Weather Records on 17 May 1981

940 weather records were set or tied worldwide on 17 May 1981. Highest significance: Nongoma, ZA.

Key Facts for 17 May 1981

On 17 May 1981, 940 weather records were set or tied at long-record stations worldwide.
192 were record highs and 345 were record lows, counting maximum and minimum temperature.
By timescale, 1 were all-time records, 17 monthly and 922 daily.
Nongoma set a monthly record daily precipitation of 88.0 mm (3.5 in) on 17 May 1981.
Across 167 earlier years (1802 to 2026) the same calendar date averaged 431 records.

Record Map

940 stations

940 station records on 17 May 1981 are marked on the map, coloured by record type. Dot size shows the significance score. Made with Natural Earth.

Weather records on 17 May 1981: highest significance records shown on the map
Station	Country	Type	Value	Significance
Nongoma	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	88.0 mm (3.5 in)	57 of 100 (Notable)
Satrovo	Russia	Record daily precipitation	43.8 mm (1.7 in)	56 of 100 (Notable)
Entabeni (Bos)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	79.0 mm (3.1 in)	55 of 100 (Notable)
Butka	Russia	Record daily precipitation	30.1 mm (1.2 in)	53 of 100 (Notable)
Duiwelskloof (Mun)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	64.0 mm (2.5 in)	53 of 100 (Notable)
Shadrinsk	Russia	Record daily precipitation	34.8 mm (1.4 in)	52 of 100 (Notable)
Tugulym	Russia	Record daily precipitation	34.7 mm (1.4 in)	50 of 100 (Notable)
Tyumen Amsg	Russia	Record daily precipitation	42.3 mm (1.7 in)	50 of 100 (Notable)
Ndumu	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	54.5 mm (2.1 in)	50 of 100 (Notable)
Whyanbeel Valley	Australia	Record daily precipitation	81.0 mm (3.2 in)	49 of 100 (Notable)
Helena	United States	Record daily precipitation	99.8 mm (3.9 in)	48 of 100 (Notable)
Ft Meade	United States	Record daily precipitation	58.2 mm (2.3 in)	48 of 100 (Notable)
Vikulovo	Russia	Record daily precipitation	28.7 mm (1.1 in)	47 of 100 (Notable)
Zlatoust	Russia	Record daily precipitation	45.8 mm (1.8 in)	47 of 100 (Notable)
Zverinogolovskaja	Russia	Record daily precipitation	27.2 mm (1.1 in)	47 of 100 (Notable)
Phetchabun	Thailand	Record daily precipitation	96.4 mm (3.8 in)	47 of 100 (Notable)
Castle Rock	United States	Record low maximum temperature	6.7 C (44.1 F)	46 of 100 (Notable)
Tajima	Japan	Record daily precipitation	59.0 mm (2.3 in)	44 of 100 (Notable)
Double Four Rch	United States	Record daily precipitation	62.7 mm (2.5 in)	44 of 100 (Notable)
Phillipsburg 1 SSE	United States	Record daily precipitation	34.5 mm (1.4 in)	43 of 100 (Notable)
Rapid City 4NW	United States	Record daily precipitation	63.2 mm (2.5 in)	43 of 100 (Notable)
Springer	United States	Record low minimum temperature	-5.6 C (21.9 F)	42 of 100 (Notable)
Belleville Siu Rsch	United States	Record daily precipitation	62.2 mm (2.4 in)	42 of 100 (Notable)
Tsuruga	Japan	Record daily precipitation	69.0 mm (2.7 in)	41 of 100 (Notable)
Duvan	Russia	Record daily precipitation	29.7 mm (1.2 in)	41 of 100 (Notable)
Mtunzini	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	80.0 mm (3.1 in)	41 of 100 (Notable)
Mahlabatini (Mag)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	105.0 mm (4.1 in)	41 of 100 (Notable)
Fukui	Japan	Record daily precipitation	65.0 mm (2.6 in)	39 of 100 (Notable)
Tottori	Japan	Record daily precipitation	50.0 mm (2.0 in)	39 of 100 (Notable)
Kazan	Russia	Record low maximum temperature	4.4 C (39.9 F)	39 of 100 (Notable)
Harrisonville	United States	Record daily precipitation	76.2 mm (3.0 in)	39 of 100 (Notable)
Saint Paul	United States	Record daily precipitation	39.9 mm (1.6 in)	39 of 100 (Notable)
Phillips	United States	Record daily precipitation	41.1 mm (1.6 in)	39 of 100 (Notable)
Kansas City Dwtn AP	United States	Record daily precipitation	56.6 mm (2.2 in)	39 of 100 (Notable)
Vestervig	Denmark	Record high minimum temperature	11.9 C (53.4 F)	38 of 100 (Notable)
Mtunzini	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	86.1 mm (3.4 in)	38 of 100 (Notable)
Hope 3 NE	United States	Record daily precipitation	56.9 mm (2.2 in)	38 of 100 (Notable)
Plant City	United States	Record high maximum temperature	36.1 C (97.0 F)	37 of 100 (Notable)
Richmond	Canada	Record low maximum temperature	6.5 C (43.7 F)	36 of 100 (Notable)
Takayama	Japan	Record daily precipitation	58.0 mm (2.3 in)	36 of 100 (Notable)
Ashgabat	Turkmenistan	Record daily precipitation	27.7 mm (1.1 in)	36 of 100 (Notable)
Plain Dealing	United States	Record daily precipitation	42.7 mm (1.7 in)	36 of 100 (Notable)
Nitta Yuma	United States	Record daily precipitation	50.8 mm (2.0 in)	36 of 100 (Notable)
Mc Cool Junction	United States	Record daily precipitation	53.3 mm (2.1 in)	36 of 100 (Notable)
Sakai	Japan	Record daily precipitation	48.0 mm (1.9 in)	35 of 100 (Notable)
Sogndal - Selseng	Norway	Record snow depth	67.0 cm (26.4 in)	35 of 100 (Notable)
Bezenchuk	Russia	Record low maximum temperature	5.5 C (41.9 F)	35 of 100 (Notable)
Oktjabrskij-Gorodok	Russia	Record low maximum temperature	9.8 C (49.6 F)	35 of 100 (Notable)
Sibasa	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	49.0 mm (1.9 in)	35 of 100 (Notable)
Saint Leo	United States	Record high maximum temperature	36.7 C (98.1 F)	35 of 100 (Notable)
Aurora	United States	Record daily precipitation	41.7 mm (1.6 in)	35 of 100 (Notable)
Matsue	Japan	Record daily precipitation	50.0 mm (2.0 in)	34 of 100 (Routine)
Poretskoye	Russia	Record low maximum temperature	4.5 C (40.1 F)	34 of 100 (Routine)
Matiwa (B0S)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	48.5 mm (1.9 in)	34 of 100 (Routine)
Palmaryville	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	34.0 mm (1.3 in)	34 of 100 (Routine)
Akron 4 E	United States	Record daily precipitation	26.2 mm (1.0 in)	34 of 100 (Routine)
Paragonah	United States	Record low maximum temperature	6.7 C (44.1 F)	34 of 100 (Routine)
Paupong Station	Australia	Record daily precipitation	25.4 mm (1.0 in)	33 of 100 (Routine)
Anklam	Germany	Record daily precipitation	26.0 mm (1.0 in)	33 of 100 (Routine)
Kyoto	Japan	Record daily precipitation	75.5 mm (3.0 in)	33 of 100 (Routine)

Counts by Type and Timescale

940 records

Records set or tied on 17 May 1981 by type: Highest daily maximum 115, Lowest daily maximum 262, Highest daily minimum 77, Lowest daily minimum 83, Heaviest daily rainfall 381, Heaviest daily snowfall 17, Deepest snow cover 5.

Records on 17 May 1981 by type
Record type	Records
Highest daily maximum	115
Lowest daily maximum	262
Highest daily minimum	77
Lowest daily minimum	83
Heaviest daily rainfall	381
Heaviest daily snowfall	17
Deepest snow cover	5

Records on 17 May 1981 by timescale: all-time 1, monthly 17, daily 922.

How Much Records Were Beaten By

808 broken records

Margins by which the 808 broken records beat the old ones, in degrees Celsius for temperature and millimetres for precipitation and snow; the largest margin was 260.0. Ties are not counted.

Top 20 by Significance

17 May 1981

Top 20 records on 17 May 1981 by significance
Date	Station	Record	Value	Beat old record by	Old record stood	Significance
17 May 1981	Nongoma, ZA	monthly rain	88.0 mm (3.5 in)	33.5 mm (1.3 in)	26 years	57 of 100 (Notable)
17 May 1981	Satrovo, RU	monthly rain	43.8 mm (1.7 in)	17.9 mm (0.7 in)	6 years	56 of 100 (Notable)
17 May 1981	Entabeni (Bos), ZA	daily rain	79.0 mm (3.1 in)	61.2 mm (2.4 in)	39 years	55 of 100 (Notable)
17 May 1981	Butka, RU	daily rain	30.1 mm (1.2 in)	19.1 mm (0.8 in)	36 years	53 of 100 (Notable)
17 May 1981	Duiwelskloof (Mun), ZA	monthly rain	64.0 mm (2.5 in)	15.7 mm (0.6 in)	70 years	53 of 100 (Notable)
17 May 1981	Shadrinsk, RU	daily rain	34.8 mm (1.4 in)	24.9 mm (1.0 in)	28 years	52 of 100 (Notable)
17 May 1981	Tugulym, RU	daily rain	34.7 mm (1.4 in)	20.8 mm (0.8 in)	20 years	50 of 100 (Notable)
17 May 1981	Tyumen Amsg, RU	daily rain	42.3 mm (1.7 in)	31.7 mm (1.2 in)	20 years	50 of 100 (Notable)
17 May 1981	Ndumu, ZA	daily rain	54.5 mm (2.1 in)	39.0 mm (1.5 in)	54 years	50 of 100 (Notable)
17 May 1981	Whyanbeel Valley, AU	daily rain	81.0 mm (3.2 in)	54.8 mm (2.2 in)	16 years	49 of 100 (Notable)
17 May 1981	Helena, US	daily rain	99.8 mm (3.9 in)	59.9 mm (2.4 in)	28 years	48 of 100 (Notable)
17 May 1981	Ft Meade, US	daily rain	58.2 mm (2.3 in)	43.7 mm (1.7 in)	19 years	48 of 100 (Notable)
17 May 1981	Vikulovo, RU	daily rain	28.7 mm (1.1 in)	19.8 mm (0.8 in)	10 years	47 of 100 (Notable)
17 May 1981	Zlatoust, RU	daily rain	45.8 mm (1.8 in)	24.1 mm (0.9 in)	10 years	47 of 100 (Notable)
17 May 1981	Zverinogolovskaja, RU	daily rain	27.2 mm (1.1 in)	20.2 mm (0.8 in)	12 years	47 of 100 (Notable)
17 May 1981	Phetchabun, TH	daily rain	96.4 mm (3.8 in)	62.4 mm (2.5 in)	14 years	47 of 100 (Notable)
17 May 1981	Castle Rock, US	daily low max	6.7 C (44.1 F)	7.7 C (13.9 F)	85 years	46 of 100 (Notable)
17 May 1981	Tajima, JP	daily rain	59.0 mm (2.3 in)	49.0 mm (1.9 in)	6 years	44 of 100 (Notable)
17 May 1981	Double Four Rch, US	daily rain	62.7 mm (2.5 in)	38.6 mm (1.5 in)	3 years	44 of 100 (Notable)
17 May 1981	Phillipsburg 1 SSE, US	daily rain	34.5 mm (1.4 in)	12.7 mm (0.5 in)	80 years	43 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 940 records.

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

Records on 05-17 in each year
Year	Records
1802	2
1803	1
1808	1
1816	1
1834	1
1837	1
1839	1
1847	2
1848	1
1851	1
1853	1
1855	1
1858	1
1859	1
1861	2
1862	2
1863	2
1864	1
1871	2
1872	2
1873	2
1874	4
1877	1
1878	1
1879	2
1880	1
1881	1
1882	2
1883	3
1885	1
1887	1
1888	2
1889	3
1891	8
1892	4
1893	3
1895	8
1896	2
1897	3
1898	6
1899	7
1900	12
1901	2
1902	3
1903	9
1904	12
1905	10
1906	22
1907	10
1908	5
1909	33
1910	16
1911	30
1912	16
1913	24
1914	24
1915	53
1916	49
1917	18
1918	56
1919	35
1920	46
1921	50
1922	30
1923	95
1924	80
1925	326
1926	133
1927	264
1928	127
1929	168
1930	421
1931	201
1932	288
1933	365
1934	373
1935	341
1936	270
1937	183
1938	340
1939	285
1940	338
1941	408
1942	589
1943	855
1944	521
1945	799
1946	586
1947	249
1948	412
1949	544
1950	371
1951	373
1952	777
1953	441
1954	298
1955	570
1956	1,166
1957	469
1958	331
1959	488
1960	402
1961	291
1962	1,325
1963	368
1964	417
1965	462
1966	489
1967	644
1968	564
1969	638
1970	711
1971	723
1972	610
1973	1,016
1974	1,302
1975	365
1976	426
1977	1,078
1978	872
1979	459
1980	768
1981	940
1982	476
1983	1,326
1984	925
1985	561
1986	921
1987	1,054
1988	1,096
1989	1,307
1990	1,135
1991	1,237
1992	1,025
1993	495
1994	858
1995	1,734
1996	1,706
1997	1,619
1998	1,080
1999	795
2000	825
2001	960
2002	964
2003	1,127
2004	769
2005	784
2006	1,522
2007	742
2008	1,309
2009	1,050
2010	880
2011	1,483
2012	711
2013	739
2014	1,062
2015	824
2016	741
2017	1,302
2018	726
2019	686
2020	496
2021	443
2022	479
2023	385
2024	566
2025	928
2026	745

Download the Data

Data for records on 1981-05-17: 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	798
50 to 100	7
100 to 150	2
150 to 200	0
200 to 250	0
250 to 300	1