of 53.1 mm (2.1 in) on 31 December 1973.
Across 157 earlier years (1797 to 2025) the same calendar date averaged 481 records.

Record Map

1,370 stations

1,370 station records on 31 December 1973 are marked on the map, coloured by record type. Dot size shows the significance score. Made with Natural Earth.

Weather records on 31 December 1973: highest significance records shown on the map
Station	Country	Type	Value	Significance
Warrumbungle (Cheddington)	Australia	Record daily precipitation	53.1 mm (2.1 in)	71 of 100 (Major)
Cobar (Double Gates)	Australia	Record daily precipitation	70.6 mm (2.8 in)	68 of 100 (Major)
Tilpa (Tongo Road)	Australia	Record daily precipitation	63.8 mm (2.5 in)	60 of 100 (Major)
Girilambone (Ampol)	Australia	Record daily precipitation	64.0 mm (2.5 in)	60 of 100 (Major)
Mount Ryde	Australia	Record daily precipitation	64.8 mm (2.6 in)	59 of 100 (Notable)
Nyngan Airport	Australia	Record daily precipitation	55.1 mm (2.2 in)	58 of 100 (Notable)
Goodooga (Brenda)	Australia	Record daily precipitation	106.7 mm (4.2 in)	56 of 100 (Notable)
Van Wert 1 S	United States	Record daily snowfall	22.9 cm (9.0 in)	56 of 100 (Notable)
Hermann	United States	Record daily snowfall	27.4 cm (10.8 in)	54 of 100 (Notable)
Wilmington	Australia	Record daily precipitation	43.4 mm (1.7 in)	53 of 100 (Notable)
Middletown	United States	Record daily snowfall	12.7 cm (5.0 in)	53 of 100 (Notable)
Mallina	Australia	Record daily precipitation	37.3 mm (1.5 in)	52 of 100 (Notable)
Hebel Store	Australia	Record daily precipitation	100.6 mm (4.0 in)	52 of 100 (Notable)
Talladega	United States	Record daily precipitation	96.5 mm (3.8 in)	52 of 100 (Notable)
Mansfield 5 W	United States	Record daily snowfall	15.2 cm (6.0 in)	52 of 100 (Notable)
Nyngan (Canonbar)	Australia	Record daily precipitation	56.4 mm (2.2 in)	51 of 100 (Notable)
Valley Park	United States	Record daily snowfall	20.3 cm (8.0 in)	51 of 100 (Notable)
Warsaw 1	United States	Record snow depth	25.4 cm (10.0 in)	51 of 100 (Notable)
Gilgandra (Wallumburrawang)	Australia	Record daily precipitation	58.4 mm (2.3 in)	50 of 100 (Notable)
Shakawe	Botswana	Record daily precipitation	76.9 mm (3.0 in)	49 of 100 (Notable)
Greenville	United States	Record daily snowfall	25.4 cm (10.0 in)	49 of 100 (Notable)
St Charles Elm Pt	United States	Record daily snowfall	25.4 cm (10.0 in)	49 of 100 (Notable)
Miamisburg	United States	Record daily snowfall	14.0 cm (5.5 in)	49 of 100 (Notable)
Collerina (Kenebree)	Australia	Record daily precipitation	55.4 mm (2.2 in)	48 of 100 (Notable)
Coonamble Comparison	Australia	Record daily precipitation	49.5 mm (1.9 in)	48 of 100 (Notable)
Warren (Haddon Rig)	Australia	Record daily precipitation	40.9 mm (1.6 in)	48 of 100 (Notable)
Wagga Wagga (Kooringal)	Australia	Record daily precipitation	30.7 mm (1.2 in)	48 of 100 (Notable)
Brewarrina Hospital	Australia	Record daily precipitation	48.3 mm (1.9 in)	47 of 100 (Notable)
Rolla Missouri S&T	United States	Record daily snowfall	15.2 cm (6.0 in)	47 of 100 (Notable)
Mandurama (Gallymont (Homeleig	Australia	Record daily precipitation	43.9 mm (1.7 in)	46 of 100 (Notable)
Wilmot (Back Road)	Australia	Record daily precipitation	77.2 mm (3.0 in)	46 of 100 (Notable)
Edwardsville 2 W	United States	Record daily snowfall	20.8 cm (8.2 in)	46 of 100 (Notable)
Greenville Wtp	United States	Record daily snowfall	12.7 cm (5.0 in)	46 of 100 (Notable)
Goodooga (Mogila)	Australia	Record daily precipitation	71.9 mm (2.8 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Eldon	United States	Record snow depth	27.9 cm (11.0 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Lakeside	United States	Record daily snowfall	20.3 cm (8.0 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Premer Post Office	Australia	Record daily precipitation	41.7 mm (1.6 in)	44 of 100 (Notable)
Burrinjuck Dam	Australia	Record daily precipitation	72.4 mm (2.9 in)	44 of 100 (Notable)
Hillston (Willanthry)	Australia	Record daily precipitation	27.9 mm (1.1 in)	44 of 100 (Notable)
Calera	United States	Record daily precipitation	121.9 mm (4.8 in)	44 of 100 (Notable)
Greensboro	United States	Record daily precipitation	116.8 mm (4.6 in)	44 of 100 (Notable)
Fulton	United States	Record snow depth	27.9 cm (11.0 in)	44 of 100 (Notable)
Prospect	United States	Record daily snowfall	12.7 cm (5.0 in)	44 of 100 (Notable)
Van Wert 1 S	United States	Record snow depth	25.4 cm (10.0 in)	44 of 100 (Notable)
Carlindie	Australia	Record daily precipitation	38.6 mm (1.5 in)	43 of 100 (Notable)
Collerina (Corrella)	Australia	Record daily precipitation	52.6 mm (2.1 in)	43 of 100 (Notable)
Collarenebri (Goondoobluie)	Australia	Record daily precipitation	51.8 mm (2.0 in)	43 of 100 (Notable)
Grenfell (Quondong Rd)	Australia	Record daily precipitation	47.5 mm (1.9 in)	43 of 100 (Notable)
Port Dalhousie	Canada	Record daily snowfall	10.2 cm (4.0 in)	43 of 100 (Notable)
Mitchell 5E	United States	Record snow depth	15.2 cm (6.0 in)	43 of 100 (Notable)
Gulargambone (Yalcogrin St)	Australia	Record daily precipitation	68.6 mm (2.7 in)	42 of 100 (Notable)
Pana	United States	Record daily snowfall	24.1 cm (9.5 in)	42 of 100 (Notable)
Uraidla	Australia	Record daily precipitation	29.7 mm (1.2 in)	41 of 100 (Notable)
Gulargambone (Emby)	Australia	Record daily precipitation	56.9 mm (2.2 in)	41 of 100 (Notable)
Quambone (Oxley)	Australia	Record daily precipitation	52.1 mm (2.1 in)	41 of 100 (Notable)
Koetong	Australia	Record daily precipitation	55.4 mm (2.2 in)	41 of 100 (Notable)
Dresden	United States	Record snow depth	27.9 cm (11.0 in)	41 of 100 (Notable)
Centralia	United States	Record daily snowfall	30.5 cm (12.0 in)	41 of 100 (Notable)
Waterville 2	United States	Record daily precipitation	42.7 mm (1.7 in)	41 of 100 (Notable)
Rogersville 1 NE	United States	Record daily precipitation	46.5 mm (1.8 in)	41 of 100 (Notable)

Counts by Type and Timescale

1,370 records

Records set or tied on 31 December 1973 by type: Highest daily maximum 149, Lowest daily maximum 222, Highest daily minimum 98, Lowest daily minimum 111, Heaviest daily rainfall 512, Heaviest daily snowfall 200, Deepest snow cover 78.

Records on 31 December 1973 by type
Record type	Records
Highest daily maximum	149
Lowest daily maximum	222
Highest daily minimum	98
Lowest daily minimum	111
Heaviest daily rainfall	512
Heaviest daily snowfall	200
Deepest snow cover	78

Records on 31 December 1973 by timescale: all-time 10, monthly 79, daily 1,281.

How Much Records Were Beaten By

1,158 broken records

Margins by which the 1,158 broken records beat the old ones, in degrees Celsius for temperature and millimetres for precipitation and snow; the largest margin was 220.0. Ties are not counted.

Top 20 by Significance

31 December 1973

Top 20 records on 31 December 1973 by significance
Date	Station	Record	Value	Beat old record by	Old record stood	Significance
31 December 1973	Warrumbungle (Cheddington), AU	daily rain	53.1 mm (2.1 in)	49.3 mm (1.9 in)	78 years	71 of 100 (Major)
31 December 1973	Cobar (Double Gates), AU	daily rain	70.6 mm (2.8 in)	62.5 mm (2.5 in)	68 years	68 of 100 (Major)
31 December 1973	Tilpa (Tongo Road), AU	daily rain	63.8 mm (2.5 in)	54.9 mm (2.2 in)	38 years	60 of 100 (Major)
31 December 1973	Girilambone (Ampol), AU	daily rain	64.0 mm (2.5 in)	43.2 mm (1.7 in)	68 years	60 of 100 (Major)
31 December 1973	Mount Ryde, AU	daily rain	64.8 mm (2.6 in)	47.0 mm (1.9 in)	56 years	59 of 100 (Notable)
31 December 1973	Nyngan Airport, AU	daily rain	55.1 mm (2.2 in)	41.9 mm (1.6 in)	59 years	58 of 100 (Notable)
31 December 1973	Goodooga (Brenda), AU	monthly rain	106.7 mm (4.2 in)	30.0 mm (1.2 in)	46 years	56 of 100 (Notable)
31 December 1973	Van Wert 1 S, US	daily snowfall	22.9 cm (9.0 in)	15.3 cm (6.0 in)	32 years	56 of 100 (Notable)
31 December 1973	Hermann, US	monthly snowfall	27.4 cm (10.8 in)	7.1 cm (2.8 in)	58 years	54 of 100 (Notable)
31 December 1973	Wilmington, AU	daily rain	43.4 mm (1.7 in)	35.5 mm (1.4 in)	16 years	53 of 100 (Notable)
31 December 1973	Middletown, US	daily snowfall	12.7 cm (5.0 in)	12.7 cm (5.0 in)	48 years	53 of 100 (Notable)
31 December 1973	Mallina, AU	daily rain	37.3 mm (1.5 in)	27.1 mm (1.1 in)	60 years	52 of 100 (Notable)
31 December 1973	Hebel Store, AU	monthly rain	100.6 mm (4.0 in)	29.2 mm (1.1 in)	46 years	52 of 100 (Notable)
31 December 1973	Talladega, US	daily rain	96.5 mm (3.8 in)	54.3 mm (2.1 in)	36 years	52 of 100 (Notable)
31 December 1973	Mansfield 5 W, US	daily snowfall	15.2 cm (6.0 in)	7.6 cm (3.0 in)	72 years	52 of 100 (Notable)
31 December 1973	Nyngan (Canonbar), AU	daily rain	56.4 mm (2.2 in)	33.5 mm (1.3 in)	59 years	51 of 100 (Notable)
31 December 1973	Valley Park, US	daily snowfall	20.3 cm (8.0 in)	12.7 cm (5.0 in)	46 years	51 of 100 (Notable)
31 December 1973	Warsaw 1, US	monthly snow depth	25.4 cm (10.0 in)	5.1 cm (2.0 in)	74 years	51 of 100 (Notable)
31 December 1973	Gilgandra (Wallumburrawang), AU	daily rain	58.4 mm (2.3 in)	30.5 mm (1.2 in)	59 years	50 of 100 (Notable)
31 December 1973	Shakawe, BW	daily rain	76.9 mm (3.0 in)	53.6 mm (2.1 in)	18 years	49 of 100 (Notable)

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 1973

Records set or tied on this calendar date in each year from 1797 to 1973. 1973 had 1,370 records.

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

Records on 12-31 in each year
Year	Records
1797	1
1799	2
1826	1
1836	1
1842	2
1850	3
1853	1
1854	1
1859	1
1860	1
1867	1
1870	2
1872	2
1874	4
1875	2
1876	2
1878	2
1879	2
1880	2
1882	1
1884	2
1885	1
1886	3
1887	1
1888	2
1890	2
1891	8
1892	4
1895	4
1897	6
1898	5
1899	4
1900	3
1901	16
1902	3
1903	3
1904	11
1905	9
1906	31
1907	11
1908	7
1909	5
1910	25
1911	14
1912	17
1913	46
1914	34
1915	32
1916	25
1917	239
1918	24
1919	38
1920	64
1921	130
1922	83
1923	280
1924	113
1925	183
1926	77
1927	491
1928	53
1929	224
1930	58
1931	543
1932	394
1933	409
1934	181
1935	309
1936	567
1937	500
1938	247
1939	298
1940	467
1941	159
1942	352
1943	159
1944	259
1945	210
1946	707
1947	461
1948	591
1949	384
1950	310
1951	1,421
1952	377
1953	410
1954	286
1955	429
1956	216
1957	724
1958	584
1959	414
1960	389
1961	309
1962	810
1963	1,015
1964	388
1965	1,371
1966	326
1967	1,023
1968	1,371
1969	825
1970	579
1971	568
1972	836
1973	1,370
1974	590
1975	791
1976	1,306
1977	641
1978	2,791
1979	448
1980	1,448
1981	786
1982	639
1983	2,220
1984	942
1985	593
1986	616
1987	845
1988	600
1989	506
1990	1,379
1991	703
1992	1,062
1993	718
1994	878
1995	1,151
1996	2,202
1997	988
1998	739
1999	524
2000	1,575
2001	748
2002	1,232
2003	523
2004	1,278
2005	959
2006	2,089
2007	652
2008	656
2009	867
2010	1,544
2011	739
2012	803
2013	606
2014	903
2015	748
2016	678
2017	1,589
2018	620
2019	593
2020	489
2021	1,739
2022	1,497
2023	474
2024	460
2025	760

Download the Data

Data for records on 1973-12-31: 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	1,049
50 to 100	78
100 to 150	25
150 to 200	5
200 to 250	1