Weather Records on 21 December 1977

470 weather records were set or tied worldwide on 21 December 1977. Highest significance: Lichtenburg, ZA.

Key Facts for 21 December 1977

On 21 December 1977, 470 weather records were set or tied at long-record stations worldwide.
90 were record highs and 93 were record lows, counting maximum and minimum temperature.
By timescale, 2 were all-time records, 14 monthly and 454 daily.
Lichtenburg set a daily record precipitation of 85.1 mm (3.4 in) on 21 December 1977.
Across 158 earlier years (1793 to 2025) the same calendar date averaged 489 records.

Record Map

470 stations

470 station records on 21 December 1977 are marked on the map, coloured by record type. Dot size shows the significance score. Made with Natural Earth.

Weather records on 21 December 1977: highest significance records shown on the map
Station	Country	Type	Value	Significance
Lichtenburg	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	85.1 mm (3.4 in)	55 of 100 (Notable)
Goedemoed	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	87.5 mm (3.4 in)	54 of 100 (Notable)
Perkins	Canada	Record daily precipitation	46.2 mm (1.8 in)	53 of 100 (Notable)
Bowman	United States	Record snow depth	50.8 cm (20.0 in)	53 of 100 (Notable)
Barrage (Rwb)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	71.0 mm (2.8 in)	52 of 100 (Notable)
Ashgrove	Australia	Record daily precipitation	139.0 mm (5.5 in)	51 of 100 (Notable)
Barrage Mercier	Canada	Record daily snowfall	32.5 cm (12.8 in)	50 of 100 (Notable)
Lewiston	United States	Record snow depth	33.0 cm (13.0 in)	50 of 100 (Notable)
Brockville	Canada	Record daily snowfall	20.0 cm (7.9 in)	48 of 100 (Notable)
Ottawa Cda	Canada	Record daily snowfall	24.6 cm (9.7 in)	48 of 100 (Notable)
Gouverneur 3 NW	United States	Record daily snowfall	30.5 cm (12.0 in)	47 of 100 (Notable)
Barrage Mercier	Canada	Record daily precipitation	32.5 mm (1.3 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Barkly Downs	Australia	Record daily precipitation	68.0 mm (2.7 in)	44 of 100 (Notable)
Mandan Exp STN	United States	Record snow depth	45.7 cm (18.0 in)	44 of 100 (Notable)
Carpina (Floresta Dos Leoes)	Brazil	Record daily precipitation	117.2 mm (4.6 in)	42 of 100 (Notable)
Powell Creek	Australia	Record daily precipitation	36.4 mm (1.4 in)	40 of 100 (Notable)
Joinville (Rvpsc)	Brazil	Record daily precipitation	59.0 mm (2.3 in)	40 of 100 (Notable)
Grand Haven Fire Dept	United States	Record daily precipitation	32.8 mm (1.3 in)	40 of 100 (Notable)
St Charles de Mandeville	Canada	Record daily snowfall	21.8 cm (8.6 in)	39 of 100 (Notable)
Richmond	Canada	Record daily snowfall	8.9 cm (3.5 in)	39 of 100 (Notable)
Rietfontein	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	62.8 mm (2.5 in)	39 of 100 (Notable)
Ogdensburg 4 NE	United States	Record daily snowfall	25.4 cm (10.0 in)	39 of 100 (Notable)
Puerto Madero	Mexico	Record low minimum temperature	10.6 C (51.1 F)	38 of 100 (Notable)
Ottawa Macdonald-Cartier Int'l	Canada	Record daily precipitation	30.8 mm (1.2 in)	37 of 100 (Notable)
Lourensgeluk	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	51.0 mm (2.0 in)	36 of 100 (Notable)
Grand Haven Fire Dept	United States	Record daily snowfall	22.9 cm (9.0 in)	36 of 100 (Notable)
Ogdensburg 4 NE	United States	Record daily precipitation	33.5 mm (1.3 in)	36 of 100 (Notable)
Marshfield Exp Farm	United States	Record daily snowfall	17.8 cm (7.0 in)	36 of 100 (Notable)
Granada Station	Australia	Record daily precipitation	96.6 mm (3.8 in)	35 of 100 (Notable)
Calton Hills Station	Australia	Record daily precipitation	97.0 mm (3.8 in)	35 of 100 (Notable)
Emerald Post Office	Australia	Record daily precipitation	59.6 mm (2.3 in)	35 of 100 (Notable)
Trenton A	Canada	Record daily snowfall	18.7 cm (7.4 in)	35 of 100 (Notable)
Dixon Wwtp	United States	Record daily snowfall	11.9 cm (4.7 in)	35 of 100 (Notable)
Heber	United States	Record low maximum temperature	-11.1 C (12.0 F)	35 of 100 (Notable)
Manfred Downs Station	Australia	Record daily precipitation	64.4 mm (2.5 in)	34 of 100 (Routine)
Grootkuil	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	31.5 mm (1.2 in)	34 of 100 (Routine)
Slurry	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	58.8 mm (2.3 in)	34 of 100 (Routine)
Ft Ross	United States	Record high maximum temperature	18.9 C (66.0 F)	34 of 100 (Routine)
Medford	United States	Record daily snowfall	8.9 cm (3.5 in)	34 of 100 (Routine)
Ottawa Macdonald-Cartier Int'l	Canada	Record daily snowfall	30.4 cm (12.0 in)	33 of 100 (Routine)
Verkykerskop (Pol)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	58.5 mm (2.3 in)	33 of 100 (Routine)
Chula Vista	United States	Record high minimum temperature	16.1 C (61.0 F)	33 of 100 (Routine)
Union Grove Wwtp	United States	Record daily snowfall	20.3 cm (8.0 in)	33 of 100 (Routine)
Cabanda Station	Australia	Record daily precipitation	107.2 mm (4.2 in)	32 of 100 (Routine)
Idomia	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	28.5 mm (1.1 in)	32 of 100 (Routine)
Lowville	United States	Record daily snowfall	27.9 cm (11.0 in)	32 of 100 (Routine)
Snake Rvr	United States	Record low maximum temperature	-11.7 C (10.9 F)	32 of 100 (Routine)
Maasbult	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	41.7 mm (1.6 in)	31 of 100 (Routine)
Blair	United States	Record daily snowfall	14.2 cm (5.6 in)	31 of 100 (Routine)
Fulton L&D #13	United States	Record daily snowfall	15.2 cm (6.0 in)	30 of 100 (Routine)
Utica Starved Rock Dam	United States	Record daily snowfall	10.2 cm (4.0 in)	30 of 100 (Routine)
Haverhill	United States	Record daily precipitation	30.0 mm (1.2 in)	30 of 100 (Routine)
Paulding	United States	Record snow depth	25.4 cm (10.0 in)	30 of 100 (Routine)
Long Lake Dam	United States	Record daily snowfall	10.2 cm (4.0 in)	30 of 100 (Routine)
Naalehu 14	United States	Record low maximum temperature	22.2 C (72.0 F)	30 of 100 (Routine)
Perkins	Canada	Record daily snowfall	46.2 cm (18.2 in)	29 of 100 (Routine)
Elgin Water	United States	Record daily snowfall	16.3 cm (6.4 in)	29 of 100 (Routine)
Devoncourt Station	Australia	Record daily precipitation	43.0 mm (1.7 in)	28 of 100 (Routine)
Matias Romero (Smn)	Mexico	Record daily precipitation	27.9 mm (1.1 in)	28 of 100 (Routine)
Grootvlei (Pol)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	41.0 mm (1.6 in)	28 of 100 (Routine)

Counts by Type and Timescale

470 records

Records set or tied on 21 December 1977 by type: Highest daily maximum 42, Lowest daily maximum 50, Highest daily minimum 48, Lowest daily minimum 43, Heaviest daily rainfall 164, Heaviest daily snowfall 104, Deepest snow cover 19.

Records on 21 December 1977 by type
Record type	Records
Highest daily maximum	42
Lowest daily maximum	50
Highest daily minimum	48
Lowest daily minimum	43
Heaviest daily rainfall	164
Heaviest daily snowfall	104
Deepest snow cover	19

Records on 21 December 1977 by timescale: all-time 2, monthly 14, daily 454.

How Much Records Were Beaten By

377 broken records

Margins by which the 377 broken records beat the old ones, in degrees Celsius for temperature and millimetres for precipitation and snow; the largest margin was 330.0. Ties are not counted.

Top 20 by Significance

21 December 1977

Top 20 records on 21 December 1977 by significance
Date	Station	Record	Value	Beat old record by	Old record stood	Significance
21 December 1977	Lichtenburg, ZA	daily rain	85.1 mm (3.4 in)	55.1 mm (2.2 in)	27 years	55 of 100 (Notable)
21 December 1977	Goedemoed, ZA	daily rain	87.5 mm (3.4 in)	69.7 mm (2.7 in)	30 years	54 of 100 (Notable)
21 December 1977	Perkins, CA	daily rain	46.2 mm (1.8 in)	27.9 mm (1.1 in)	28 years	53 of 100 (Notable)
21 December 1977	Bowman, US	daily snow depth	50.8 cm (20.0 in)	33.0 cm (13.0 in)	26 years	53 of 100 (Notable)
21 December 1977	Barrage (Rwb), ZA	daily rain	71.0 mm (2.8 in)	40.5 mm (1.6 in)	27 years	52 of 100 (Notable)
21 December 1977	Ashgrove, AU	daily rain	139.0 mm (5.5 in)	104.5 mm (4.1 in)	20 years	51 of 100 (Notable)
21 December 1977	Barrage Mercier, CA	daily snowfall	32.5 cm (12.8 in)	16.5 cm (6.5 in)	31 years	50 of 100 (Notable)
21 December 1977	Lewiston, US	daily snow depth	33.0 cm (13.0 in)	33.0 cm (13.0 in)	43 years	50 of 100 (Notable)
21 December 1977	Brockville, CA	daily snowfall	20.0 cm (7.9 in)	4.8 cm (1.9 in)	98 years	48 of 100 (Notable)
21 December 1977	Ottawa Cda, CA	daily snowfall	24.6 cm (9.7 in)	9.4 cm (3.7 in)	72 years	48 of 100 (Notable)
21 December 1977	Gouverneur 3 NW, US	daily snowfall	30.5 cm (12.0 in)	17.8 cm (7.0 in)	38 years	47 of 100 (Notable)
21 December 1977	Barrage Mercier, CA	daily rain	32.5 mm (1.3 in)	16.5 mm (0.6 in)	31 years	45 of 100 (Notable)
21 December 1977	Barkly Downs, AU	daily rain	68.0 mm (2.7 in)	28.4 mm (1.1 in)	60 years	44 of 100 (Notable)
21 December 1977	Mandan Exp STN, US	daily snow depth	45.7 cm (18.0 in)	22.8 cm (9.0 in)	10 years	44 of 100 (Notable)
21 December 1977	Carpina (Floresta Dos Leoes), BR	all-time rain	117.2 mm (4.6 in)	4.9 mm (0.19 in)	41 years	42 of 100 (Notable)
21 December 1977	Powell Creek, AU	daily rain	36.4 mm (1.4 in)	5.9 mm (0.23 in)	90 years	40 of 100 (Notable)
21 December 1977	Joinville (Rvpsc), BR	daily rain	59.0 mm (2.3 in)	27.1 mm (1.1 in)	36 years	40 of 100 (Notable)
21 December 1977	Grand Haven Fire Dept, US	daily rain	32.8 mm (1.3 in)	18.1 mm (0.7 in)	10 years	40 of 100 (Notable)
21 December 1977	St Charles de Mandeville, CA	daily snowfall	21.8 cm (8.6 in)	11.6 cm (4.6 in)	52 years	39 of 100 (Notable)
21 December 1977	Richmond, CA	daily snowfall	8.9 cm (3.5 in)	1.3 cm (0.5 in)	91 years	39 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

1793 to 1977

Records set or tied on this calendar date in each year from 1793 to 1977. 1977 had 470 records.

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

Records on 12-21 in each year
Year	Records
1793	1
1794	1
1799	1
1801	2
1808	3
1825	1
1828	1
1839	1
1846	1
1850	1
1855	7
1859	1
1860	1
1868	1
1870	1
1871	2
1874	2
1875	3
1876	1
1877	1
1878	1
1879	1
1880	1
1884	1
1886	3
1889	1
1890	4
1893	4
1894	1
1895	5
1896	3
1897	3
1898	1
1900	8
1901	15
1902	5
1903	25
1904	3
1905	15
1906	15
1907	17
1908	19
1909	20
1910	29
1911	36
1912	23
1913	11
1914	107
1915	43
1916	40
1917	18
1918	41
1919	57
1920	30
1921	104
1922	34
1923	323
1924	377
1925	120
1926	178
1927	147
1928	70
1929	156
1930	66
1931	556
1932	150
1933	581
1934	230
1935	398
1936	323
1937	189
1938	145
1939	140
1940	622
1941	651
1942	968
1943	148
1944	762
1945	396
1946	495
1947	700
1948	297
1949	1,281
1950	504
1951	1,061
1952	197
1953	256
1954	444
1955	888
1956	672
1957	846
1958	516
1959	272
1960	585
1961	254
1962	563
1963	1,137
1964	613
1965	247
1966	400
1967	1,923
1968	818
1969	828
1970	547
1971	680
1972	651
1973	1,292
1974	374
1975	548
1976	446
1977	470
1978	517
1979	558
1980	726
1981	1,476
1982	702
1983	3,324
1984	1,012
1985	979
1986	404
1987	775
1988	717
1989	3,203
1990	2,701
1991	1,125
1992	751
1993	967
1994	793
1995	878
1996	1,114
1997	810
1998	1,142
1999	851
2000	944
2001	650
2002	579
2003	1,103
2004	675
2005	606
2006	1,443
2007	946
2008	1,062
2009	1,097
2010	2,039
2011	653
2012	759
2013	1,029
2014	878
2015	1,173
2016	543
2017	459
2018	742
2019	755
2020	965
2021	323
2022	528
2023	1,170
2024	778
2025	1,099

Download the Data

Data for records on 1977-12-21: 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 2026-10-14 (14 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	333
50 to 100	29
100 to 150	9
150 to 200	3
200 to 250	1
250 to 300	0
300 to 350	2