Weather Records on 16 May 1978

808 weather records were set or tied worldwide on 16 May 1978. Highest significance: Thangoo, AU.

Key Facts for 16 May 1978

On 16 May 1978, 808 weather records were set or tied at long-record stations worldwide.
284 were record highs and 338 were record lows, counting maximum and minimum temperature.
By timescale, 1 were all-time records, 13 monthly and 794 daily.
Thangoo set a daily record precipitation of 43.0 mm (1.7 in) on 16 May 1978.
Across 165 earlier years (1802 to 2026) the same calendar date averaged 436 records.

Record Map

808 stations

808 station records on 16 May 1978 are marked on the map, coloured by record type. Dot size shows the significance score. Made with Natural Earth.

Weather records on 16 May 1978: highest significance records shown on the map
Station	Country	Type	Value	Significance
Thangoo	Australia	Record daily precipitation	43.0 mm (1.7 in)	73 of 100 (Major)
Merced	United States	Record low minimum temperature	-1.1 C (30.0 F)	44 of 100 (Notable)
Murfreesboro 5 N	United States	Record low maximum temperature	12.2 C (54.0 F)	43 of 100 (Notable)
Rocksprings	United States	Record high maximum temperature	38.3 C (100.9 F)	43 of 100 (Notable)
Philadelphia City	United States	Record low maximum temperature	12.2 C (54.0 F)	42 of 100 (Notable)
Correntes	Brazil	Record daily precipitation	82.0 mm (3.2 in)	40 of 100 (Notable)
Toms River	United States	Record low maximum temperature	11.1 C (52.0 F)	40 of 100 (Notable)
Andrews	United States	Record low maximum temperature	11.7 C (53.1 F)	40 of 100 (Notable)
Bairro Do Pinheiro	Brazil	Record daily precipitation	54.2 mm (2.1 in)	39 of 100 (Notable)
Hagerstown	United States	Record low maximum temperature	13.3 C (55.9 F)	39 of 100 (Notable)
Crossville Ed & Rsch STN	United States	Record low maximum temperature	8.9 C (48.0 F)	39 of 100 (Notable)
Lebanon	United States	Record low maximum temperature	12.2 C (54.0 F)	39 of 100 (Notable)
Augusta State AP	United States	Record daily precipitation	38.4 mm (1.5 in)	39 of 100 (Notable)
Bidyadanga	Australia	Record daily precipitation	53.4 mm (2.1 in)	38 of 100 (Notable)
Palmares	Brazil	Record daily precipitation	92.6 mm (3.6 in)	38 of 100 (Notable)
Newburyport	United States	Record daily precipitation	64.8 mm (2.6 in)	38 of 100 (Notable)
Oriente	Brazil	Record daily precipitation	56.5 mm (2.2 in)	37 of 100 (Notable)
Clyde A	Canada	Record daily snowfall	9.8 cm (3.9 in)	37 of 100 (Notable)
Bugulma	Russia	Record daily precipitation	27.2 mm (1.1 in)	37 of 100 (Notable)
Ft Morgan	United States	Record high maximum temperature	34.4 C (93.9 F)	37 of 100 (Notable)
Rome	United States	Record low maximum temperature	18.9 C (66.0 F)	37 of 100 (Notable)
Shelbyville 1 E	United States	Record low maximum temperature	11.7 C (53.1 F)	37 of 100 (Notable)
Newport 1 NW	United States	Record low maximum temperature	11.1 C (52.0 F)	37 of 100 (Notable)
Marilia	Brazil	Record daily precipitation	78.1 mm (3.1 in)	36 of 100 (Notable)
Presidente Prudente	Brazil	Record daily precipitation	47.0 mm (1.9 in)	36 of 100 (Notable)
Uzhhorod	Ukraine	Record daily precipitation	28.4 mm (1.1 in)	36 of 100 (Notable)
Cedartown	United States	Record low maximum temperature	19.4 C (66.9 F)	36 of 100 (Notable)
Frankfort Downtown	United States	Record low maximum temperature	12.8 C (55.0 F)	36 of 100 (Notable)
Brownsville	United States	Record low maximum temperature	16.1 C (61.0 F)	36 of 100 (Notable)
Woodstock	United States	Record low maximum temperature	13.3 C (55.9 F)	35 of 100 (Notable)
Gatlinburg 2 SW	United States	Record low maximum temperature	11.7 C (53.1 F)	35 of 100 (Notable)
Brownsville	United States	Record high maximum temperature	33.3 C (91.9 F)	35 of 100 (Notable)
Itapecerica da Serra	Brazil	Record daily precipitation	29.2 mm (1.1 in)	34 of 100 (Routine)
Russellville	United States	Record low maximum temperature	12.8 C (55.0 F)	34 of 100 (Routine)
Chestertown	United States	Record low maximum temperature	13.9 C (57.0 F)	34 of 100 (Routine)
Virginia City	United States	Record daily snowfall	10.2 cm (4.0 in)	34 of 100 (Routine)
Brunswick NAS	United States	Record daily precipitation	34.3 mm (1.4 in)	34 of 100 (Routine)
Goondiwindi Post Office	Australia	Record high maximum temperature	27.8 C (82.0 F)	33 of 100 (Routine)
Indian Head Cda	Canada	Record high minimum temperature	14.0 C (57.2 F)	33 of 100 (Routine)
Greensburg	United States	Record low maximum temperature	11.7 C (53.1 F)	33 of 100 (Routine)
Fredericksburg	United States	Record high maximum temperature	34.4 C (93.9 F)	33 of 100 (Routine)
Sherman	United States	Record high maximum temperature	34.4 C (93.9 F)	33 of 100 (Routine)
Taipu	Brazil	Record daily precipitation	64.6 mm (2.5 in)	32 of 100 (Routine)
Port Aux Basques	Canada	Record high minimum temperature	5.6 C (42.1 F)	32 of 100 (Routine)
Poronajsk	Russia	Record high minimum temperature	11.6 C (52.9 F)	32 of 100 (Routine)
Ft Morgan	United States	Record high minimum temperature	13.9 C (57.0 F)	32 of 100 (Routine)
Hopkinsville	United States	Record low maximum temperature	12.8 C (55.0 F)	32 of 100 (Routine)
Leitchfield 2 N	United States	Record low maximum temperature	13.3 C (55.9 F)	32 of 100 (Routine)
Hot Springs 2	United States	Record low maximum temperature	15.0 C (59.0 F)	32 of 100 (Routine)
Ft Meade	United States	Record high minimum temperature	14.4 C (57.9 F)	32 of 100 (Routine)
Dover 1 W	United States	Record low maximum temperature	13.9 C (57.0 F)	32 of 100 (Routine)
Minyip (Post Office)	Australia	Record daily precipitation	37.6 mm (1.5 in)	31 of 100 (Routine)
Tibaji	Brazil	Record daily precipitation	75.3 mm (3.0 in)	31 of 100 (Routine)
Bom Jardim	Brazil	Record daily precipitation	75.3 mm (3.0 in)	31 of 100 (Routine)
Praia Grande (Parana)	Brazil	Record daily precipitation	59.0 mm (2.3 in)	31 of 100 (Routine)
Cookhouse (Sar)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	28.1 mm (1.1 in)	31 of 100 (Routine)
Bloomington Indiana UNIV	United States	Record low maximum temperature	10.6 C (51.1 F)	31 of 100 (Routine)
Blackwater Dam	United States	Record daily precipitation	57.7 mm (2.3 in)	31 of 100 (Routine)
Copperhill	United States	Record low maximum temperature	12.2 C (54.0 F)	31 of 100 (Routine)
Huntsville	United States	Record high maximum temperature	34.4 C (93.9 F)	31 of 100 (Routine)

Counts by Type and Timescale

808 records

Records set or tied on 16 May 1978 by type: Highest daily maximum 168, Lowest daily maximum 282, Highest daily minimum 116, Lowest daily minimum 56, Heaviest daily rainfall 177, Heaviest daily snowfall 7, Deepest snow cover 2.

Records on 16 May 1978 by type
Record type	Records
Highest daily maximum	168
Lowest daily maximum	282
Highest daily minimum	116
Lowest daily minimum	56
Heaviest daily rainfall	177
Heaviest daily snowfall	7
Deepest snow cover	2

Records on 16 May 1978 by timescale: all-time 1, monthly 13, daily 794.

How Much Records Were Beaten By

642 broken records

Margins by which the 642 broken records beat the old ones, in degrees Celsius for temperature and millimetres for precipitation and snow; the largest margin was 97.0. Ties are not counted.

Top 20 by Significance

16 May 1978

Top 20 records on 16 May 1978 by significance
Date	Station	Record	Value	Beat old record by	Old record stood	Significance
16 May 1978	Thangoo, AU	daily rain	43.0 mm (1.7 in)	43.0 mm (1.7 in)	83 years	73 of 100 (Major)
16 May 1978	Merced, US	monthly low min	-1.1 C (30.0 F)	1.1 C (2.0 F)	78 years	44 of 100 (Notable)
16 May 1978	Murfreesboro 5 N, US	daily low max	12.2 C (54.0 F)	4.5 C (8.1 F)	84 years	43 of 100 (Notable)
16 May 1978	Rocksprings, US	daily high max	38.3 C (100.9 F)	3.9 C (7.0 F)	81 years	43 of 100 (Notable)
16 May 1978	Philadelphia City, US	daily low max	12.2 C (54.0 F)	1.1 C (2.0 F)	101 years	42 of 100 (Notable)
16 May 1978	Correntes, BR	monthly rain	82.0 mm (3.2 in)	18.5 mm (0.7 in)	21 years	40 of 100 (Notable)
16 May 1978	Toms River, US	daily low max	11.1 C (52.0 F)	3.9 C (7.0 F)	82 years	40 of 100 (Notable)
16 May 1978	Andrews, US	daily low max	11.7 C (53.1 F)	5.5 C (9.9 F)	68 years	40 of 100 (Notable)
16 May 1978	Bairro Do Pinheiro, BR	daily rain	54.2 mm (2.1 in)	23.3 mm (0.9 in)	36 years	39 of 100 (Notable)
16 May 1978	Hagerstown, US	daily low max	13.3 C (55.9 F)	3.4 C (6.1 F)	82 years	39 of 100 (Notable)
16 May 1978	Crossville Ed & Rsch STN, US	daily low max	8.9 C (48.0 F)	6.1 C (11.0 F)	65 years	39 of 100 (Notable)
16 May 1978	Lebanon, US	daily low max	12.2 C (54.0 F)	5.6 C (10.1 F)	65 years	39 of 100 (Notable)
16 May 1978	Augusta State AP, US	daily rain	38.4 mm (1.5 in)	25.4 mm (1.0 in)	24 years	39 of 100 (Notable)
16 May 1978	Bidyadanga, AU	daily rain	53.4 mm (2.1 in)	22.9 mm (0.9 in)	68 years	38 of 100 (Notable)
16 May 1978	Palmares, BR	daily rain	92.6 mm (3.6 in)	46.1 mm (1.8 in)	16 years	38 of 100 (Notable)
16 May 1978	Newburyport, US	daily rain	64.8 mm (2.6 in)	22.4 mm (0.9 in)	24 years	38 of 100 (Notable)
16 May 1978	Oriente, BR	daily rain	56.5 mm (2.2 in)	52.5 mm (2.1 in)	9 years	37 of 100 (Notable)
16 May 1978	Clyde A, CA	daily snowfall	9.8 cm (3.9 in)	5.5 cm (2.2 in)	27 years	37 of 100 (Notable)
16 May 1978	Bugulma, RU	daily rain	27.2 mm (1.1 in)	14.2 mm (0.6 in)	9 years	37 of 100 (Notable)
16 May 1978	Ft Morgan, US	daily high max	34.4 C (93.9 F)	3.3 C (5.9 F)	80 years	37 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

1802 to 1978

Records set or tied on this calendar date in each year from 1802 to 1978. 1978 had 808 records.

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

Records on 05-16 in each year
Year	Records
1802	1
1806	1
1820	1
1825	1
1832	1
1837	1
1847	1
1856	1
1858	1
1861	1
1862	1
1863	1
1864	1
1866	1
1867	2
1871	1
1874	3
1878	1
1879	1
1880	1
1881	1
1882	1
1883	1
1884	1
1885	1
1886	1
1887	2
1888	2
1889	2
1890	1
1891	4
1892	3
1893	1
1894	2
1895	6
1896	2
1897	1
1898	11
1899	6
1900	7
1901	2
1902	10
1903	9
1904	17
1905	13
1906	25
1907	13
1908	6
1909	57
1910	24
1911	22
1912	13
1913	24
1914	11
1915	104
1916	38
1917	48
1918	395
1919	28
1920	69
1921	106
1922	31
1923	126
1924	152
1925	177
1926	211
1927	230
1928	121
1929	273
1930	170
1931	254
1932	441
1933	268
1934	304
1935	320
1936	520
1937	279
1938	299
1939	448
1940	334
1941	429
1942	721
1943	652
1944	531
1945	888
1946	327
1947	344
1948	281
1949	360
1950	210
1951	558
1952	773
1953	421
1954	251
1955	525
1956	697
1957	610
1958	361
1959	680
1960	370
1961	378
1962	1,295
1963	552
1964	313
1965	442
1966	420
1967	611
1968	790
1969	423
1970	520
1971	509
1972	625
1973	869
1974	1,207
1975	544
1976	518
1977	1,269
1978	808
1979	506
1980	830
1981	896
1982	427
1983	1,579
1984	981
1985	536
1986	747
1987	1,369
1988	946
1989	938
1990	1,068
1991	1,094
1992	809
1993	653
1994	705
1995	1,235
1996	1,835
1997	1,932
1998	1,500
1999	778
2000	1,129
2001	1,110
2002	694
2003	1,289
2004	869
2005	870
2006	1,345
2007	692
2008	1,034
2009	897
2010	836
2011	1,398
2012	770
2013	596
2014	1,483
2015	782
2016	793
2017	710
2018	1,013
2019	572
2020	431
2021	419
2022	717
2023	653
2024	601
2025	993
2026	558

Download the Data

Data for records on 1978-05-16: 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 20	613
20 to 40	21
40 to 60	6
60 to 80	1
80 to 100	1