Weather Records on 16 May 1981

896 weather records were set or tied worldwide on 16 May 1981. Highest significance: Augusta, US.

Key Facts for 16 May 1981

On 16 May 1981, 896 weather records were set or tied at long-record stations worldwide.
161 were record highs and 295 were record lows, counting maximum and minimum temperature.
By timescale, 1 were all-time records, 20 monthly and 875 daily.
Augusta set a daily record precipitation of 64.0 mm (2.5 in) on 16 May 1981.
Across 165 earlier years (1802 to 2026) the same calendar date averaged 436 records.

Record Map

896 stations

896 station records on 16 May 1981 are marked on the map, coloured by record type. Dot size shows the significance score. Made with Natural Earth.

Weather records on 16 May 1981: highest significance records shown on the map
Station	Country	Type	Value	Significance
Augusta	United States	Record daily precipitation	64.0 mm (2.5 in)	71 of 100 (Major)
Betatakin	United States	Record daily precipitation	50.8 mm (2.0 in)	65 of 100 (Major)
Ingwavuma (Tnk)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	150.0 mm (5.9 in)	64 of 100 (Major)
Broadview	United States	Record daily precipitation	47.8 mm (1.9 in)	64 of 100 (Major)
Ndumu	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	56.0 mm (2.2 in)	59 of 100 (Notable)
Fairview	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	117.0 mm (4.6 in)	57 of 100 (Notable)
Martuk	Kazakhstan	Record daily precipitation	27.2 mm (1.1 in)	56 of 100 (Notable)
Gingindlovu	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	100.0 mm (3.9 in)	56 of 100 (Notable)
Winifred	United States	Record daily precipitation	48.0 mm (1.9 in)	55 of 100 (Notable)
Buffalo	United States	Record daily precipitation	29.2 mm (1.1 in)	55 of 100 (Notable)
Evelyn State Forest	Australia	Record daily precipitation	40.2 mm (1.6 in)	54 of 100 (Notable)
Agdam	Azerbaijan	Record daily precipitation	49.0 mm (1.9 in)	53 of 100 (Notable)
Burketown Post Office	Australia	Record high maximum temperature	39.5 C (103.1 F)	51 of 100 (Notable)
Grafton	United States	Record daily precipitation	45.0 mm (1.8 in)	51 of 100 (Notable)
Lankaran	Azerbaijan	Record daily precipitation	31.0 mm (1.2 in)	50 of 100 (Notable)
Middle Dam	United States	Record daily precipitation	39.1 mm (1.5 in)	49 of 100 (Notable)
Milford	United States	Record daily precipitation	34.3 mm (1.4 in)	49 of 100 (Notable)
Milan 7 NNW	United States	Record daily precipitation	33.8 mm (1.3 in)	48 of 100 (Notable)
Billings Wtp	United States	Record daily precipitation	40.1 mm (1.6 in)	47 of 100 (Notable)
Eureka	United States	Record daily snowfall	12.7 cm (5.0 in)	47 of 100 (Notable)
Medicine Hat A	Canada	Record daily precipitation	25.2 mm (1.0 in)	46 of 100 (Notable)
Trinite des Monts	Canada	Record daily precipitation	31.0 mm (1.2 in)	46 of 100 (Notable)
Beylagan Aerodrome	Azerbaijan	Record daily precipitation	26.3 mm (1.0 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Riverview	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	95.6 mm (3.8 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Lancaster	United States	Record daily precipitation	37.6 mm (1.5 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Elberta	United States	Record daily precipitation	32.0 mm (1.3 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Price	Canada	Record daily precipitation	27.5 mm (1.1 in)	44 of 100 (Notable)
Antioch Fire Twr	United States	Record daily precipitation	71.6 mm (2.8 in)	44 of 100 (Notable)
Silver Lake Brighton	United States	Record daily snowfall	38.1 cm (15.0 in)	44 of 100 (Notable)
Betatakin	United States	Record daily snowfall	22.9 cm (9.0 in)	43 of 100 (Notable)
Texarkana Webb Fld	United States	Record daily precipitation	88.6 mm (3.5 in)	43 of 100 (Notable)
Austin #2	United States	Record daily snowfall	8.1 cm (3.2 in)	42 of 100 (Notable)
Springer	United States	Record low minimum temperature	-7.2 C (19.0 F)	42 of 100 (Notable)
Kaycee	United States	Record daily precipitation	46.0 mm (1.8 in)	42 of 100 (Notable)
El Dorado Goodwin Fld	United States	Record daily precipitation	105.2 mm (4.1 in)	42 of 100 (Notable)
Freeland	United States	Record daily precipitation	51.1 mm (2.0 in)	41 of 100 (Notable)
Laramie AP	United States	Record daily precipitation	26.9 mm (1.1 in)	41 of 100 (Notable)
Dwingelo	Netherlands	Record daily precipitation	28.1 mm (1.1 in)	40 of 100 (Notable)
Barber	United States	Record daily precipitation	39.9 mm (1.6 in)	39 of 100 (Notable)
Mertzon	United States	Record daily precipitation	63.5 mm (2.5 in)	39 of 100 (Notable)
Snake Rvr	United States	Record daily snowfall	5.1 cm (2.0 in)	39 of 100 (Notable)
Vine Creek	Australia	Record daily precipitation	72.2 mm (2.8 in)	38 of 100 (Notable)
St Malo D Auckland	Canada	Record daily precipitation	34.0 mm (1.3 in)	38 of 100 (Notable)
Bad Konigshofen	Germany	Record daily precipitation	25.6 mm (1.0 in)	38 of 100 (Notable)
Sogndal - Selseng	Norway	Record snow depth	75.0 cm (29.5 in)	38 of 100 (Notable)
Ashton 1N	United States	Record daily snowfall	7.6 cm (3.0 in)	37 of 100 (Notable)
Errol	United States	Record daily precipitation	29.0 mm (1.1 in)	37 of 100 (Notable)
Carthage	United States	Record low maximum temperature	17.2 C (63.0 F)	37 of 100 (Notable)
Ste Rose du Degelis	Canada	Record daily precipitation	54.6 mm (2.1 in)	36 of 100 (Notable)
Zilverhout	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	61.7 mm (2.4 in)	36 of 100 (Notable)
Ware	United States	Record daily precipitation	40.9 mm (1.6 in)	36 of 100 (Notable)
Belvidere	United States	Record daily precipitation	50.8 mm (2.0 in)	36 of 100 (Notable)
Liberty 1 NE	United States	Record daily precipitation	33.5 mm (1.3 in)	36 of 100 (Notable)
Tamaqua 4 N Dam	United States	Record daily precipitation	47.2 mm (1.9 in)	36 of 100 (Notable)
Alton	United States	Record daily snowfall	7.6 cm (3.0 in)	36 of 100 (Notable)
Diversion Dam	United States	Record daily precipitation	29.2 mm (1.1 in)	36 of 100 (Notable)
El Dorado Goodwin Fld	United States	Record low maximum temperature	18.3 C (64.9 F)	36 of 100 (Notable)
Mtunzini	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	56.0 mm (2.2 in)	35 of 100 (Notable)
Hluhluwe Game Reserve	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	107.5 mm (4.2 in)	35 of 100 (Notable)
Sonoma	United States	Record low minimum temperature	2.2 C (36.0 F)	35 of 100 (Notable)

Counts by Type and Timescale

896 records

Records set or tied on 16 May 1981 by type: Highest daily maximum 82, Lowest daily maximum 187, Highest daily minimum 79, Lowest daily minimum 108, Heaviest daily rainfall 421, Heaviest daily snowfall 14, Deepest snow cover 5.

Records on 16 May 1981 by type
Record type	Records
Highest daily maximum	82
Lowest daily maximum	187
Highest daily minimum	79
Lowest daily minimum	108
Heaviest daily rainfall	421
Heaviest daily snowfall	14
Deepest snow cover	5

Records on 16 May 1981 by timescale: all-time 1, monthly 20, daily 875.

How Much Records Were Beaten By

754 broken records

Margins by which the 754 broken records beat the old ones, in degrees Celsius for temperature and millimetres for precipitation and snow; the largest margin was 320.0. Ties are not counted.

Top 20 by Significance

16 May 1981

Top 20 records on 16 May 1981 by significance
Date	Station	Record	Value	Beat old record by	Old record stood	Significance
16 May 1981	Augusta, US	daily rain	64.0 mm (2.5 in)	49.3 mm (1.9 in)	78 years	71 of 100 (Major)
16 May 1981	Betatakin, US	monthly rain	50.8 mm (2.0 in)	36.8 mm (1.4 in)	39 years	65 of 100 (Major)
16 May 1981	Ingwavuma (Tnk), ZA	monthly rain	150.0 mm (5.9 in)	81.5 mm (3.2 in)	26 years	64 of 100 (Major)
16 May 1981	Broadview, US	daily rain	47.8 mm (1.9 in)	29.8 mm (1.2 in)	67 years	64 of 100 (Major)
16 May 1981	Ndumu, ZA	daily rain	56.0 mm (2.2 in)	48.4 mm (1.9 in)	62 years	59 of 100 (Notable)
16 May 1981	Fairview, ZA	daily rain	117.0 mm (4.6 in)	95.4 mm (3.8 in)	39 years	57 of 100 (Notable)
16 May 1981	Martuk, KZ	daily rain	27.2 mm (1.1 in)	20.9 mm (0.8 in)	43 years	56 of 100 (Notable)
16 May 1981	Gingindlovu, ZA	daily rain	100.0 mm (3.9 in)	50.7 mm (2.0 in)	39 years	56 of 100 (Notable)
16 May 1981	Winifred, US	daily rain	48.0 mm (1.9 in)	45.2 mm (1.8 in)	32 years	55 of 100 (Notable)
16 May 1981	Buffalo, US	daily rain	29.2 mm (1.1 in)	22.8 mm (0.9 in)	78 years	55 of 100 (Notable)
16 May 1981	Evelyn State Forest, AU	daily rain	40.2 mm (1.6 in)	27.0 mm (1.1 in)	34 years	54 of 100 (Notable)
16 May 1981	Agdam, AZ	daily rain	49.0 mm (1.9 in)	31.7 mm (1.2 in)	30 years	53 of 100 (Notable)
16 May 1981	Burketown Post Office, AU	monthly high max	39.5 C (103.1 F)	2.6 C (4.7 F)	74 years	51 of 100 (Notable)
16 May 1981	Grafton, US	daily rain	45.0 mm (1.8 in)	18.3 mm (0.7 in)	74 years	51 of 100 (Notable)
16 May 1981	Lankaran, AZ	daily rain	31.0 mm (1.2 in)	23.2 mm (0.9 in)	35 years	50 of 100 (Notable)
16 May 1981	Middle Dam, US	daily rain	39.1 mm (1.5 in)	27.2 mm (1.1 in)	36 years	49 of 100 (Notable)
16 May 1981	Milford, US	monthly rain	34.3 mm (1.4 in)	9.4 mm (0.37 in)	43 years	49 of 100 (Notable)
16 May 1981	Milan 7 NNW, US	daily rain	33.8 mm (1.3 in)	22.1 mm (0.9 in)	52 years	48 of 100 (Notable)
16 May 1981	Billings Wtp, US	daily rain	40.1 mm (1.6 in)	12.2 mm (0.5 in)	86 years	47 of 100 (Notable)
16 May 1981	Eureka, US	daily snowfall	12.7 cm (5.0 in)	8.9 cm (3.5 in)	91 years	47 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 1981

Records set or tied on this calendar date in each year from 1802 to 1981. 1981 had 896 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 1981-05-16: 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 2026-10-15 (15 October 2026). Records are computed by this site and are not official.

Data as of 2026-10-15. Last revised 15 October 2026 (2026-10-15).

Margin	Records
0 to 50	740
50 to 100	10
100 to 150	2
150 to 200	0
200 to 250	1
250 to 300	0
300 to 350	1