Weather Records on 21 May 1990

947 weather records were set or tied worldwide on 21 May 1990. Highest significance: Undoolya, AU.

Key Facts for 21 May 1990

On 21 May 1990, 947 weather records were set or tied at long-record stations worldwide.
261 were record highs and 378 were record lows, counting maximum and minimum temperature.
By timescale, 0 were all-time records, 33 monthly and 914 daily.
Undoolya set a daily record precipitation of 38.8 mm (1.5 in) on 21 May 1990.
Across 156 earlier years (1793 to 2026) the same calendar date averaged 457 records.

Record Map

947 stations

947 station records on 21 May 1990 are marked on the map, coloured by record type. Dot size shows the significance score. Made with Natural Earth.

Weather records on 21 May 1990: highest significance records shown on the map
Station	Country	Type	Value	Significance
Undoolya	Australia	Record daily precipitation	38.8 mm (1.5 in)	76 of 100 (Major)
Evesham Station	Australia	Record daily precipitation	132.0 mm (5.2 in)	76 of 100 (Major)
Arltunga	Australia	Record daily precipitation	68.0 mm (2.7 in)	66 of 100 (Major)
Owen Springs	Australia	Record daily precipitation	56.8 mm (2.2 in)	60 of 100 (Major)
Elrose Station	Australia	Record daily precipitation	82.0 mm (3.2 in)	60 of 100 (Major)
Clanton	United States	Record daily precipitation	69.9 mm (2.8 in)	58 of 100 (Notable)
Chatsworth	Australia	Record daily precipitation	87.0 mm (3.4 in)	56 of 100 (Notable)
Barrow Creek	Australia	Record daily precipitation	69.8 mm (2.7 in)	54 of 100 (Notable)
Wakefield	Australia	Record daily precipitation	134.0 mm (5.3 in)	53 of 100 (Notable)
Bolivar	United States	Record daily precipitation	41.1 mm (1.6 in)	53 of 100 (Notable)
Areyonga	Australia	Record daily precipitation	57.4 mm (2.3 in)	51 of 100 (Notable)
Terrick Terrick Stud	Australia	Record daily precipitation	87.5 mm (3.4 in)	51 of 100 (Notable)
Keeroongooloo	Australia	Record daily precipitation	37.6 mm (1.5 in)	51 of 100 (Notable)
Astrahanka	Russia	Record daily precipitation	38.2 mm (1.5 in)	51 of 100 (Notable)
New Crown	Australia	Record daily precipitation	60.0 mm (2.4 in)	50 of 100 (Notable)
Coolullah Station	Australia	Record daily precipitation	78.2 mm (3.1 in)	50 of 100 (Notable)
The Garden	Australia	Record daily precipitation	65.6 mm (2.6 in)	49 of 100 (Notable)
Corona Downs	Australia	Record daily precipitation	62.5 mm (2.5 in)	49 of 100 (Notable)
Houston	United States	Record daily precipitation	61.5 mm (2.4 in)	49 of 100 (Notable)
Bond Springs Homestead	Australia	Record daily precipitation	52.0 mm (2.0 in)	48 of 100 (Notable)
Saxby Downs Station	Australia	Record daily precipitation	42.0 mm (1.7 in)	48 of 100 (Notable)
Acaponeta	Mexico	Record low maximum temperature	26.7 C (80.1 F)	48 of 100 (Notable)
Motul	Mexico	Record daily precipitation	132.3 mm (5.2 in)	48 of 100 (Notable)
Culpanovo	Russia	Record daily precipitation	32.4 mm (1.3 in)	47 of 100 (Notable)
Eyre	Australia	Record daily precipitation	38.2 mm (1.5 in)	46 of 100 (Notable)
Erldunda	Australia	Record daily precipitation	45.6 mm (1.8 in)	46 of 100 (Notable)
Coloso	Puerto Rico [United States]	Record high maximum temperature	35.0 C (95.0 F)	45 of 100 (Notable)
New Bedford Coop	United States	Record low maximum temperature	7.2 C (45.0 F)	44 of 100 (Notable)
Astoria AP (Port of)	United States	Record daily precipitation	26.4 mm (1.0 in)	44 of 100 (Notable)
Millungera Station	Australia	Record daily precipitation	62.5 mm (2.5 in)	43 of 100 (Notable)
Hamilton Downs	Australia	Record daily precipitation	70.0 mm (2.8 in)	42 of 100 (Notable)
Alcoota	Australia	Record daily precipitation	68.0 mm (2.7 in)	42 of 100 (Notable)
Currawilla Station	Australia	Record daily precipitation	55.4 mm (2.2 in)	42 of 100 (Notable)
Billingsley	United States	Record daily precipitation	61.2 mm (2.4 in)	42 of 100 (Notable)
Princeton	United States	Record low maximum temperature	12.8 C (55.0 F)	42 of 100 (Notable)
Kukuihaele Mill 206	United States	Record daily precipitation	34.3 mm (1.4 in)	42 of 100 (Notable)
Houston Wb City	United States	Record high maximum temperature	34.4 C (93.9 F)	42 of 100 (Notable)
Huejotzingo	Mexico	Record low minimum temperature	0.0 C (32.0 F)	41 of 100 (Notable)
Kislovodsk	Russia	Record low minimum temperature	0.6 C (33.1 F)	41 of 100 (Notable)
Reus/Aeropuerto	Spain	Record daily precipitation	55.6 mm (2.2 in)	41 of 100 (Notable)
Carrollton	United States	Record low maximum temperature	16.7 C (62.1 F)	41 of 100 (Notable)
Lancaster 4 WSW	United States	Record low maximum temperature	10.0 C (50.0 F)	41 of 100 (Notable)
Louisville Intl AP	United States	Record daily precipitation	55.1 mm (2.2 in)	41 of 100 (Notable)
Idracowra	Australia	Record daily precipitation	50.0 mm (2.0 in)	40 of 100 (Notable)
Ringwood	Australia	Record daily precipitation	41.0 mm (1.6 in)	40 of 100 (Notable)
Henbury	Australia	Record daily precipitation	52.0 mm (2.0 in)	40 of 100 (Notable)
Ammaroo	Australia	Record daily precipitation	62.4 mm (2.5 in)	40 of 100 (Notable)
Mount Ryde	Australia	Record daily precipitation	98.0 mm (3.9 in)	40 of 100 (Notable)
Paraiso Novillero	Mexico	Record daily precipitation	75.9 mm (3.0 in)	40 of 100 (Notable)
San Sebastian - Igueldo	Spain	Record daily precipitation	84.7 mm (3.3 in)	40 of 100 (Notable)
Willits 1 NE	United States	Record daily precipitation	39.6 mm (1.6 in)	40 of 100 (Notable)
Brockton	United States	Record low maximum temperature	7.2 C (45.0 F)	40 of 100 (Notable)
Sedalia Wtp	United States	Record low maximum temperature	18.3 C (64.9 F)	40 of 100 (Notable)
Nashua 2 NNW	United States	Record low maximum temperature	6.1 C (43.0 F)	40 of 100 (Notable)
Alice Springs Airport	Australia	Record daily precipitation	56.6 mm (2.2 in)	39 of 100 (Notable)
Wewahitchka	United States	Record high minimum temperature	22.2 C (72.0 F)	39 of 100 (Notable)
Wheaton 3 SE	United States	Record low maximum temperature	15.0 C (59.0 F)	39 of 100 (Notable)
Sidney 1SSE	United States	Record low maximum temperature	13.9 C (57.0 F)	39 of 100 (Notable)
Baldwinsville	United States	Record daily precipitation	25.4 mm (1.0 in)	39 of 100 (Notable)
N Creek 5 SE	United States	Record daily precipitation	38.9 mm (1.5 in)	39 of 100 (Notable)

Counts by Type and Timescale

947 records

Records set or tied on 21 May 1990 by type: Highest daily maximum 102, Lowest daily maximum 309, Highest daily minimum 159, Lowest daily minimum 69, Heaviest daily rainfall 306, Heaviest daily snowfall 2.

Records on 21 May 1990 by type
Record type	Records
Highest daily maximum	102
Lowest daily maximum	309
Highest daily minimum	159
Lowest daily minimum	69
Heaviest daily rainfall	306
Heaviest daily snowfall	2
Deepest snow cover	0

Records on 21 May 1990 by timescale: all-time 0, monthly 33, daily 914.

How Much Records Were Beaten By

769 broken records

Margins by which the 769 broken records beat the old ones, in degrees Celsius for temperature and millimetres for precipitation and snow; the largest margin was 117.5. Ties are not counted.

Top 20 by Significance

21 May 1990

Top 20 records on 21 May 1990 by significance
Date	Station	Record	Value	Beat old record by	Old record stood	Significance
21 May 1990	Undoolya, AU	daily rain	38.8 mm (1.5 in)	38.8 mm (1.5 in)	91 years	76 of 100 (Major)
21 May 1990	Evesham Station, AU	monthly rain	132.0 mm (5.2 in)	76.1 mm (3.0 in)	53 years	76 of 100 (Major)
21 May 1990	Arltunga, AU	daily rain	68.0 mm (2.7 in)	52.0 mm (2.0 in)	57 years	66 of 100 (Major)
21 May 1990	Owen Springs, AU	monthly rain	56.8 mm (2.2 in)	26.6 mm (1.0 in)	16 years	60 of 100 (Major)
21 May 1990	Elrose Station, AU	monthly rain	82.0 mm (3.2 in)	35.0 mm (1.4 in)	53 years	60 of 100 (Major)
21 May 1990	Clanton, US	daily rain	69.9 mm (2.8 in)	36.9 mm (1.5 in)	80 years	58 of 100 (Notable)
21 May 1990	Chatsworth, AU	monthly rain	87.0 mm (3.4 in)	22.7 mm (0.9 in)	75 years	56 of 100 (Notable)
21 May 1990	Barrow Creek, AU	daily rain	69.8 mm (2.7 in)	39.8 mm (1.6 in)	31 years	54 of 100 (Notable)
21 May 1990	Wakefield, AU	daily rain	134.0 mm (5.3 in)	117.5 mm (4.6 in)	31 years	53 of 100 (Notable)
21 May 1990	Bolivar, US	daily rain	41.1 mm (1.6 in)	20.5 mm (0.8 in)	71 years	53 of 100 (Notable)
21 May 1990	Areyonga, AU	monthly rain	57.4 mm (2.3 in)	24.0 mm (0.9 in)	10 years	51 of 100 (Notable)
21 May 1990	Terrick Terrick Stud, AU	monthly rain	87.5 mm (3.4 in)	8.8 mm (0.35 in)	88 years	51 of 100 (Notable)
21 May 1990	Keeroongooloo, AU	daily rain	37.6 mm (1.5 in)	27.7 mm (1.1 in)	71 years	51 of 100 (Notable)
21 May 1990	Astrahanka, RU	daily rain	38.2 mm (1.5 in)	21.6 mm (0.9 in)	33 years	51 of 100 (Notable)
21 May 1990	New Crown, AU	monthly rain	60.0 mm (2.4 in)	19.4 mm (0.8 in)	39 years	50 of 100 (Notable)
21 May 1990	Coolullah Station, AU	monthly rain	78.2 mm (3.1 in)	34.2 mm (1.3 in)	9 years	50 of 100 (Notable)
21 May 1990	The Garden, AU	daily rain	65.6 mm (2.6 in)	56.5 mm (2.2 in)	21 years	49 of 100 (Notable)
21 May 1990	Corona Downs, AU	daily rain	62.5 mm (2.5 in)	39.1 mm (1.5 in)	40 years	49 of 100 (Notable)
21 May 1990	Houston, US	daily rain	61.5 mm (2.4 in)	27.7 mm (1.1 in)	75 years	49 of 100 (Notable)
21 May 1990	Bond Springs Homestead, AU	daily rain	52.0 mm (2.0 in)	37.0 mm (1.5 in)	31 years	48 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 1990

Records set or tied on this calendar date in each year from 1793 to 1990. 1990 had 947 records.

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

Records on 05-21 in each year
Year	Records
1793	1
1795	1
1811	1
1837	2
1842	1
1847	2
1854	1
1857	1
1858	1
1865	1
1866	1
1870	2
1875	1
1876	1
1880	2
1882	1
1885	1
1886	2
1887	3
1889	5
1890	3
1891	6
1892	1
1893	1
1894	4
1895	4
1896	5
1897	2
1898	1
1899	5
1900	1
1901	3
1902	4
1903	26
1904	8
1905	7
1906	12
1907	36
1908	13
1909	13
1910	14
1911	87
1912	24
1913	13
1914	26
1915	24
1916	13
1917	76
1918	51
1919	170
1920	39
1921	158
1922	39
1923	125
1924	148
1925	250
1926	221
1927	207
1928	173
1929	247
1930	133
1931	488
1932	343
1933	290
1934	590
1935	190
1936	328
1937	227
1938	348
1939	355
1940	456
1941	525
1942	482
1943	463
1944	310
1945	515
1946	324
1947	485
1948	312
1949	593
1950	403
1951	271
1952	385
1953	501
1954	961
1955	507
1956	409
1957	709
1958	511
1959	684
1960	615
1961	306
1962	553
1963	598
1964	788
1965	238
1966	296
1967	1,022
1968	549
1969	832
1970	449
1971	536
1972	557
1973	493
1974	847
1975	1,160
1976	393
1977	756
1978	575
1979	787
1980	857
1981	1,550
1982	599
1983	1,106
1984	950
1985	610
1986	908
1987	1,242
1988	819
1989	671
1990	947
1991	1,065
1992	1,143
1993	1,197
1994	656
1995	749
1996	1,461
1997	953
1998	1,200
1999	544
2000	897
2001	1,187
2002	2,048
2003	807
2004	898
2005	1,020
2006	810
2007	894
2008	740
2009	1,315
2010	962
2011	959
2012	848
2013	884
2014	522
2015	956
2016	567
2017	780
2018	525
2019	1,668
2020	707
2021	1,131
2022	1,512
2023	794
2024	751
2025	776
2026	356

Download the Data

Data for records on 1990-05-21: 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 2026-10-13 (13 October 2026). Records are computed by this site and are not official.

Data as of 2026-10-12. Last revised 12 October 2026 (2026-10-12).

Margin	Records
0 to 20	706
20 to 40	49
40 to 60	11
60 to 80	2
80 to 100	0
100 to 120	1