Weather Records on 3 March 1974

1,849 weather records were set or tied worldwide on 3 March 1974. Highest significance: Pearston (Pol), ZA.

Key Facts for 3 March 1974

On 3 March 1974, 1,849 weather records were set or tied at long-record stations worldwide.
1,458 were record highs and 56 were record lows, counting maximum and minimum temperature.
By timescale, 6 were all-time records, 27 monthly and 1,816 daily.
Pearston (Pol) set a daily record precipitation of 74.0 mm (2.9 in) on 3 March 1974.
Across 159 earlier years (1804 to 2026) the same calendar date averaged 514 records.

Record Map

1,849 stations

1,849 station records on 3 March 1974 are marked on the map, coloured by record type. Dot size shows the significance score. Made with Natural Earth.

Weather records on 3 March 1974: highest significance records shown on the map
Station	Country	Type	Value	Significance
Pearston (Pol)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	74.0 mm (2.9 in)	71 of 100 (Major)
Richmond C/K (Tnk)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	78.0 mm (3.1 in)	65 of 100 (Major)
Bloemhof	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	68.1 mm (2.7 in)	64 of 100 (Major)
Bethesdaweg (Sar)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	120.0 mm (4.7 in)	64 of 100 (Major)
Kendrew Estates	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	38.5 mm (1.5 in)	63 of 100 (Major)
Somerset East	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	95.5 mm (3.8 in)	63 of 100 (Major)
Jansenville	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	37.0 mm (1.5 in)	62 of 100 (Major)
Leliekloof	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	52.2 mm (2.1 in)	61 of 100 (Major)
Philipstown (Tnk)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	62.0 mm (2.4 in)	61 of 100 (Major)
Balfour (Pol)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	50.0 mm (2.0 in)	60 of 100 (Major)
Lekkervlei	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	76.5 mm (3.0 in)	60 of 100 (Major)
Graaff Reinet	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	61.5 mm (2.4 in)	59 of 100 (Notable)
Port Alfred	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	113.0 mm (4.4 in)	58 of 100 (Notable)
Greatfish-Point Vrt	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	187.0 mm (7.4 in)	58 of 100 (Notable)
Roodebloem	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	68.5 mm (2.7 in)	58 of 100 (Notable)
Grootfontein	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	102.0 mm (4.0 in)	58 of 100 (Notable)
Van Staadens (Rsv)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	58.5 mm (2.3 in)	57 of 100 (Notable)
Longvale	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	72.5 mm (2.9 in)	57 of 100 (Notable)
Oukraal	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	80.5 mm (3.2 in)	57 of 100 (Notable)
Waterfall	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	74.0 mm (2.9 in)	57 of 100 (Notable)
Fir Glen	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	60.0 mm (2.4 in)	56 of 100 (Notable)
Schootefountain	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	78.8 mm (3.1 in)	56 of 100 (Notable)
The Mills	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	70.8 mm (2.8 in)	56 of 100 (Notable)
Soutwater	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	59.5 mm (2.3 in)	56 of 100 (Notable)
Goedehoop	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	55.5 mm (2.2 in)	56 of 100 (Notable)
Grahamstown	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	86.0 mm (3.4 in)	54 of 100 (Notable)
East London -Signal STN	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	48.0 mm (1.9 in)	54 of 100 (Notable)
Buxton (Bos)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	58.0 mm (2.3 in)	54 of 100 (Notable)
Hartebeesthoek	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	59.0 mm (2.3 in)	54 of 100 (Notable)
Groothoek	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	71.0 mm (2.8 in)	53 of 100 (Notable)
Bullara	Australia	Record daily precipitation	115.0 mm (4.5 in)	52 of 100 (Notable)
Noupoort	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	46.5 mm (1.8 in)	52 of 100 (Notable)
Mulgul	Australia	Record daily precipitation	77.2 mm (3.0 in)	51 of 100 (Notable)
Alexandria (Bos)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	61.0 mm (2.4 in)	51 of 100 (Notable)
Cata (Bos)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	67.0 mm (2.6 in)	51 of 100 (Notable)
Yuin	Australia	Record daily precipitation	39.6 mm (1.6 in)	50 of 100 (Notable)
Klipfontein	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	51.8 mm (2.0 in)	50 of 100 (Notable)
Fort Beaufort	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	64.0 mm (2.5 in)	50 of 100 (Notable)
Oulton	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	48.5 mm (1.9 in)	50 of 100 (Notable)
Houd Constant	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	83.5 mm (3.3 in)	50 of 100 (Notable)
Parysfontein	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	66.0 mm (2.6 in)	50 of 100 (Notable)
Sandpan	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	50.5 mm (2.0 in)	50 of 100 (Notable)
Doringkuil	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	110.0 mm (4.3 in)	49 of 100 (Notable)
Boogardie	Australia	Record daily precipitation	57.0 mm (2.2 in)	48 of 100 (Notable)
Clifton	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	67.5 mm (2.7 in)	48 of 100 (Notable)
Doornbosch	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	50.0 mm (2.0 in)	48 of 100 (Notable)
Lelie Shoek	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	59.0 mm (2.3 in)	48 of 100 (Notable)
Fazenda Agulhas Negras	Brazil	Record daily precipitation	97.0 mm (3.8 in)	47 of 100 (Notable)
Toronto	Canada	Record high maximum temperature	16.7 C (62.1 F)	47 of 100 (Notable)
Groenkloof	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	96.6 mm (3.8 in)	47 of 100 (Notable)
Heilbron "Smoordrif"	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	45.5 mm (1.8 in)	47 of 100 (Notable)
Fort Fordyce (Bos)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	75.0 mm (3.0 in)	46 of 100 (Notable)
Nieu-Bethesda (Pol)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	84.0 mm (3.3 in)	46 of 100 (Notable)
Dudleys	United States	Record daily snowfall	20.3 cm (8.0 in)	46 of 100 (Notable)
Winamac 2SSE	United States	Record high minimum temperature	14.4 C (57.9 F)	46 of 100 (Notable)
Aberdeen (Tnk)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	31.0 mm (1.2 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Yosemite Park HQ	United States	Record daily snowfall	40.6 cm (16.0 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Loerie (Bos)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	59.0 mm (2.3 in)	44 of 100 (Notable)
Grootvlakte	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	101.9 mm (4.0 in)	44 of 100 (Notable)
Washington	United States	Record high minimum temperature	13.3 C (55.9 F)	44 of 100 (Notable)

Counts by Type and Timescale

1,849 records

Records set or tied on 3 March 1974 by type: Highest daily maximum 690, Lowest daily maximum 30, Highest daily minimum 768, Lowest daily minimum 26, Heaviest daily rainfall 285, Heaviest daily snowfall 43, Deepest snow cover 7.

Records on 3 March 1974 by type
Record type	Records
Highest daily maximum	690
Lowest daily maximum	30
Highest daily minimum	768
Lowest daily minimum	26
Heaviest daily rainfall	285
Heaviest daily snowfall	43
Deepest snow cover	7

Records on 3 March 1974 by timescale: all-time 6, monthly 27, daily 1,816.

How Much Records Were Beaten By

1,590 broken records

Margins by which the 1,590 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

3 March 1974

Top 20 records on 3 March 1974 by significance
Date	Station	Record	Value	Beat old record by	Old record stood	Significance
3 March 1974	Pearston (Pol), ZA	daily rain	74.0 mm (2.9 in)	48.6 mm (1.9 in)	74 years	71 of 100 (Major)
3 March 1974	Richmond C/K (Tnk), ZA	daily rain	78.0 mm (3.1 in)	44.7 mm (1.8 in)	57 years	65 of 100 (Major)
3 March 1974	Bloemhof, ZA	daily rain	68.1 mm (2.7 in)	49.8 mm (2.0 in)	57 years	64 of 100 (Major)
3 March 1974	Bethesdaweg (Sar), ZA	all-time rain	120.0 mm (4.7 in)	18.4 mm (0.7 in)	72 years	64 of 100 (Major)
3 March 1974	Kendrew Estates, ZA	daily rain	38.5 mm (1.5 in)	30.6 mm (1.2 in)	73 years	63 of 100 (Major)
3 March 1974	Somerset East, ZA	daily rain	95.5 mm (3.8 in)	46.5 mm (1.8 in)	57 years	63 of 100 (Major)
3 March 1974	Jansenville, ZA	daily rain	37.0 mm (1.5 in)	29.9 mm (1.2 in)	72 years	62 of 100 (Major)
3 March 1974	Leliekloof, ZA	daily rain	52.2 mm (2.1 in)	37.5 mm (1.5 in)	60 years	61 of 100 (Major)
3 March 1974	Philipstown (Tnk), ZA	daily rain	62.0 mm (2.4 in)	30.2 mm (1.2 in)	92 years	61 of 100 (Major)
3 March 1974	Balfour (Pol), ZA	daily rain	50.0 mm (2.0 in)	29.9 mm (1.2 in)	86 years	60 of 100 (Major)
3 March 1974	Lekkervlei, ZA	daily rain	76.5 mm (3.0 in)	56.7 mm (2.2 in)	52 years	60 of 100 (Major)
3 March 1974	Graaff Reinet, ZA	daily rain	61.5 mm (2.4 in)	46.3 mm (1.8 in)	35 years	59 of 100 (Notable)
3 March 1974	Port Alfred, ZA	monthly rain	113.0 mm (4.4 in)	24.1 mm (0.9 in)	55 years	58 of 100 (Notable)
3 March 1974	Greatfish-Point Vrt, ZA	monthly rain	187.0 mm (7.4 in)	91.5 mm (3.6 in)	10 years	58 of 100 (Notable)
3 March 1974	Roodebloem, ZA	daily rain	68.5 mm (2.7 in)	50.0 mm (2.0 in)	35 years	58 of 100 (Notable)
3 March 1974	Grootfontein, ZA	daily rain	102.0 mm (4.0 in)	83.5 mm (3.3 in)	40 years	58 of 100 (Notable)
3 March 1974	Van Staadens (Rsv), ZA	daily rain	58.5 mm (2.3 in)	45.8 mm (1.8 in)	29 years	57 of 100 (Notable)
3 March 1974	Longvale, ZA	daily rain	72.5 mm (2.9 in)	61.1 mm (2.4 in)	40 years	57 of 100 (Notable)
3 March 1974	Oukraal, ZA	daily rain	80.5 mm (3.2 in)	57.6 mm (2.3 in)	40 years	57 of 100 (Notable)
3 March 1974	Waterfall, ZA	daily rain	74.0 mm (2.9 in)	53.4 mm (2.1 in)	36 years	57 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

1804 to 1974

Records set or tied on this calendar date in each year from 1804 to 1974. 1974 had 1,849 records.

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

Records on 03-03 in each year
Year	Records
1804	1
1840	1
1842	1
1843	1
1845	3
1846	3
1850	1
1851	2
1852	1
1853	1
1859	2
1862	2
1863	1
1866	1
1868	1
1869	1
1870	1
1875	1
1877	2
1878	2
1886	2
1887	1
1888	2
1889	4
1890	8
1891	2
1892	3
1893	1
1895	2
1896	6
1897	6
1898	4
1899	3
1900	9
1901	10
1902	8
1903	14
1904	9
1905	21
1906	24
1907	6
1908	7
1909	32
1910	6
1911	13
1912	73
1913	34
1914	24
1915	18
1916	36
1917	60
1918	61
1919	76
1920	56
1921	138
1922	56
1923	280
1924	83
1925	406
1926	152
1927	143
1928	79
1929	173
1930	203
1931	259
1932	279
1933	143
1934	504
1935	248
1936	265
1937	187
1938	455
1939	179
1940	300
1941	819
1942	454
1943	1,533
1944	366
1945	649
1946	530
1947	761
1948	449
1949	266
1950	780
1951	1,006
1952	810
1953	668
1954	480
1955	884
1956	669
1957	261
1958	247
1959	360
1960	2,276
1961	650
1962	568
1963	309
1964	794
1965	835
1966	949
1967	520
1968	697
1969	395
1970	705
1971	888
1972	1,141
1973	557
1974	1,849
1975	534
1976	1,611
1977	949
1978	1,504
1979	1,037
1980	1,741
1981	642
1982	968
1983	1,676
1984	378
1985	740
1986	987
1987	1,497
1988	1,081
1989	1,443
1990	775
1991	1,169
1992	1,354
1993	607
1994	1,574
1995	1,234
1996	693
1997	1,704
1998	957
1999	1,187
2000	1,049
2001	903
2002	1,880
2003	876
2004	778
2005	727
2006	604
2007	888
2008	917
2009	1,671
2010	685
2011	677
2012	866
2013	719
2014	2,301
2015	543
2016	545
2017	315
2018	516
2019	1,795
2020	678
2021	553
2022	962
2023	809
2024	1,359
2025	695
2026	970

Download the Data

Data for records on 1974-03-03: 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	1,555
50 to 100	23
100 to 150	7
150 to 200	3
200 to 250	0
250 to 300	1
300 to 350	1