Weather Records on 15 December 1996

727 weather records were set or tied worldwide on 15 December 1996. Highest significance: Fredericksburg, US.

Key Facts for 15 December 1996

On 15 December 1996, 727 weather records were set or tied at long-record stations worldwide.
181 were record highs and 92 were record lows, counting maximum and minimum temperature.
By timescale, 4 were all-time records, 52 monthly and 671 daily.
Fredericksburg set a daily record precipitation of 110.5 mm (4.4 in) on 15 December 1996.
Across 168 earlier years (1793 to 2025) the same calendar date averaged 454 records.

Record Map

727 stations

727 station records on 15 December 1996 are marked on the map, coloured by record type. Dot size shows the significance score. Made with Natural Earth.

Weather records on 15 December 1996: highest significance records shown on the map
Station	Country	Type	Value	Significance
Fredericksburg	United States	Record daily precipitation	110.5 mm (4.4 in)	77 of 100 (Major)
Buskala Rch	United States	Record daily snowfall	38.9 cm (15.3 in)	72 of 100 (Major)
Luverne	United States	Record daily precipitation	28.4 mm (1.1 in)	70 of 100 (Major)
Myroodah	Australia	Record daily precipitation	113.0 mm (4.4 in)	63 of 100 (Major)
Coloso	Puerto Rico [United States]	Record low maximum temperature	22.2 C (72.0 F)	63 of 100 (Major)
Liveringa Upper	Australia	Record daily precipitation	114.0 mm (4.5 in)	59 of 100 (Notable)
Flandreau	United States	Record daily snowfall	27.9 cm (11.0 in)	58 of 100 (Notable)
Kolomna	Russia	Record daily precipitation	28.5 mm (1.1 in)	54 of 100 (Notable)
Spooner Ag Rsch STN	United States	Record daily snowfall	21.6 cm (8.5 in)	52 of 100 (Notable)
Marshall	United States	Record snow depth	53.3 cm (21.0 in)	50 of 100 (Notable)
Winona	United States	Record daily precipitation	52.8 mm (2.1 in)	50 of 100 (Notable)
Ft Yates 4 SW	United States	Record daily snowfall	10.2 cm (4.0 in)	50 of 100 (Notable)
Derby Post Office	Australia	Record daily precipitation	80.0 mm (3.1 in)	49 of 100 (Notable)
Bergplaats	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	58.0 mm (2.3 in)	49 of 100 (Notable)
Rietbult	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	64.0 mm (2.5 in)	49 of 100 (Notable)
Britton	United States	Record daily snowfall	10.2 cm (4.0 in)	49 of 100 (Notable)
Derby Aero	Australia	Record daily precipitation	102.0 mm (4.0 in)	48 of 100 (Notable)
Clark	United States	Record daily snowfall	10.4 cm (4.1 in)	47 of 100 (Notable)
Redfield	United States	Record daily snowfall	35.6 cm (14.0 in)	47 of 100 (Notable)
Elk Rvr	United States	Record daily snowfall	26.7 cm (10.5 in)	46 of 100 (Notable)
Lysebotn	Norway	Record snow depth	30.0 cm (11.8 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Georgetown 1 E	United States	Record snow depth	61.0 cm (24.0 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Minneota	United States	Record daily snowfall	25.4 cm (10.0 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Cedar	United States	Record daily precipitation	26.4 mm (1.0 in)	44 of 100 (Notable)
Forest Lake 5NE	United States	Record daily snowfall	27.9 cm (11.0 in)	44 of 100 (Notable)
Kimberley Downs	Australia	Record daily precipitation	162.0 mm (6.4 in)	43 of 100 (Notable)
Porthill	United States	Record snow depth	45.7 cm (18.0 in)	43 of 100 (Notable)
New Hampton	United States	Record daily precipitation	25.4 mm (1.0 in)	43 of 100 (Notable)
Meade	United States	Record high maximum temperature	24.4 C (75.9 F)	42 of 100 (Notable)
Kalispell Glacier AP	United States	Record snow depth	63.5 cm (25.0 in)	42 of 100 (Notable)
Libby 1 NE Rs	United States	Record snow depth	48.3 cm (19.0 in)	41 of 100 (Notable)
Blunt	United States	Record daily snowfall	27.9 cm (11.0 in)	41 of 100 (Notable)
Selby	United States	Record snow depth	76.2 cm (30.0 in)	41 of 100 (Notable)
Marshall	United States	Record daily snowfall	25.4 cm (10.0 in)	40 of 100 (Notable)
Arlington 1 W	United States	Record daily snowfall	30.5 cm (12.0 in)	39 of 100 (Notable)
Faulkton	United States	Record snow depth	45.7 cm (18.0 in)	39 of 100 (Notable)
Rochford 2 WNW	United States	Record daily snowfall	33.0 cm (13.0 in)	39 of 100 (Notable)
Wentworth 2.5 WNW	United States	Record daily snowfall	12.7 cm (5.0 in)	39 of 100 (Notable)
Cumberland	United States	Record daily snowfall	22.9 cm (9.0 in)	39 of 100 (Notable)
Bonners Ferry	United States	Record snow depth	53.3 cm (21.0 in)	38 of 100 (Notable)
Wessington 2SE	United States	Record daily precipitation	31.8 mm (1.3 in)	38 of 100 (Notable)
Houston Spring Branch	United States	Record daily precipitation	72.4 mm (2.9 in)	38 of 100 (Notable)
Riverside Fire STN 3	United States	Record high minimum temperature	11.1 C (52.0 F)	37 of 100 (Notable)
Cedar	United States	Record daily snowfall	35.6 cm (14.0 in)	37 of 100 (Notable)
Watauga S Dak 8 N	United States	Record snow depth	38.1 cm (15.0 in)	37 of 100 (Notable)
Blunt	United States	Record snow depth	53.3 cm (21.0 in)	37 of 100 (Notable)
Fowlerton	United States	Record high minimum temperature	19.4 C (66.9 F)	37 of 100 (Notable)
Baldwin	United States	Record daily snowfall	17.8 cm (7.0 in)	37 of 100 (Notable)
Ellendale	Australia	Record daily precipitation	103.0 mm (4.1 in)	36 of 100 (Notable)
Priest Rvr Exp STN	United States	Record snow depth	88.9 cm (35.0 in)	36 of 100 (Notable)
Stewart	United States	Record daily snowfall	33.0 cm (13.0 in)	36 of 100 (Notable)
Manderson 3 NE	United States	Record daily snowfall	9.1 cm (3.6 in)	36 of 100 (Notable)
Elsinore	United States	Record high minimum temperature	10.6 C (51.1 F)	35 of 100 (Notable)
Wessington Springs	United States	Record daily snowfall	24.1 cm (9.5 in)	35 of 100 (Notable)
Gatesville	United States	Record daily snowfall	6.4 cm (2.5 in)	35 of 100 (Notable)
Prentice #2	United States	Record daily snowfall	12.7 cm (5.0 in)	35 of 100 (Notable)
Marechal Floriano (Dnos)	Brazil	Record daily precipitation	118.0 mm (4.6 in)	34 of 100 (Routine)
Stanley Wwtp	United States	Record daily snowfall	9.7 cm (3.8 in)	34 of 100 (Routine)
Ventspils	Latvia	Record daily precipitation	27.9 mm (1.1 in)	33 of 100 (Routine)
Shahat	Libya	Record low minimum temperature	1.5 C (34.7 F)	33 of 100 (Routine)

Counts by Type and Timescale

727 records

Records set or tied on 15 December 1996 by type: Highest daily maximum 105, Lowest daily maximum 45, Highest daily minimum 76, Lowest daily minimum 47, Heaviest daily rainfall 257, Heaviest daily snowfall 103, Deepest snow cover 94.

Records on 15 December 1996 by type
Record type	Records
Highest daily maximum	105
Lowest daily maximum	45
Highest daily minimum	76
Lowest daily minimum	47
Heaviest daily rainfall	257
Heaviest daily snowfall	103
Deepest snow cover	94

Records on 15 December 1996 by timescale: all-time 4, monthly 52, daily 671.

How Much Records Were Beaten By

566 broken records

Margins by which the 566 broken records beat the old ones, in degrees Celsius for temperature and millimetres for precipitation and snow; the largest margin was 331.0. Ties are not counted.

Top 20 by Significance

15 December 1996

Top 20 records on 15 December 1996 by significance
Date	Station	Record	Value	Beat old record by	Old record stood	Significance
15 December 1996	Fredericksburg, US	daily rain	110.5 mm (4.4 in)	77.5 mm (3.1 in)	90 years	77 of 100 (Major)
15 December 1996	Buskala Rch, US	daily snowfall	38.9 cm (15.3 in)	26.2 cm (10.3 in)	80 years	72 of 100 (Major)
15 December 1996	Luverne, US	daily rain	28.4 mm (1.1 in)	18.0 mm (0.7 in)	101 years	70 of 100 (Major)
15 December 1996	Myroodah, AU	daily rain	113.0 mm (4.4 in)	75.4 mm (3.0 in)	48 years	63 of 100 (Major)
15 December 1996	Coloso, PR	daily low max	22.2 C (72.0 F)	4.5 C (8.1 F)	86 years	63 of 100 (Major)
15 December 1996	Liveringa Upper, AU	daily rain	114.0 mm (4.5 in)	79.7 mm (3.1 in)	34 years	59 of 100 (Notable)
15 December 1996	Flandreau, US	daily snowfall	27.9 cm (11.0 in)	8.8 cm (3.5 in)	94 years	58 of 100 (Notable)
15 December 1996	Kolomna, RU	monthly rain	28.5 mm (1.1 in)	10.3 mm (0.4 in)	15 years	54 of 100 (Notable)
15 December 1996	Spooner Ag Rsch STN, US	daily snowfall	21.6 cm (8.5 in)	8.9 cm (3.5 in)	69 years	52 of 100 (Notable)
15 December 1996	Marshall, US	daily snow depth	53.3 cm (21.0 in)	25.4 cm (10.0 in)	59 years	50 of 100 (Notable)
15 December 1996	Winona, US	monthly rain	52.8 mm (2.1 in)	14.7 mm (0.6 in)	11 years	50 of 100 (Notable)
15 December 1996	Ft Yates 4 SW, US	daily snowfall	10.2 cm (4.0 in)	3.8 cm (1.5 in)	98 years	50 of 100 (Notable)
15 December 1996	Derby Post Office, AU	daily rain	80.0 mm (3.1 in)	24.6 mm (1.0 in)	82 years	49 of 100 (Notable)
15 December 1996	Bergplaats, ZA	daily rain	58.0 mm (2.3 in)	17.1 mm (0.7 in)	90 years	49 of 100 (Notable)
15 December 1996	Rietbult, ZA	daily rain	64.0 mm (2.5 in)	38.0 mm (1.5 in)	21 years	49 of 100 (Notable)
15 December 1996	Britton, US	daily snowfall	10.2 cm (4.0 in)	5.1 cm (2.0 in)	81 years	49 of 100 (Notable)
15 December 1996	Derby Aero, AU	monthly rain	102.0 mm (4.0 in)	42.0 mm (1.7 in)	3 years	48 of 100 (Notable)
15 December 1996	Clark, US	daily snowfall	10.4 cm (4.1 in)	2.8 cm (1.1 in)	94 years	47 of 100 (Notable)
15 December 1996	Redfield, US	monthly snowfall	35.6 cm (14.0 in)	15.3 cm (6.0 in)	2 years	47 of 100 (Notable)
15 December 1996	Elk Rvr, US	daily snowfall	26.7 cm (10.5 in)	20.3 cm (8.0 in)	6 years	46 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 1996

Records set or tied on this calendar date in each year from 1793 to 1996. 1996 had 727 records.

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

Records on 12-15 in each year
Year	Records
1793	1
1796	1
1798	1
1800	1
1808	3
1810	1
1814	3
1815	1
1825	1
1831	1
1840	2
1844	2
1846	3
1847	1
1854	3
1859	2
1863	1
1864	1
1866	1
1867	2
1868	1
1869	1
1870	1
1873	1
1874	1
1878	4
1879	2
1880	2
1881	3
1882	2
1883	1
1885	1
1886	1
1889	3
1890	1
1891	2
1892	4
1893	1
1894	4
1895	1
1896	5
1897	2
1899	12
1900	5
1901	21
1902	3
1903	7
1904	9
1905	6
1906	9
1907	10
1908	5
1909	5
1910	4
1911	23
1912	42
1913	13
1914	239
1915	180
1916	40
1917	40
1918	54
1919	28
1920	35
1921	26
1922	65
1923	132
1924	358
1925	187
1926	226
1927	235
1928	388
1929	500
1930	160
1931	284
1932	385
1933	796
1934	199
1935	140
1936	286
1937	310
1938	100
1939	637
1940	464
1941	373
1942	385
1943	486
1944	281
1945	420
1946	521
1947	634
1948	1,239
1949	135
1950	292
1951	962
1952	367
1953	270
1954	413
1955	371
1956	531
1957	304
1958	531
1959	560
1960	313
1961	883
1962	979
1963	670
1964	371
1965	759
1966	275
1967	948
1968	510
1969	352
1970	215
1971	1,739
1972	1,159
1973	615
1974	511
1975	1,230
1976	349
1977	963
1978	499
1979	560
1980	1,085
1981	1,243
1982	831
1983	1,229
1984	1,397
1985	1,077
1986	502
1987	1,740
1988	519
1989	2,753
1990	846
1991	636
1992	1,263
1993	734
1994	676
1995	848
1996	727
1997	1,521
1998	1,216
1999	621
2000	1,154
2001	1,026
2002	831
2003	846
2004	795
2005	953
2006	1,491
2007	973
2008	1,789
2009	930
2010	1,705
2011	780
2012	1,058
2013	701
2014	1,045
2015	1,398
2016	1,024
2017	332
2018	539
2019	547
2020	400
2021	1,182
2022	1,057
2023	794
2024	369
2025	2,115

Download the Data

Data for records on 1996-12-15: 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	474
50 to 100	47
100 to 150	20
150 to 200	15
200 to 250	4
250 to 300	5
300 to 350	1