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Built 2026-10-19 (19 October 2026)

Cold outbreak in Australia, 22 February to 8 March 2021

Cold outbreak in Australia, 22 February to 8 March 2021: 117 records at 71 stations, peak on 23 February 2021. Closed.

Data as of . Last revised (2026-10-17).

Key Facts

  • Cold outbreak in Australia, 22 February to 8 March 2021 set or tied 117 station records at 71 stations.
  • It ran from 22 February 2021 to 8 March 2021 (15 days) and its peak day was 23 February 2021.
  • Status: closed.
  • Adelaide West Terrace set a daily record low minimum temperature of 9.7 C (49.5 F) on 4 March 2021.
  • The busiest day was 23 February 2021 with 24 records.
  • The oldest broken record in the ranked list had stood for 81 years.

Footprint

22 February to 8 March 2021
Footprint of Cold outbreak in Australia, 22 February to 8 March 2021 The area covered by Cold outbreak in Australia, 22 February to 8 March 2021 is outlined, with 16 of the stations that set records marked, coloured by record type.
The area covered by Cold outbreak in Australia, 22 February to 8 March 2021 is outlined, with 16 of the stations that set records marked, coloured by record type. Made with Natural Earth.
Footprint of Cold outbreak in Australia, 22 February to 8 March 2021: stations that set records in the event
StationTypeValueDate
Parafield AirportRecord low minimum temperature9.0 C (48.2 F)2021-02-25
Adelaide West TerraceRecord low minimum temperature9.7 C (49.5 F)2021-03-04
Canberra ForestryRecord low minimum temperature5.8 C (42.4 F)2021-02-26
East Sale ComparisonRecord low minimum temperature7.7 C (45.9 F)2021-03-03
Katoomba (Murri St)Record low minimum temperature4.8 C (40.6 F)2021-02-27
Echuca AerodromeRecord low minimum temperature5.1 C (41.2 F)2021-03-03
Thredbo AWSRecord low minimum temperature-0.7 C (30.7 F)2021-02-24
Wagga Wagga AMORecord low minimum temperature8.4 C (47.1 F)2021-02-26
Broken Hill Airport AWSRecord low minimum temperature9.7 C (49.5 F)2021-02-24
Dartmouth ReservoirRecord low minimum temperature6.3 C (43.3 F)2021-02-26
KeithRecord low minimum temperature4.0 C (39.2 F)2021-03-02
Narooma RvcpRecord low maximum temperature20.0 C (68.0 F)2021-02-24
Barraba Post OfficeRecord low maximum temperature20.4 C (68.7 F)2021-02-25
Burrinjuck DamRecord low minimum temperature10.5 C (50.9 F)2021-02-26
Castlemaine PrisonRecord low minimum temperature3.5 C (38.3 F)2021-03-06
StrathbogieRecord low minimum temperature3.2 C (37.8 F)2021-02-28

Records per Day

Peak day 24
Records per day during Cold outbreak in Australia, 22 February to 8 March 2021 Records set or tied each day from 22 February 2021 to 8 March 2021. The most in one day was 24 on 23 February 2021. 0 6 13 19 25 02-2202-2402-2602-2803-0303-0503-07
Records set or tied each day from 22 February 2021 to 8 March 2021. The most in one day was 24 on 23 February 2021.
Records per day during Cold outbreak in Australia, 22 February to 8 March 2021
DateRecords
2021-02-221
2021-02-2324
2021-02-2414
2021-02-2515
2021-02-2610
2021-02-273
2021-02-286
2021-03-028
2021-03-0314
2021-03-045
2021-03-056
2021-03-066
2021-03-071
2021-03-084

Top Records by Margin

Margin over the record replaced
Top records of Cold outbreak in Australia, 22 February to 8 March 2021 ranked by margin
Thredbo AWS, 02-235.2 C (9.4 F)
Barraba Post Office, 02-253.3 C (5.9 F)
Katoomba (Murri St), 02-272.8 C (5.0 F)
Strathbogie, 02-282.8 C (5.0 F)
Dartmouth Reservoir, 02-262.3 C (4.1 F)
Thredbo AWS, 02-242.2 C (4.0 F)
Wagga Wagga AMO, 02-261.6 C (2.9 F)
Keith, 03-061.5 C (2.7 F)
Thredbo AWS, 02-231.3 C (2.3 F)
Echuca Aerodrome, 03-031.2 C (2.2 F)
Adelaide West Terrace, 03-040.9 C (1.6 F)
Broken Hill Airport AWS, 02-240.9 C (1.6 F)
Narooma Rvcp, 02-240.8 C (1.4 F)
Keith, 03-020.4 C (0.7 F)
Castlemaine Prison, 03-060.4 C (0.7 F)

Margin is how far the new value is beyond the record it replaced. Ties are not shown.

Margin Against Age of the Broken Record

Margin against age of the broken record in Cold outbreak in Australia, 22 February to 8 March 2021 117 records plotted by how far they beat the old record (across) and how many years the old record had stood (up). Long standing records beaten by a wide margin sit in the top right. 0 25 50 75 100 0.01.53.04.56.0 Margin (C) Years the old record stood
117 records plotted by how far they beat the old record (across) and how many years the old record had stood (up). Long standing records beaten by a wide margin sit in the top right.
Margin against age of the broken record in Cold outbreak in Australia, 22 February to 8 March 2021
Margin (C)Years the old record stood
0.968
0.181
0.372
0.172
2.839
1.256
2.252
1.646
0.959
0.456
2.341
3.329
0.847
1.349
1.540
5.213
0.155
2.836
0.454
0.152
1.536
1.735
0.240
0.943
0.641
0.641
3.918
0.143
2.329
0.834
1.036
0.139
0.535
1.516
0.735
0.935
0.130
0.236
0.137
1.628
1.528
1.428
0.134
1.228
0.829
1.028
1.727
2.129
0.927
1.129
2.513
0.926
1.826
0.234
2.316
1.928
1.828
1.628
1.628
0.724
2.228
1.222
0.228
0.826
0.228
0.334
0.716
1.129
2.36
0.128
0.128
1.423
3.28
1.613
2.013
0.524
1.216
0.926
0.329
1.116
1.216
0.428
0.429
0.526
0.217
1.21
1.612
0.911
1.115
0.910
0.410
0.124
0.124
0.124
0.610
0.718
2.07
0.223
0.217
0.112
0.112
0.210
0.419
0.210
0.410
0.210
0.317
0.711
0.115
0.710
0.312
0.113
0.82
0.213
0.82
0.50
0.40

Compared With Other Events

Station records per event
Station records in Cold outbreak in Australia, 22 February to 8 March 2021 compared with similar events
Cold outbreak in United States and Mexico, 6 February to 5 March 202112,118 records
Cold outbreak in United States and Mexico, 13 October to 5 November 20209,841 records
Cold outbreak in United States and Mexico, 23 December 2017 to 8 January 20188,263 records
Cold outbreak in United States and Mexico, 3 to 23 January 20247,675 records
Cold outbreak in United States, 15 January to 10 February 20265,568 records
Cold outbreak in Australia, 22 February to 8 March 2021 (this event)117 records

Every Record Set

20 of 117
Every record set or tied during Cold outbreak in Australia, 22 February to 8 March 2021, in date order
DateStationRecordValueMarginYears stoodSignificance
2021-02-23Thredbo AWSRecord low minimum temperature-0.4 C (31.3 F)1.3 C (2.3 F)4922 of 100 (Routine)
2021-02-23Thredbo AWSRecord low maximum temperature4.7 C (40.5 F)5.2 C (9.4 F)1321 of 100 (Routine)
2021-02-24Thredbo AWSRecord low minimum temperature-0.7 C (30.7 F)2.2 C (4.0 F)5225 of 100 (Routine)
2021-02-24Broken Hill Airport AWSRecord low minimum temperature9.7 C (49.5 F)0.9 C (1.6 F)5924 of 100 (Routine)
2021-02-24Narooma RvcpRecord low maximum temperature20.0 C (68.0 F)0.8 C (1.4 F)4722 of 100 (Routine)
2021-02-25Parafield AirportRecord low minimum temperature9.0 C (48.2 F)0.1 C (0.2 F)8132 of 100 (Routine)
2021-02-25Barraba Post OfficeRecord low maximum temperature20.4 C (68.7 F)3.3 C (5.9 F)2922 of 100 (Routine)
2021-02-26Canberra ForestryRecord low minimum temperature5.8 C (42.4 F)0.3 C (0.5 F)7228 of 100 (Routine)
2021-02-26Wagga Wagga AMORecord low minimum temperature8.4 C (47.1 F)1.6 C (2.9 F)4625 of 100 (Routine)
2021-02-26Dartmouth ReservoirRecord low minimum temperature6.3 C (43.3 F)2.3 C (4.1 F)4123 of 100 (Routine)
2021-02-26Burrinjuck DamRecord low minimum temperature10.5 C (50.9 F)0.1 C (0.2 F)5521 of 100 (Routine)
2021-02-26Castlemaine PrisonRecord low minimum temperature5.5 C (41.9 F)0.1 C (0.2 F)5220 of 100 (Routine)
2021-02-27Katoomba (Murri St)Record low minimum temperature4.8 C (40.6 F)2.8 C (5.0 F)3926 of 100 (Routine)
2021-02-28StrathbogieRecord low minimum temperature3.2 C (37.8 F)2.8 C (5.0 F)3621 of 100 (Routine)
2021-03-02KeithRecord low minimum temperature4.0 C (39.2 F)0.4 C (0.7 F)5623 of 100 (Routine)
2021-03-03East Sale ComparisonRecord low minimum temperature7.7 C (45.9 F)0.1 C (0.2 F)7228 of 100 (Routine)
2021-03-03Echuca AerodromeRecord low minimum temperature5.1 C (41.2 F)1.2 C (2.2 F)5626 of 100 (Routine)
2021-03-04Adelaide West TerraceRecord low minimum temperature9.7 C (49.5 F)0.9 C (1.6 F)6832 of 100 (Routine)
2021-03-06KeithRecord low minimum temperature4.7 C (40.5 F)1.5 C (2.7 F)4021 of 100 (Routine)
2021-03-06Castlemaine PrisonRecord low minimum temperature3.5 C (38.3 F)0.4 C (0.7 F)5421 of 100 (Routine)

The daily ledgers keep a limited number of records per day, so this list has 20 of the 117 records the event counts. The counts above use the full total.

Related Headlines

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Download the Data

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)) Data as of 2026-10-17. Events are found by this site from station records and are not official designations. Records are provisional until reprocessed.