Weather Records on 20 May 1981

1,540 weather records were set or tied worldwide on 20 May 1981. Highest significance: Bunda Bunda, AU.

Key Facts for 20 May 1981

On 20 May 1981, 1,540 weather records were set or tied at long-record stations worldwide.
384 were record highs and 765 were record lows, counting maximum and minimum temperature.
By timescale, 2 were all-time records, 25 monthly and 1,513 daily.
Bunda Bunda set a daily record precipitation of 76.2 mm (3.0 in) on 20 May 1981.
Across 162 earlier years (1802 to 2026) the same calendar date averaged 449 records.

Record Map

1,540 stations

1,540 station records on 20 May 1981 are marked on the map, coloured by record type. Dot size shows the significance score. Made with Natural Earth.

Weather records on 20 May 1981: highest significance records shown on the map
Station	Country	Type	Value	Significance
Bunda Bunda	Australia	Record daily precipitation	76.2 mm (3.0 in)	67 of 100 (Major)
Clare	Australia	Record daily precipitation	108.0 mm (4.3 in)	67 of 100 (Major)
Iffley Station	Australia	Record daily precipitation	31.0 mm (1.2 in)	64 of 100 (Major)
Mina	United States	Record daily precipitation	26.4 mm (1.0 in)	63 of 100 (Major)
Mt Douglas	Australia	Record daily precipitation	62.0 mm (2.4 in)	61 of 100 (Major)
Morstone Station	Australia	Record daily precipitation	56.0 mm (2.2 in)	58 of 100 (Notable)
Palmerville	Australia	Record low maximum temperature	22.5 C (72.5 F)	57 of 100 (Notable)
Melrose	Australia	Record daily precipitation	53.4 mm (2.1 in)	57 of 100 (Notable)
The Valley	Australia	Record daily precipitation	107.0 mm (4.2 in)	56 of 100 (Notable)
Dotswood	Australia	Record daily precipitation	70.2 mm (2.8 in)	54 of 100 (Notable)
Corona Downs	Australia	Record daily precipitation	48.2 mm (1.9 in)	54 of 100 (Notable)
Roseberth Station	Australia	Record daily precipitation	49.0 mm (1.9 in)	54 of 100 (Notable)
Charlotte Plains	Australia	Record daily precipitation	33.0 mm (1.3 in)	52 of 100 (Notable)
Cairns Post Office	Australia	Record daily precipitation	42.9 mm (1.7 in)	51 of 100 (Notable)
Soroca	Moldova	Record daily precipitation	41.0 mm (1.6 in)	51 of 100 (Notable)
Mena	United States	Record low maximum temperature	12.2 C (54.0 F)	51 of 100 (Notable)
Prestwood Station	Australia	Record daily precipitation	51.0 mm (2.0 in)	50 of 100 (Notable)
Mt Ida 3 SE	United States	Record low maximum temperature	13.9 C (57.0 F)	50 of 100 (Notable)
Poplar Bluff	United States	Record low maximum temperature	12.2 C (54.0 F)	50 of 100 (Notable)
Hart Mtn Refuge	United States	Record daily precipitation	38.9 mm (1.5 in)	50 of 100 (Notable)
Nutwood Downs	Australia	Record daily precipitation	56.8 mm (2.2 in)	49 of 100 (Notable)
Muloorina Station (Muloorina H	Australia	Record daily precipitation	26.0 mm (1.0 in)	49 of 100 (Notable)
Lawn Hill	Australia	Record daily precipitation	53.4 mm (2.1 in)	49 of 100 (Notable)
Evelyn State Forest	Australia	Record daily precipitation	46.4 mm (1.8 in)	49 of 100 (Notable)
Koah	Australia	Record daily precipitation	46.6 mm (1.8 in)	49 of 100 (Notable)
Cobar (Paddington)	Australia	Record daily precipitation	70.0 mm (2.8 in)	49 of 100 (Notable)
Norley Station	Australia	Record daily precipitation	31.0 mm (1.2 in)	48 of 100 (Notable)
Fazenda Cajubi	Brazil	Record daily precipitation	32.0 mm (1.3 in)	48 of 100 (Notable)
Rutland Plains Station	Australia	Record daily precipitation	34.0 mm (1.3 in)	47 of 100 (Notable)
Hughenden Post Office	Australia	Record daily precipitation	35.2 mm (1.4 in)	47 of 100 (Notable)
Gregory Springs Station	Australia	Record daily precipitation	36.0 mm (1.4 in)	47 of 100 (Notable)
Uanda	Australia	Record daily precipitation	32.6 mm (1.3 in)	47 of 100 (Notable)
Coen Post Office	Australia	Record daily precipitation	43.5 mm (1.7 in)	46 of 100 (Notable)
Afton Downs Station	Australia	Record daily precipitation	37.0 mm (1.5 in)	46 of 100 (Notable)
Bel'cy	Moldova	Record daily precipitation	31.7 mm (1.2 in)	46 of 100 (Notable)
Pine Bluff	United States	Record low maximum temperature	16.7 C (62.1 F)	46 of 100 (Notable)
Dunbar Station	Australia	Record daily precipitation	55.8 mm (2.2 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Granada Station	Australia	Record daily precipitation	51.6 mm (2.0 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Koolatah Station	Australia	Record daily precipitation	29.9 mm (1.2 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Gilberton	Australia	Record daily precipitation	45.0 mm (1.8 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Zapadnaya	Russia	Record daily precipitation	25.4 mm (1.0 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Hot Springs 1 NNE	United States	Record low maximum temperature	16.1 C (61.0 F)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Hughenden Station	Australia	Record daily precipitation	25.0 mm (1.0 in)	44 of 100 (Notable)
Wilburra Downs Station	Australia	Record daily precipitation	26.2 mm (1.0 in)	44 of 100 (Notable)
Doniphan	United States	Record low maximum temperature	12.8 C (55.0 F)	44 of 100 (Notable)
Lorraine	Australia	Record daily precipitation	30.6 mm (1.2 in)	43 of 100 (Notable)
Oak Park Station	Australia	Record daily precipitation	36.0 mm (1.4 in)	43 of 100 (Notable)
Lorne Peak	Australia	Record daily precipitation	60.0 mm (2.4 in)	43 of 100 (Notable)
Chapel Hill 2 W	United States	Record low maximum temperature	13.3 C (55.9 F)	43 of 100 (Notable)
Lenoir	United States	Record low maximum temperature	12.2 C (54.0 F)	43 of 100 (Notable)
Covington 3 SW	United States	Record low maximum temperature	15.0 C (59.0 F)	43 of 100 (Notable)
Georgetown Post Office	Australia	Record low maximum temperature	19.5 C (67.1 F)	42 of 100 (Notable)
Kidston Gold Mine	Australia	Record daily precipitation	37.0 mm (1.5 in)	42 of 100 (Notable)
Louisburg	United States	Record low maximum temperature	13.3 C (55.9 F)	42 of 100 (Notable)
Enterprise Rs	United States	Record daily precipitation	25.9 mm (1.0 in)	42 of 100 (Notable)
Kalapa	Australia	Record daily precipitation	84.4 mm (3.3 in)	41 of 100 (Notable)
Greenville	United States	Record low maximum temperature	13.9 C (57.0 F)	41 of 100 (Notable)
Onoto	Australia	Record daily precipitation	30.0 mm (1.2 in)	40 of 100 (Notable)
Uccle	Belgium	Record high minimum temperature	15.6 C (60.1 F)	40 of 100 (Notable)
Gwalior	India	Record daily precipitation	55.1 mm (2.2 in)	40 of 100 (Notable)

Counts by Type and Timescale

1,540 records

Records set or tied on 20 May 1981 by type: Highest daily maximum 209, Lowest daily maximum 347, Highest daily minimum 175, Lowest daily minimum 418, Heaviest daily rainfall 388, Heaviest daily snowfall 2, Deepest snow cover 1.

Records on 20 May 1981 by type
Record type	Records
Highest daily maximum	209
Lowest daily maximum	347
Highest daily minimum	175
Lowest daily minimum	418
Heaviest daily rainfall	388
Heaviest daily snowfall	2
Deepest snow cover	1

Records on 20 May 1981 by timescale: all-time 2, monthly 25, daily 1,513.

How Much Records Were Beaten By

1,313 broken records

Margins by which the 1,313 broken records beat the old ones, in degrees Celsius for temperature and millimetres for precipitation and snow; the largest margin was 300.0. Ties are not counted.

Top 20 by Significance

20 May 1981

Top 20 records on 20 May 1981 by significance
Date	Station	Record	Value	Beat old record by	Old record stood	Significance
20 May 1981	Bunda Bunda, AU	daily rain	76.2 mm (3.0 in)	73.4 mm (2.9 in)	62 years	67 of 100 (Major)
20 May 1981	Clare, AU	daily rain	108.0 mm (4.3 in)	87.7 mm (3.5 in)	81 years	67 of 100 (Major)
20 May 1981	Iffley Station, AU	daily rain	31.0 mm (1.2 in)	31.0 mm (1.2 in)	85 years	64 of 100 (Major)
20 May 1981	Mina, US	daily rain	26.4 mm (1.0 in)	17.5 mm (0.7 in)	83 years	63 of 100 (Major)
20 May 1981	Mt Douglas, AU	daily rain	62.0 mm (2.4 in)	56.4 mm (2.2 in)	48 years	61 of 100 (Major)
20 May 1981	Morstone Station, AU	daily rain	56.0 mm (2.2 in)	53.5 mm (2.1 in)	62 years	58 of 100 (Notable)
20 May 1981	Palmerville, AU	daily low max	22.5 C (72.5 F)	4.4 C (7.9 F)	81 years	57 of 100 (Notable)
20 May 1981	Melrose, AU	daily rain	53.4 mm (2.1 in)	42.0 mm (1.7 in)	62 years	57 of 100 (Notable)
20 May 1981	The Valley, AU	daily rain	107.0 mm (4.2 in)	89.7 mm (3.5 in)	34 years	56 of 100 (Notable)
20 May 1981	Dotswood, AU	daily rain	70.2 mm (2.8 in)	70.2 mm (2.8 in)	52 years	54 of 100 (Notable)
20 May 1981	Corona Downs, AU	daily rain	48.2 mm (1.9 in)	37.8 mm (1.5 in)	62 years	54 of 100 (Notable)
20 May 1981	Roseberth Station, AU	daily rain	49.0 mm (1.9 in)	42.4 mm (1.7 in)	28 years	54 of 100 (Notable)
20 May 1981	Charlotte Plains, AU	daily rain	33.0 mm (1.3 in)	18.8 mm (0.7 in)	84 years	52 of 100 (Notable)
20 May 1981	Cairns Post Office, AU	daily rain	42.9 mm (1.7 in)	18.0 mm (0.7 in)	91 years	51 of 100 (Notable)
20 May 1981	Soroca, MD	daily rain	41.0 mm (1.6 in)	27.5 mm (1.1 in)	28 years	51 of 100 (Notable)
20 May 1981	Mena, US	daily low max	12.2 C (54.0 F)	6.1 C (11.0 F)	88 years	51 of 100 (Notable)
20 May 1981	Prestwood Station, AU	daily rain	51.0 mm (2.0 in)	49.5 mm (1.9 in)	10 years	50 of 100 (Notable)
20 May 1981	Mt Ida 3 SE, US	daily low max	13.9 C (57.0 F)	5.0 C (9.0 F)	95 years	50 of 100 (Notable)
20 May 1981	Poplar Bluff, US	daily low max	12.2 C (54.0 F)	7.2 C (13.0 F)	86 years	50 of 100 (Notable)
20 May 1981	Hart Mtn Refuge, US	daily rain	38.9 mm (1.5 in)	25.9 mm (1.0 in)	20 years	50 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 1,540 records.

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

Records on 05-20 in each year
Year	Records
1802	1
1803	1
1804	1
1815	1
1825	1
1837	1
1844	1
1845	3
1847	1
1854	1
1858	3
1861	1
1862	1
1865	1
1867	1
1868	2
1870	3
1871	2
1876	2
1877	3
1879	1
1880	2
1884	2
1885	1
1887	2
1889	3
1890	3
1891	5
1892	3
1893	1
1894	6
1895	3
1896	3
1897	3
1898	4
1899	4
1900	1
1901	5
1902	11
1903	19
1904	4
1905	4
1906	22
1907	35
1908	23
1909	10
1910	20
1911	82
1912	20
1913	10
1914	16
1915	42
1916	29
1917	46
1918	92
1919	56
1920	44
1921	234
1922	40
1923	125
1924	189
1925	251
1926	128
1927	118
1928	138
1929	323
1930	129
1931	451
1932	689
1933	449
1934	582
1935	259
1936	207
1937	270
1938	331
1939	266
1940	337
1941	378
1942	337
1943	802
1944	315
1945	498
1946	339
1947	358
1948	514
1949	586
1950	327
1951	288
1952	615
1953	518
1954	822
1955	421
1956	565
1957	728
1958	378
1959	785
1960	612
1961	333
1962	773
1963	732
1964	517
1965	200
1966	416
1967	587
1968	743
1969	885
1970	310
1971	653
1972	612
1973	419
1974	893
1975	1,332
1976	837
1977	553
1978	534
1979	683
1980	751
1981	1,540
1982	554
1983	1,307
1984	867
1985	426
1986	790
1987	1,036
1988	805
1989	764
1990	722
1991	925
1992	1,200
1993	1,208
1994	778
1995	734
1996	1,749
1997	1,106
1998	1,124
1999	673
2000	991
2001	847
2002	2,299
2003	1,201
2004	746
2005	929
2006	1,006
2007	565
2008	999
2009	1,529
2010	1,011
2011	1,117
2012	604
2013	919
2014	629
2015	1,001
2016	692
2017	1,214
2018	460
2019	1,483
2020	784
2021	904
2022	1,643
2023	1,106
2024	478
2025	969
2026	696

Download the Data

Data for records on 1981-05-20: 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 2026-10-16. Last revised 16 October 2026 (2026-10-16).

Margin	Records
0 to 50	1,301
50 to 100	11
100 to 150	0
150 to 200	0
200 to 250	0
250 to 300	1