Weather Records on 20 December 1987

1,179 weather records were set or tied worldwide on 20 December 1987. Highest significance: Grenola 1 N, US.

Key Facts for 20 December 1987

On 20 December 1987, 1,179 weather records were set or tied at long-record stations worldwide.
466 were record highs and 32 were record lows, counting maximum and minimum temperature.
By timescale, 2 were all-time records, 14 monthly and 1,163 daily.
Grenola 1 N set an all-time record snow depth of 55.9 cm (22.0 in) on 20 December 1987.
Across 163 earlier years (1793 to 2025) the same calendar date averaged 463 records.

Record Map

1,179 stations

1,179 station records on 20 December 1987 are marked on the map, coloured by record type. Dot size shows the significance score. Made with Natural Earth.

Weather records on 20 December 1987: highest significance records shown on the map
Station	Country	Type	Value	Significance
Grenola 1 N	United States	Record snow depth	55.9 cm (22.0 in)	71 of 100 (Major)
Chatsbury (Maryland)	Australia	Record daily precipitation	52.0 mm (2.0 in)	61 of 100 (Major)
Ottawa	United States	Record daily precipitation	40.6 mm (1.6 in)	59 of 100 (Notable)
Eureka 1E	United States	Record daily precipitation	37.8 mm (1.5 in)	56 of 100 (Notable)
Lebo	United States	Record daily precipitation	38.4 mm (1.5 in)	56 of 100 (Notable)
Neosho Rapids	United States	Record daily precipitation	40.1 mm (1.6 in)	56 of 100 (Notable)
Claremore 2 ENE	United States	Record daily precipitation	42.2 mm (1.7 in)	55 of 100 (Notable)
Yates Ctr	United States	Record daily precipitation	33.5 mm (1.3 in)	53 of 100 (Notable)
Moran	United States	Record daily precipitation	54.1 mm (2.1 in)	52 of 100 (Notable)
Grenola 1 N	United States	Record daily precipitation	36.1 mm (1.4 in)	51 of 100 (Notable)
Thrall 3SSE	United States	Record daily precipitation	38.1 mm (1.5 in)	51 of 100 (Notable)
Vinita 2 N	United States	Record daily precipitation	42.7 mm (1.7 in)	51 of 100 (Notable)
Walnut 4S	United States	Record daily precipitation	44.2 mm (1.7 in)	50 of 100 (Notable)
Osage City	United States	Record daily precipitation	31.2 mm (1.2 in)	49 of 100 (Notable)
Spavinaw	United States	Record daily precipitation	44.5 mm (1.8 in)	49 of 100 (Notable)
Nueva Esperanza	Mexico	Record high minimum temperature	28.3 C (82.9 F)	48 of 100 (Notable)
Fall Rvr Lake	United States	Record daily precipitation	28.7 mm (1.1 in)	48 of 100 (Notable)
Madison	United States	Record daily precipitation	38.1 mm (1.5 in)	48 of 100 (Notable)
Bolivar 1 NE	United States	Record daily precipitation	31.0 mm (1.2 in)	48 of 100 (Notable)
Iola 1 W	United States	Record daily precipitation	31.5 mm (1.2 in)	47 of 100 (Notable)
Le Roy	United States	Record daily precipitation	33.5 mm (1.3 in)	47 of 100 (Notable)
Seligman	United States	Record daily precipitation	50.3 mm (2.0 in)	47 of 100 (Notable)
La Harpe	United States	Record daily precipitation	33.0 mm (1.3 in)	46 of 100 (Notable)
Cottonwood Falls	United States	Record daily precipitation	26.7 mm (1.1 in)	46 of 100 (Notable)
Olofstrom	Sweden	Record daily precipitation	26.0 mm (1.0 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Holbrook	United States	Record daily precipitation	25.4 mm (1.0 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Arkansas City	United States	Record daily precipitation	37.3 mm (1.5 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Freedom	United States	Record daily precipitation	30.7 mm (1.2 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Griggsville	United States	Record daily precipitation	38.1 mm (1.5 in)	44 of 100 (Notable)
Odessa 4SE	United States	Record daily precipitation	51.6 mm (2.0 in)	44 of 100 (Notable)
Bixby	United States	Record daily precipitation	41.7 mm (1.6 in)	44 of 100 (Notable)
North Yancho	Australia	Record daily precipitation	64.4 mm (2.5 in)	43 of 100 (Notable)
Tipton	United States	Record daily precipitation	27.4 mm (1.1 in)	43 of 100 (Notable)
Garnett 1 E	United States	Record daily precipitation	32.3 mm (1.3 in)	43 of 100 (Notable)
Pryor	United States	Record daily precipitation	41.4 mm (1.6 in)	43 of 100 (Notable)
Amiandos	Cyprus	Record daily precipitation	109.0 mm (4.3 in)	42 of 100 (Notable)
Monroe City	United States	Record daily precipitation	40.6 mm (1.6 in)	42 of 100 (Notable)
Blackwell 1SSW	United States	Record daily precipitation	41.7 mm (1.6 in)	42 of 100 (Notable)
Norman 3SSE	United States	Record daily precipitation	27.9 mm (1.1 in)	42 of 100 (Notable)
Denison Dam	United States	Record daily precipitation	38.1 mm (1.5 in)	42 of 100 (Notable)
Regensburg	Germany	Record high minimum temperature	5.3 C (41.5 F)	41 of 100 (Notable)
Okeene	United States	Record daily precipitation	27.9 mm (1.1 in)	41 of 100 (Notable)
Payson	United States	Record daily precipitation	38.4 mm (1.5 in)	40 of 100 (Notable)
Boonville	United States	Record daily precipitation	47.5 mm (1.9 in)	40 of 100 (Notable)
Rolla Missouri S&T	United States	Record daily precipitation	34.8 mm (1.4 in)	40 of 100 (Notable)
Nowata	United States	Record daily precipitation	38.1 mm (1.5 in)	40 of 100 (Notable)
Union City 3 SE	United States	Record daily precipitation	33.8 mm (1.3 in)	40 of 100 (Notable)
Fazenda Escola Florestal	Brazil	Record daily precipitation	166.0 mm (6.5 in)	39 of 100 (Notable)
Dequeen	United States	Record daily precipitation	25.1 mm (1.0 in)	39 of 100 (Notable)
Rushville	United States	Record daily precipitation	38.1 mm (1.5 in)	39 of 100 (Notable)
Caldwell	United States	Record daily precipitation	28.2 mm (1.1 in)	39 of 100 (Notable)
Enid	United States	Record daily precipitation	38.4 mm (1.5 in)	39 of 100 (Notable)
Gyshgy	Turkmenistan	Record high maximum temperature	26.9 C (80.4 F)	38 of 100 (Notable)
Galesburg	United States	Record daily precipitation	31.0 mm (1.2 in)	38 of 100 (Notable)
Mound City	United States	Record daily precipitation	39.1 mm (1.5 in)	38 of 100 (Notable)
Paola	United States	Record daily precipitation	40.6 mm (1.6 in)	38 of 100 (Notable)
Winfield 3NE	United States	Record daily precipitation	35.6 mm (1.4 in)	38 of 100 (Notable)
Cassville 1 NE	United States	Record daily precipitation	49.0 mm (1.9 in)	38 of 100 (Notable)
Eldorado Springs	United States	Record daily precipitation	30.5 mm (1.2 in)	38 of 100 (Notable)
Neosho	United States	Record daily precipitation	40.6 mm (1.6 in)	38 of 100 (Notable)

Counts by Type and Timescale

1,179 records

Records set or tied on 20 December 1987 by type: Highest daily maximum 173, Lowest daily maximum 20, Highest daily minimum 293, Lowest daily minimum 12, Heaviest daily rainfall 600, Heaviest daily snowfall 47, Deepest snow cover 34.

Records on 20 December 1987 by type
Record type	Records
Highest daily maximum	173
Lowest daily maximum	20
Highest daily minimum	293
Lowest daily minimum	12
Heaviest daily rainfall	600
Heaviest daily snowfall	47
Deepest snow cover	34

Records on 20 December 1987 by timescale: all-time 2, monthly 14, daily 1,163.

How Much Records Were Beaten By

1,031 broken records

Margins by which the 1,031 broken records beat the old ones, in degrees Celsius for temperature and millimetres for precipitation and snow; the largest margin was 280.0. Ties are not counted.

Top 20 by Significance

20 December 1987

Top 20 records on 20 December 1987 by significance
Date	Station	Record	Value	Beat old record by	Old record stood	Significance
20 December 1987	Grenola 1 N, US	all-time snow depth	55.9 cm (22.0 in)	28.0 cm (11.0 in)	7 years	71 of 100 (Major)
20 December 1987	Chatsbury (Maryland), AU	daily rain	52.0 mm (2.0 in)	29.1 mm (1.1 in)	89 years	61 of 100 (Major)
20 December 1987	Ottawa, US	daily rain	40.6 mm (1.6 in)	22.8 mm (0.9 in)	76 years	59 of 100 (Notable)
20 December 1987	Eureka 1E, US	daily rain	37.8 mm (1.5 in)	25.9 mm (1.0 in)	72 years	56 of 100 (Notable)
20 December 1987	Lebo, US	daily rain	38.4 mm (1.5 in)	21.4 mm (0.8 in)	76 years	56 of 100 (Notable)
20 December 1987	Neosho Rapids, US	daily rain	40.1 mm (1.6 in)	24.9 mm (1.0 in)	76 years	56 of 100 (Notable)
20 December 1987	Claremore 2 ENE, US	daily rain	42.2 mm (1.7 in)	32.5 mm (1.3 in)	60 years	55 of 100 (Notable)
20 December 1987	Yates Ctr, US	daily rain	33.5 mm (1.3 in)	20.0 mm (0.8 in)	76 years	53 of 100 (Notable)
20 December 1987	Moran, US	daily rain	54.1 mm (2.1 in)	16.0 mm (0.6 in)	91 years	52 of 100 (Notable)
20 December 1987	Grenola 1 N, US	daily rain	36.1 mm (1.4 in)	18.3 mm (0.7 in)	76 years	51 of 100 (Notable)
20 December 1987	Thrall 3SSE, US	daily rain	38.1 mm (1.5 in)	31.7 mm (1.2 in)	30 years	51 of 100 (Notable)
20 December 1987	Vinita 2 N, US	daily rain	42.7 mm (1.7 in)	22.1 mm (0.9 in)	91 years	51 of 100 (Notable)
20 December 1987	Walnut 4S, US	daily rain	44.2 mm (1.7 in)	18.3 mm (0.7 in)	76 years	50 of 100 (Notable)
20 December 1987	Osage City, US	daily rain	31.2 mm (1.2 in)	18.5 mm (0.7 in)	72 years	49 of 100 (Notable)
20 December 1987	Spavinaw, US	daily rain	44.5 mm (1.8 in)	30.5 mm (1.2 in)	60 years	49 of 100 (Notable)
20 December 1987	Nueva Esperanza, MX	daily high min	28.3 C (82.9 F)	7.7 C (13.9 F)	25 years	48 of 100 (Notable)
20 December 1987	Fall Rvr Lake, US	daily rain	28.7 mm (1.1 in)	16.0 mm (0.6 in)	72 years	48 of 100 (Notable)
20 December 1987	Madison, US	daily rain	38.1 mm (1.5 in)	17.5 mm (0.7 in)	76 years	48 of 100 (Notable)
20 December 1987	Bolivar 1 NE, US	daily rain	31.0 mm (1.2 in)	16.5 mm (0.6 in)	81 years	48 of 100 (Notable)
20 December 1987	Iola 1 W, US	daily rain	31.5 mm (1.2 in)	17.0 mm (0.7 in)	68 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

1793 to 1987

Records set or tied on this calendar date in each year from 1793 to 1987. 1987 had 1,179 records.

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

Records on 12-20 in each year
Year	Records
1793	1
1795	1
1804	1
1805	2
1808	1
1815	1
1828	1
1837	1
1846	1
1855	8
1858	1
1860	1
1866	1
1867	1
1868	1
1869	1
1871	2
1874	3
1875	1
1877	2
1878	1
1879	1
1880	1
1881	1
1882	1
1884	4
1885	1
1886	4
1889	4
1890	2
1891	2
1892	1
1894	2
1895	8
1896	1
1897	4
1898	2
1899	1
1900	7
1901	8
1902	14
1903	17
1904	9
1905	5
1906	5
1907	11
1908	5
1909	22
1910	17
1911	24
1912	27
1913	7
1914	43
1915	18
1916	45
1917	33
1918	18
1919	25
1920	22
1921	101
1922	88
1923	215
1924	332
1925	96
1926	163
1927	200
1928	93
1929	256
1930	67
1931	536
1932	170
1933	492
1934	265
1935	152
1936	416
1937	181
1938	240
1939	308
1940	965
1941	633
1942	817
1943	193
1944	340
1945	430
1946	327
1947	385
1948	345
1949	1,141
1950	758
1951	926
1952	394
1953	385
1954	416
1955	726
1956	471
1957	1,354
1958	382
1959	142
1960	354
1961	369
1962	475
1963	875
1964	499
1965	353
1966	555
1967	1,370
1968	482
1969	514
1970	518
1971	441
1972	448
1973	1,184
1974	328
1975	610
1976	382
1977	484
1978	910
1979	600
1980	667
1981	1,681
1982	712
1983	2,995
1984	1,411
1985	1,035
1986	321
1987	1,179
1988	760
1989	1,812
1990	1,885
1991	1,172
1992	1,134
1993	1,266
1994	813
1995	1,128
1996	1,448
1997	651
1998	1,110
1999	938
2000	1,150
2001	523
2002	943
2003	1,315
2004	836
2005	515
2006	1,387
2007	986
2008	1,356
2009	1,502
2010	2,055
2011	846
2012	1,131
2013	584
2014	524
2015	1,238
2016	603
2017	688
2018	592
2019	731
2020	554
2021	442
2022	567
2023	1,242
2024	897
2025	1,166

Download the Data

Data for records on 1987-12-20: 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 2026-10-17 (17 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	1,012
50 to 100	13
100 to 150	5
150 to 200	0
200 to 250	0
250 to 300	1