Weather Records on 17 October 1981

555 weather records were set or tied worldwide on 17 October 1981. Highest significance: Appleton, US.

Key Facts for 17 October 1981

On 17 October 1981, 555 weather records were set or tied at long-record stations worldwide.
178 were record highs and 123 were record lows, counting maximum and minimum temperature.
By timescale, 0 were all-time records, 10 monthly and 545 daily.
Appleton set a daily record precipitation of 39.1 mm (1.5 in) on 17 October 1981.
Across 162 earlier years (1793 to 2025) the same calendar date averaged 439 records.

Record Map

555 stations

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

Weather records on 17 October 1981: highest significance records shown on the map
Station	Country	Type	Value	Significance
Appleton	United States	Record daily precipitation	39.1 mm (1.5 in)	57 of 100 (Notable)
Coalgate 1 WNW	United States	Record daily precipitation	124.5 mm (4.9 in)	55 of 100 (Notable)
Noblesfontein	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	60.5 mm (2.4 in)	49 of 100 (Notable)
Spring Creek Station	Australia	Record daily precipitation	62.0 mm (2.4 in)	48 of 100 (Notable)
Green Bay	United States	Record daily precipitation	34.5 mm (1.4 in)	48 of 100 (Notable)
Buxton	United Kingdom	Record low minimum temperature	-3.4 C (25.9 F)	46 of 100 (Notable)
Steuben	United States	Record daily precipitation	48.3 mm (1.9 in)	46 of 100 (Notable)
Gander Int'l A	Canada	Record daily precipitation	67.4 mm (2.7 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Memphis Intl AP	United States	Record daily precipitation	86.4 mm (3.4 in)	43 of 100 (Notable)
Salem	United States	Record daily precipitation	52.1 mm (2.1 in)	41 of 100 (Notable)
Elbow Lake 5 E	United States	Record daily snowfall	12.7 cm (5.0 in)	40 of 100 (Notable)
Neosho	United States	Record daily precipitation	45.7 mm (1.8 in)	40 of 100 (Notable)
Hiawatha	United States	Record snow depth	15.2 cm (6.0 in)	40 of 100 (Notable)
Grenola 1 N	United States	Record daily precipitation	54.6 mm (2.1 in)	39 of 100 (Notable)
Versailles	United States	Record daily precipitation	38.4 mm (1.5 in)	39 of 100 (Notable)
Micurinsk	Russia	Record daily precipitation	25.0 mm (1.0 in)	38 of 100 (Notable)
Champion van Riper Pk	United States	Record daily precipitation	27.9 mm (1.1 in)	38 of 100 (Notable)
Stover	United States	Record daily precipitation	57.2 mm (2.3 in)	38 of 100 (Notable)
Plymouth Wwtp	United States	Record daily precipitation	29.2 mm (1.1 in)	38 of 100 (Notable)
Wuhan	China	Record daily precipitation	40.8 mm (1.6 in)	37 of 100 (Notable)
Talisman I	Mexico	Record daily precipitation	152.4 mm (6.0 in)	37 of 100 (Notable)
Elatma	Russia	Record daily precipitation	26.6 mm (1.0 in)	37 of 100 (Notable)
Clausthal-Zellerfeld	Germany	Record low minimum temperature	-2.7 C (27.1 F)	35 of 100 (Notable)
Columbus	United States	Record daily precipitation	34.8 mm (1.4 in)	34 of 100 (Routine)
Clinton	United States	Record daily precipitation	59.7 mm (2.4 in)	34 of 100 (Routine)
Warren 3 S	United States	Record low minimum temperature	-3.3 C (26.1 F)	34 of 100 (Routine)
Baraboo Wwtp	United States	Record daily precipitation	25.4 mm (1.0 in)	34 of 100 (Routine)
Chanute Martin Johnson AP	United States	Record daily precipitation	45.7 mm (1.8 in)	34 of 100 (Routine)
Haines Junction	Canada	Record daily snowfall	19.0 cm (7.5 in)	33 of 100 (Routine)
Hambantota	Sri Lanka	Record high minimum temperature	25.8 C (78.4 F)	33 of 100 (Routine)
Jefferson 3SE	United States	Record daily precipitation	42.4 mm (1.7 in)	33 of 100 (Routine)
Sheffield	United Kingdom	Record low minimum temperature	0.1 C (32.2 F)	32 of 100 (Routine)
Alicia 2 NNE	United States	Record daily precipitation	50.3 mm (2.0 in)	32 of 100 (Routine)
Carthage	United States	Record daily precipitation	35.6 mm (1.4 in)	32 of 100 (Routine)
Moline Quad City Intl AP	United States	Record daily precipitation	36.6 mm (1.4 in)	32 of 100 (Routine)
Zhijiang	China	Record daily precipitation	48.4 mm (1.9 in)	31 of 100 (Routine)
Eldon	United States	Record daily precipitation	52.3 mm (2.1 in)	31 of 100 (Routine)
Eldorado Springs	United States	Record daily precipitation	31.0 mm (1.2 in)	31 of 100 (Routine)
Great Salt Plains Dam	United States	Record daily precipitation	38.9 mm (1.5 in)	31 of 100 (Routine)
Poteau	United States	Record daily precipitation	106.9 mm (4.2 in)	31 of 100 (Routine)
Mt Pleasant	United States	Record high minimum temperature	21.7 C (71.1 F)	31 of 100 (Routine)
Coddington 1 E	United States	Record daily precipitation	26.4 mm (1.0 in)	31 of 100 (Routine)
Traverse Cy Cherry Capital AP	United States	Record daily precipitation	30.2 mm (1.2 in)	31 of 100 (Routine)
Rockford Gtr Rockford AP	United States	Record daily precipitation	34.5 mm (1.4 in)	31 of 100 (Routine)
Kroombit	Australia	Record daily precipitation	51.0 mm (2.0 in)	30 of 100 (Routine)
Bolivar 1 NE	United States	Record daily precipitation	29.2 mm (1.1 in)	30 of 100 (Routine)
Coimbra	Portugal	Record daily precipitation	37.7 mm (1.5 in)	29 of 100 (Routine)
Cuthbert	United States	Record high maximum temperature	31.7 C (89.1 F)	29 of 100 (Routine)
Mutual	United States	Record daily precipitation	40.9 mm (1.6 in)	29 of 100 (Routine)
Bay City Wtr Wks	United States	Record high minimum temperature	23.3 C (73.9 F)	29 of 100 (Routine)
Waxahachie	United States	Record high minimum temperature	25.0 C (77.0 F)	29 of 100 (Routine)
Wisconsin Dells Wwtp	United States	Record daily precipitation	29.7 mm (1.2 in)	29 of 100 (Routine)
Chapulco	Mexico	Record low minimum temperature	1.7 C (35.1 F)	28 of 100 (Routine)
Phetchabun	Thailand	Record daily precipitation	35.6 mm (1.4 in)	28 of 100 (Routine)
Ponca City Muni AP	United States	Record daily precipitation	58.4 mm (2.3 in)	28 of 100 (Routine)
Nanchang	China	Record daily precipitation	30.4 mm (1.2 in)	27 of 100 (Routine)
Prescott 2 NNW	United States	Record high minimum temperature	19.4 C (66.9 F)	27 of 100 (Routine)
Telemon Station	Australia	Record daily precipitation	57.0 mm (2.2 in)	26 of 100 (Routine)
Pontotoc 1N	United States	Record daily precipitation	84.6 mm (3.3 in)	26 of 100 (Routine)
Monticello Muni AP	United States	Record daily precipitation	61.0 mm (2.4 in)	26 of 100 (Routine)

Counts by Type and Timescale

555 records

Records set or tied on 17 October 1981 by type: Highest daily maximum 50, Lowest daily maximum 36, Highest daily minimum 128, Lowest daily minimum 87, Heaviest daily rainfall 244, Heaviest daily snowfall 7, Deepest snow cover 3.

Records on 17 October 1981 by type
Record type	Records
Highest daily maximum	50
Lowest daily maximum	36
Highest daily minimum	128
Lowest daily minimum	87
Heaviest daily rainfall	244
Heaviest daily snowfall	7
Deepest snow cover	3

Records on 17 October 1981 by timescale: all-time 0, monthly 10, daily 545.

How Much Records Were Beaten By

418 broken records

Margins by which the 418 broken records beat the old ones, in degrees Celsius for temperature and millimetres for precipitation and snow; the largest margin was 152.0. Ties are not counted.

Top 20 by Significance

17 October 1981

Top 20 records on 17 October 1981 by significance
Date	Station	Record	Value	Beat old record by	Old record stood	Significance
17 October 1981	Appleton, US	daily rain	39.1 mm (1.5 in)	26.4 mm (1.0 in)	66 years	57 of 100 (Notable)
17 October 1981	Coalgate 1 WNW, US	daily rain	124.5 mm (4.9 in)	89.4 mm (3.5 in)	44 years	55 of 100 (Notable)
17 October 1981	Noblesfontein, ZA	daily rain	60.5 mm (2.4 in)	57.5 mm (2.3 in)	16 years	49 of 100 (Notable)
17 October 1981	Spring Creek Station, AU	monthly rain	62.0 mm (2.4 in)	25.2 mm (1.0 in)	29 years	48 of 100 (Notable)
17 October 1981	Green Bay, US	daily rain	34.5 mm (1.4 in)	14.4 mm (0.6 in)	76 years	48 of 100 (Notable)
17 October 1981	Buxton, GB	daily low min	-3.4 C (25.9 F)	2.3 C (4.1 F)	105 years	46 of 100 (Notable)
17 October 1981	Steuben, US	daily rain	48.3 mm (1.9 in)	36.9 mm (1.5 in)	8 years	46 of 100 (Notable)
17 October 1981	Gander Int'l A, CA	monthly rain	67.4 mm (2.7 in)	17.4 mm (0.7 in)	30 years	45 of 100 (Notable)
17 October 1981	Memphis Intl AP, US	daily rain	86.4 mm (3.4 in)	59.7 mm (2.4 in)	0 years	43 of 100 (Notable)
17 October 1981	Salem, US	daily rain	52.1 mm (2.1 in)	28.0 mm (1.1 in)	44 years	41 of 100 (Notable)
17 October 1981	Elbow Lake 5 E, US	daily snowfall	12.7 cm (5.0 in)	12.7 cm (5.0 in)	38 years	40 of 100 (Notable)
17 October 1981	Neosho, US	daily rain	45.7 mm (1.8 in)	17.3 mm (0.7 in)	76 years	40 of 100 (Notable)
17 October 1981	Hiawatha, US	daily snow depth	15.2 cm (6.0 in)	15.2 cm (6.0 in)	64 years	40 of 100 (Notable)
17 October 1981	Grenola 1 N, US	daily rain	54.6 mm (2.1 in)	14.0 mm (0.6 in)	76 years	39 of 100 (Notable)
17 October 1981	Versailles, US	daily rain	38.4 mm (1.5 in)	15.5 mm (0.6 in)	76 years	39 of 100 (Notable)
17 October 1981	Micurinsk, RU	daily rain	25.0 mm (1.0 in)	2.0 mm (0.08 in)	80 years	38 of 100 (Notable)
17 October 1981	Champion van Riper Pk, US	daily rain	27.9 mm (1.1 in)	22.3 mm (0.9 in)	27 years	38 of 100 (Notable)
17 October 1981	Stover, US	daily rain	57.2 mm (2.3 in)	30.0 mm (1.2 in)	56 years	38 of 100 (Notable)
17 October 1981	Plymouth Wwtp, US	daily rain	29.2 mm (1.1 in)	10.4 mm (0.4 in)	68 years	38 of 100 (Notable)
17 October 1981	Wuhan, CN	daily rain	40.8 mm (1.6 in)	33.9 mm (1.3 in)	8 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

1793 to 1981

Records set or tied on this calendar date in each year from 1793 to 1981. 1981 had 555 records.

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

Records on 10-17 in each year
Year	Records
1793	1
1796	2
1808	2
1810	1
1811	1
1817	1
1820	1
1830	1
1836	1
1844	1
1845	1
1868	1
1869	2
1870	1
1872	1
1874	1
1875	1
1876	3
1877	1
1878	1
1879	7
1881	1
1882	1
1883	1
1884	2
1885	2
1886	1
1889	1
1890	3
1891	2
1892	6
1893	5
1894	2
1895	1
1897	3
1898	6
1899	3
1900	3
1901	3
1902	4
1903	9
1904	17
1905	12
1906	3
1907	16
1908	46
1909	18
1910	13
1911	24
1912	12
1913	26
1914	72
1915	7
1916	81
1917	29
1918	20
1919	34
1920	82
1921	64
1922	60
1923	149
1924	81
1925	324
1926	153
1927	163
1928	530
1929	119
1930	441
1931	431
1932	345
1933	190
1934	262
1935	337
1936	338
1937	865
1938	710
1939	424
1940	580
1941	194
1942	349
1943	1,173
1944	415
1945	289
1946	437
1947	744
1948	724
1949	442
1950	809
1951	274
1952	474
1953	463
1954	579
1955	562
1956	353
1957	245
1958	415
1959	403
1960	432
1961	525
1962	350
1963	513
1964	492
1965	920
1966	551
1967	576
1968	929
1969	714
1970	815
1971	1,053
1972	866
1973	542
1974	1,055
1975	605
1976	1,381
1977	1,060
1978	583
1979	468
1980	1,366
1981	555
1982	575
1983	526
1984	1,551
1985	585
1986	354
1987	828
1988	827
1989	1,163
1990	1,109
1991	1,352
1992	1,384
1993	1,001
1994	1,306
1995	1,076
1996	987
1997	1,114
1998	1,455
1999	815
2000	461
2001	878
2002	992
2003	764
2004	935
2005	643
2006	1,506
2007	690
2008	467
2009	1,606
2010	625
2011	734
2012	550
2013	516
2014	530
2015	843
2016	1,559
2017	743
2018	1,163
2019	504
2020	889
2021	294
2022	964
2023	544
2024	994
2025	363

Download the Data

Data for records on 1981-10-17: 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 20	378
20 to 40	32
40 to 60	3
60 to 80	0
80 to 100	2
100 to 120	0
120 to 140	2
140 to 160	1