Weather Records on 15 May 1981

586 weather records were set or tied worldwide on 15 May 1981. Highest significance: Reading Wb City, US.

Key Facts for 15 May 1981

On 15 May 1981, 586 weather records were set or tied at long-record stations worldwide.
130 were record highs and 166 were record lows, counting maximum and minimum temperature.
By timescale, 3 were all-time records, 11 monthly and 572 daily.
Reading Wb City set a daily record precipitation of 61.7 mm (2.4 in) on 15 May 1981.
Across 162 earlier years (1820 to 2026) the same calendar date averaged 430 records.

Record Map

586 stations

586 station records on 15 May 1981 are marked on the map, coloured by record type. Dot size shows the significance score. Made with Natural Earth.

Weather records on 15 May 1981: highest significance records shown on the map
Station	Country	Type	Value	Significance
Reading Wb City	United States	Record daily precipitation	61.7 mm (2.4 in)	61 of 100 (Major)
Fort Macleod	Canada	Record daily precipitation	73.3 mm (2.9 in)	57 of 100 (Notable)
Mountain View	Canada	Record daily precipitation	90.5 mm (3.6 in)	57 of 100 (Notable)
Whitefish	United States	Record daily precipitation	34.5 mm (1.4 in)	51 of 100 (Notable)
High River	Canada	Record daily precipitation	51.4 mm (2.0 in)	47 of 100 (Notable)
Chimacum 4 S	United States	Record daily precipitation	27.9 mm (1.1 in)	47 of 100 (Notable)
Lethbridge Cda	Canada	Record daily precipitation	46.8 mm (1.8 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Fortine 1 N	United States	Record daily precipitation	32.0 mm (1.3 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Foremost	Canada	Record daily precipitation	34.6 mm (1.4 in)	44 of 100 (Notable)
High River	Canada	Record daily snowfall	35.8 cm (14.1 in)	44 of 100 (Notable)
Kailua 446	United States	Record high minimum temperature	22.2 C (72.0 F)	44 of 100 (Notable)
Babb 6 NE	United States	Record daily precipitation	63.5 mm (2.5 in)	42 of 100 (Notable)
Cardston	Canada	Record daily precipitation	78.7 mm (3.1 in)	41 of 100 (Notable)
Cornubia	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	59.0 mm (2.3 in)	40 of 100 (Notable)
Brooks Ahrc	Canada	Record daily precipitation	25.7 mm (1.0 in)	39 of 100 (Notable)
Skara 1	Sweden	Record high minimum temperature	10.3 C (50.5 F)	39 of 100 (Notable)
Zimapan	Mexico	Record daily precipitation	35.8 mm (1.4 in)	38 of 100 (Notable)
Sogndal - Selseng	Norway	Record snow depth	80.0 cm (31.5 in)	38 of 100 (Notable)
Malad	United States	Record daily precipitation	25.1 mm (1.0 in)	38 of 100 (Notable)
Troupsburg 4 NE	United States	Record daily precipitation	50.0 mm (2.0 in)	38 of 100 (Notable)
Warrenton 1 N	United States	Record low maximum temperature	11.7 C (53.1 F)	37 of 100 (Notable)
Cornwall	Canada	Record daily precipitation	32.8 mm (1.3 in)	36 of 100 (Notable)
Alexandria 4 WSW	United States	Record daily precipitation	28.2 mm (1.1 in)	36 of 100 (Notable)
Brandonville	United States	Record daily precipitation	34.3 mm (1.4 in)	36 of 100 (Notable)
Saint Ignatius	United States	Record daily precipitation	29.0 mm (1.1 in)	35 of 100 (Notable)
Webster Springs	United States	Record daily precipitation	56.1 mm (2.2 in)	35 of 100 (Notable)
Trenton	United States	Record daily precipitation	34.0 mm (1.3 in)	35 of 100 (Notable)
Claresholm Meadow Creek	Canada	Record daily precipitation	99.2 mm (3.9 in)	34 of 100 (Routine)
Pekisko	Canada	Record daily precipitation	38.5 mm (1.5 in)	34 of 100 (Routine)
Union Hidalgo	Mexico	Record high minimum temperature	30.0 C (86.0 F)	34 of 100 (Routine)
Dequeen	United States	Record low minimum temperature	5.6 C (42.1 F)	34 of 100 (Routine)
Poplar Bluff	United States	Record low maximum temperature	15.0 C (59.0 F)	34 of 100 (Routine)
Bowling Green Wwtp	United States	Record low maximum temperature	9.4 C (48.9 F)	34 of 100 (Routine)
Van Wert 1 S	United States	Record low maximum temperature	8.9 C (48.0 F)	34 of 100 (Routine)
Raymond	United States	Record daily precipitation	45.7 mm (1.8 in)	34 of 100 (Routine)
Wilmington New Castle Co AP	United States	Record daily precipitation	34.0 mm (1.3 in)	34 of 100 (Routine)
Carway	Canada	Record daily precipitation	47.0 mm (1.9 in)	33 of 100 (Routine)
Astrakan	Russia	Record low maximum temperature	13.0 C (55.4 F)	33 of 100 (Routine)
Majkop	Russia	Record daily precipitation	40.7 mm (1.6 in)	33 of 100 (Routine)
Devault 1 W	United States	Record daily precipitation	35.8 mm (1.4 in)	33 of 100 (Routine)
Palmerton	United States	Record daily precipitation	34.0 mm (1.3 in)	33 of 100 (Routine)
Midlake	United States	Record low maximum temperature	11.7 C (53.1 F)	33 of 100 (Routine)
Taber	Canada	Record daily precipitation	25.2 mm (1.0 in)	32 of 100 (Routine)
Benton	United States	Record low minimum temperature	3.9 C (39.0 F)	32 of 100 (Routine)
Fremont	United States	Record low maximum temperature	10.0 C (50.0 F)	32 of 100 (Routine)
Carway	Canada	Record daily snowfall	17.4 cm (6.9 in)	31 of 100 (Routine)
Monticello	United States	Record daily precipitation	54.4 mm (2.1 in)	31 of 100 (Routine)
Allentown Lehigh Vly Intl AP	United States	Record daily precipitation	30.0 mm (1.2 in)	31 of 100 (Routine)
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Intl AP	United States	Record daily precipitation	36.8 mm (1.4 in)	31 of 100 (Routine)
Cape Tribulation Store	Australia	Record daily precipitation	155.0 mm (6.1 in)	30 of 100 (Routine)
Borzja	Russia	Record low minimum temperature	-7.1 C (19.2 F)	30 of 100 (Routine)
Urjupinsk	Russia	Record low minimum temperature	-1.4 C (29.5 F)	30 of 100 (Routine)
Ingwavuma (Tnk)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	38.0 mm (1.5 in)	30 of 100 (Routine)
Oceanside Marina	United States	Record high minimum temperature	15.6 C (60.1 F)	30 of 100 (Routine)
Iliamna AP	United States	Record high maximum temperature	17.2 C (63.0 F)	30 of 100 (Routine)
Mourilyan Post Office	Australia	Record daily precipitation	67.0 mm (2.6 in)	29 of 100 (Routine)
Acude Bonito	Brazil	Record daily precipitation	32.6 mm (1.3 in)	29 of 100 (Routine)
Verhojansk	Russia	Record high minimum temperature	7.0 C (44.6 F)	29 of 100 (Routine)
Highland Home	United States	Record low minimum temperature	8.9 C (48.0 F)	29 of 100 (Routine)
Maysville Wwtp	United States	Record daily precipitation	32.3 mm (1.3 in)	29 of 100 (Routine)

Counts by Type and Timescale

586 records

Records set or tied on 15 May 1981 by type: Highest daily maximum 56, Lowest daily maximum 92, Highest daily minimum 74, Lowest daily minimum 74, Heaviest daily rainfall 286, Heaviest daily snowfall 3, Deepest snow cover 1.

Records on 15 May 1981 by type
Record type	Records
Highest daily maximum	56
Lowest daily maximum	92
Highest daily minimum	74
Lowest daily minimum	74
Heaviest daily rainfall	286
Heaviest daily snowfall	3
Deepest snow cover	1

Records on 15 May 1981 by timescale: all-time 3, monthly 11, daily 572.

How Much Records Were Beaten By

499 broken records

Margins by which the 499 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

15 May 1981

Top 20 records on 15 May 1981 by significance
Date	Station	Record	Value	Beat old record by	Old record stood	Significance
15 May 1981	Reading Wb City, US	daily rain	61.7 mm (2.4 in)	32.2 mm (1.3 in)	82 years	61 of 100 (Major)
15 May 1981	Fort Macleod, CA	daily rain	73.3 mm (2.9 in)	58.3 mm (2.3 in)	26 years	57 of 100 (Notable)
15 May 1981	Mountain View, CA	daily rain	90.5 mm (3.6 in)	39.7 mm (1.6 in)	66 years	57 of 100 (Notable)
15 May 1981	Whitefish, US	daily rain	34.5 mm (1.4 in)	22.6 mm (0.9 in)	39 years	51 of 100 (Notable)
15 May 1981	High River, CA	daily rain	51.4 mm (2.0 in)	16.3 mm (0.6 in)	76 years	47 of 100 (Notable)
15 May 1981	Chimacum 4 S, US	daily rain	27.9 mm (1.1 in)	16.5 mm (0.6 in)	36 years	47 of 100 (Notable)
15 May 1981	Lethbridge Cda, CA	daily rain	46.8 mm (1.8 in)	20.6 mm (0.8 in)	26 years	45 of 100 (Notable)
15 May 1981	Fortine 1 N, US	daily rain	32.0 mm (1.3 in)	9.1 mm (0.36 in)	75 years	45 of 100 (Notable)
15 May 1981	Foremost, CA	daily rain	34.6 mm (1.4 in)	25.5 mm (1.0 in)	3 years	44 of 100 (Notable)
15 May 1981	High River, CA	monthly snowfall	35.8 cm (14.1 in)	5.3 cm (2.1 in)	61 years	44 of 100 (Notable)
15 May 1981	Kailua 446, US	daily high min	22.2 C (72.0 F)	2.2 C (4.0 F)	64 years	44 of 100 (Notable)
15 May 1981	Babb 6 NE, US	daily rain	63.5 mm (2.5 in)	30.0 mm (1.2 in)	26 years	42 of 100 (Notable)
15 May 1981	Cardston, CA	monthly rain	78.7 mm (3.1 in)	10.4 mm (0.4 in)	48 years	41 of 100 (Notable)
15 May 1981	Cornubia, ZA	daily rain	59.0 mm (2.3 in)	36.9 mm (1.5 in)	59 years	40 of 100 (Notable)
15 May 1981	Brooks Ahrc, CA	daily rain	25.7 mm (1.0 in)	7.9 mm (0.31 in)	66 years	39 of 100 (Notable)
15 May 1981	Skara 1, SE	daily high min	10.3 C (50.5 F)	0.3 C (0.5 F)	97 years	39 of 100 (Notable)
15 May 1981	Zimapan, MX	daily rain	35.8 mm (1.4 in)	29.4 mm (1.2 in)	3 years	38 of 100 (Notable)
15 May 1981	Sogndal - Selseng, NO	daily snow depth	80.0 cm (31.5 in)	33.0 cm (13.0 in)	54 years	38 of 100 (Notable)
15 May 1981	Malad, US	daily rain	25.1 mm (1.0 in)	12.1 mm (0.5 in)	32 years	38 of 100 (Notable)
15 May 1981	Troupsburg 4 NE, US	daily rain	50.0 mm (2.0 in)	25.1 mm (1.0 in)	14 years	38 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

1820 to 1981

Records set or tied on this calendar date in each year from 1820 to 1981. 1981 had 586 records.

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

Records on 05-15 in each year
Year	Records
1820	1
1825	1
1831	1
1832	1
1837	2
1845	1
1847	2
1848	1
1855	2
1857	2
1859	1
1862	1
1863	1
1865	1
1866	2
1867	1
1868	2
1870	1
1871	3
1874	2
1876	4
1878	1
1879	2
1881	1
1883	1
1885	1
1886	2
1888	3
1891	3
1893	5
1894	2
1895	4
1896	2
1897	4
1898	3
1899	9
1900	9
1901	2
1902	9
1903	4
1904	13
1905	16
1906	10
1907	27
1908	25
1909	89
1910	27
1911	27
1912	26
1913	60
1914	16
1915	236
1916	27
1917	80
1918	133
1919	25
1920	58
1921	92
1922	30
1923	125
1924	174
1925	100
1926	161
1927	191
1928	144
1929	161
1930	136
1931	459
1932	368
1933	439
1934	227
1935	288
1936	372
1937	373
1938	393
1939	351
1940	179
1941	454
1942	701
1943	568
1944	630
1945	588
1946	238
1947	334
1948	264
1949	363
1950	260
1951	736
1952	476
1953	426
1954	355
1955	538
1956	466
1957	521
1958	605
1959	764
1960	291
1961	508
1962	1,128
1963	782
1964	347
1965	320
1966	389
1967	609
1968	1,019
1969	790
1970	512
1971	351
1972	484
1973	818
1974	1,230
1975	372
1976	803
1977	1,186
1978	922
1979	404
1980	625
1981	586
1982	500
1983	1,215
1984	1,059
1985	649
1986	679
1987	1,073
1988	643
1989	552
1990	776
1991	1,179
1992	944
1993	784
1994	910
1995	1,750
1996	1,452
1997	1,175
1998	1,641
1999	810
2000	850
2001	1,280
2002	801
2003	1,023
2004	1,046
2005	767
2006	955
2007	949
2008	995
2009	675
2010	1,088
2011	1,298
2012	751
2013	1,081
2014	1,411
2015	717
2016	890
2017	435
2018	1,074
2019	627
2020	472
2021	412
2022	847
2023	566
2024	596
2025	801
2026	481

Download the Data

Data for records on 1981-05-15: 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 2026-10-16 (16 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	495
50 to 100	3
100 to 150	0
150 to 200	0
200 to 250	0
250 to 300	0
300 to 350	1