Weather Records on 20 November 1988

1,218 weather records were set or tied worldwide on 20 November 1988. Highest significance: Cardwell Marine Pde, AU.

Key Facts for 20 November 1988

On 20 November 1988, 1,218 weather records were set or tied at long-record stations worldwide.
156 were record highs and 207 were record lows, counting maximum and minimum temperature.
By timescale, 1 were all-time records, 71 monthly and 1,146 daily.
Cardwell Marine Pde set a daily record precipitation of 173.0 mm (6.8 in) on 20 November 1988.
Across 156 earlier years (1793 to 2025) the same calendar date averaged 449 records.

Record Map

1,218 stations

1,218 station records on 20 November 1988 are marked on the map, coloured by record type. Dot size shows the significance score. Made with Natural Earth.

Weather records on 20 November 1988: highest significance records shown on the map
Station	Country	Type	Value	Significance
Cardwell Marine Pde	Australia	Record daily precipitation	173.0 mm (6.8 in)	74 of 100 (Major)
Mt Sterling	United States	Record daily precipitation	99.8 mm (3.9 in)	72 of 100 (Major)
Newark Liberty Intl AP	United States	Record daily precipitation	75.9 mm (3.0 in)	70 of 100 (Major)
Woodward	United States	Record daily snowfall	12.7 cm (5.0 in)	68 of 100 (Major)
Colesberg (Tnk)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	54.8 mm (2.2 in)	62 of 100 (Major)
Paola	United States	Record daily snowfall	12.7 cm (5.0 in)	62 of 100 (Major)
Clarendon	United States	Record daily snowfall	10.2 cm (4.0 in)	60 of 100 (Major)
Ny City Cntrl Park	United States	Record daily precipitation	85.6 mm (3.4 in)	58 of 100 (Notable)
Helena 1 SSE	United States	Record daily snowfall	12.7 cm (5.0 in)	57 of 100 (Notable)
Buffalo 2N	United States	Record daily snowfall	17.0 cm (6.7 in)	56 of 100 (Notable)
Anthony	United States	Record daily snowfall	10.2 cm (4.0 in)	56 of 100 (Notable)
Walnut 4S	United States	Record daily snowfall	11.4 cm (4.5 in)	55 of 100 (Notable)
Cave Run Lake	United States	Record daily precipitation	85.3 mm (3.4 in)	55 of 100 (Notable)
Nevada Wtp	United States	Record daily snowfall	8.9 cm (3.5 in)	54 of 100 (Notable)
Carrollton	United States	Record daily snowfall	6.4 cm (2.5 in)	53 of 100 (Notable)
Lamar 7N	United States	Record daily snowfall	25.4 cm (10.0 in)	53 of 100 (Notable)
Waynesville 2 W	United States	Record daily snowfall	17.8 cm (7.0 in)	53 of 100 (Notable)
Mutual	United States	Record daily snowfall	12.7 cm (5.0 in)	53 of 100 (Notable)
Okeene	United States	Record daily snowfall	10.2 cm (4.0 in)	53 of 100 (Notable)
Murfreesboro 5 N	United States	Record daily precipitation	114.6 mm (4.5 in)	53 of 100 (Notable)
Covington 3 SW	United States	Record daily precipitation	98.3 mm (3.9 in)	52 of 100 (Notable)
Higgins	United States	Record daily snowfall	10.2 cm (4.0 in)	52 of 100 (Notable)
Blytheville	United States	Record daily precipitation	101.6 mm (4.0 in)	51 of 100 (Notable)
Mt Hope	United States	Record daily snowfall	5.1 cm (2.0 in)	50 of 100 (Notable)
Bethpage 1 S	United States	Record daily precipitation	91.4 mm (3.6 in)	50 of 100 (Notable)
Hamlin	United States	Record daily precipitation	59.9 mm (2.4 in)	50 of 100 (Notable)
Ft Ripley	United States	Record snow depth	30.5 cm (12.0 in)	48 of 100 (Notable)
Eldon	United States	Record daily snowfall	7.6 cm (3.0 in)	48 of 100 (Notable)
Plainfield	United States	Record daily precipitation	71.1 mm (2.8 in)	48 of 100 (Notable)
Cherokee 4W	United States	Record daily snowfall	10.2 cm (4.0 in)	48 of 100 (Notable)
Jackson Exp STN	United States	Record daily precipitation	58.9 mm (2.3 in)	48 of 100 (Notable)
Hartford-Bradley Intl AP	United States	Record daily precipitation	73.7 mm (2.9 in)	48 of 100 (Notable)
Kantunilkin	Mexico	Record daily precipitation	74.9 mm (2.9 in)	47 of 100 (Notable)
Garnett 1 E	United States	Record daily snowfall	7.6 cm (3.0 in)	47 of 100 (Notable)
Olathe 3E	United States	Record daily snowfall	5.1 cm (2.0 in)	47 of 100 (Notable)
Steelville 2 N	United States	Record daily snowfall	7.6 cm (3.0 in)	47 of 100 (Notable)
Miami	United States	Record daily snowfall	8.9 cm (3.5 in)	47 of 100 (Notable)
Apoinga (Wilivere)	Australia	Record daily precipitation	28.4 mm (1.1 in)	46 of 100 (Notable)
Caplinger Mills	United States	Record daily snowfall	11.4 cm (4.5 in)	46 of 100 (Notable)
Lockwood	United States	Record daily snowfall	12.7 cm (5.0 in)	46 of 100 (Notable)
Quanah 2 SW	United States	Record daily snowfall	6.4 cm (2.5 in)	46 of 100 (Notable)
Ibirarema	Brazil	Record daily precipitation	85.5 mm (3.4 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Macuspana (Dge)	Mexico	Record daily precipitation	136.4 mm (5.4 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Ft Scott	United States	Record daily snowfall	7.6 cm (3.0 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Campbellsville 2 SSW	United States	Record daily precipitation	101.6 mm (4.0 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Clinton	United States	Record daily snowfall	11.4 cm (4.5 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Eldorado Springs	United States	Record daily snowfall	9.1 cm (3.6 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Rolla Missouri S&T	United States	Record daily snowfall	17.5 cm (6.9 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Portsmouth-Sciotoville	United States	Record daily precipitation	44.5 mm (1.8 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Perry	United States	Record daily snowfall	17.8 cm (7.0 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Hamilton	United States	Record daily precipitation	50.0 mm (2.0 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Plainview	United States	Record daily snowfall	5.6 cm (2.2 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Clermont Sirius St	Australia	Record daily precipitation	130.1 mm (5.1 in)	44 of 100 (Notable)
Karlshamn	Sweden	Record low minimum temperature	-10.2 C (13.6 F)	44 of 100 (Notable)
Valley Head	United States	Record daily precipitation	50.8 mm (2.0 in)	44 of 100 (Notable)
Columbus	United States	Record daily snowfall	7.6 cm (3.0 in)	44 of 100 (Notable)
Fredonia	United States	Record daily snowfall	5.1 cm (2.0 in)	43 of 100 (Notable)
Monticello 3 NE	United States	Record daily precipitation	75.2 mm (3.0 in)	43 of 100 (Notable)
Forest	United States	Record daily precipitation	135.9 mm (5.4 in)	43 of 100 (Notable)
Marietta Lock 1	United States	Record daily precipitation	43.7 mm (1.7 in)	43 of 100 (Notable)

Counts by Type and Timescale

1,218 records

Records set or tied on 20 November 1988 by type: Highest daily maximum 91, Lowest daily maximum 103, Highest daily minimum 65, Lowest daily minimum 104, Heaviest daily rainfall 539, Heaviest daily snowfall 184, Deepest snow cover 132.

Records on 20 November 1988 by type
Record type	Records
Highest daily maximum	91
Lowest daily maximum	103
Highest daily minimum	65
Lowest daily minimum	104
Heaviest daily rainfall	539
Heaviest daily snowfall	184
Deepest snow cover	132

Records on 20 November 1988 by timescale: all-time 1, monthly 71, daily 1,146.

How Much Records Were Beaten By

1,059 broken records

Margins by which the 1,059 broken records beat the old ones, in degrees Celsius for temperature and millimetres for precipitation and snow; the largest margin was 240.0. Ties are not counted.

Top 20 by Significance

20 November 1988

Top 20 records on 20 November 1988 by significance
Date	Station	Record	Value	Beat old record by	Old record stood	Significance
20 November 1988	Cardwell Marine Pde, AU	daily rain	173.0 mm (6.8 in)	104.4 mm (4.1 in)	81 years	74 of 100 (Major)
20 November 1988	Mt Sterling, US	monthly rain	99.8 mm (3.9 in)	29.2 mm (1.1 in)	87 years	72 of 100 (Major)
20 November 1988	Newark Liberty Intl AP, US	daily rain	75.9 mm (3.0 in)	41.6 mm (1.6 in)	125 years	70 of 100 (Major)
20 November 1988	Woodward, US	daily snowfall	12.7 cm (5.0 in)	12.7 cm (5.0 in)	92 years	68 of 100 (Major)
20 November 1988	Colesberg (Tnk), ZA	daily rain	54.8 mm (2.2 in)	22.8 mm (0.9 in)	94 years	62 of 100 (Major)
20 November 1988	Paola, US	daily snowfall	12.7 cm (5.0 in)	11.4 cm (4.5 in)	82 years	62 of 100 (Major)
20 November 1988	Clarendon, US	daily snowfall	10.2 cm (4.0 in)	10.2 cm (4.0 in)	81 years	60 of 100 (Major)
20 November 1988	Ny City Cntrl Park, US	daily rain	85.6 mm (3.4 in)	52.3 mm (2.1 in)	34 years	58 of 100 (Notable)
20 November 1988	Helena 1 SSE, US	daily snowfall	12.7 cm (5.0 in)	12.7 cm (5.0 in)	82 years	57 of 100 (Notable)
20 November 1988	Buffalo 2N, US	daily snowfall	17.0 cm (6.7 in)	17.0 cm (6.7 in)	57 years	56 of 100 (Notable)
20 November 1988	Anthony, US	daily snowfall	10.2 cm (4.0 in)	10.2 cm (4.0 in)	89 years	56 of 100 (Notable)
20 November 1988	Walnut 4S, US	daily snowfall	11.4 cm (4.5 in)	11.4 cm (4.5 in)	85 years	55 of 100 (Notable)
20 November 1988	Cave Run Lake, US	daily rain	85.3 mm (3.4 in)	49.7 mm (2.0 in)	24 years	55 of 100 (Notable)
20 November 1988	Nevada Wtp, US	daily snowfall	8.9 cm (3.5 in)	8.9 cm (3.5 in)	93 years	54 of 100 (Notable)
20 November 1988	Carrollton, US	daily snowfall	6.4 cm (2.5 in)	6.4 cm (2.5 in)	94 years	53 of 100 (Notable)
20 November 1988	Lamar 7N, US	monthly snowfall	25.4 cm (10.0 in)	7.6 cm (3.0 in)	64 years	53 of 100 (Notable)
20 November 1988	Waynesville 2 W, US	daily snowfall	17.8 cm (7.0 in)	17.8 cm (7.0 in)	47 years	53 of 100 (Notable)
20 November 1988	Mutual, US	daily snowfall	12.7 cm (5.0 in)	12.7 cm (5.0 in)	71 years	53 of 100 (Notable)
20 November 1988	Okeene, US	daily snowfall	10.2 cm (4.0 in)	10.2 cm (4.0 in)	84 years	53 of 100 (Notable)
20 November 1988	Murfreesboro 5 N, US	daily rain	114.6 mm (4.5 in)	72.2 mm (2.8 in)	14 years	53 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 1988

Records set or tied on this calendar date in each year from 1793 to 1988. 1988 had 1,218 records.

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

Records on 11-20 in each year
Year	Records
1793	1
1809	2
1816	3
1829	4
1835	1
1836	1
1847	1
1851	1
1852	1
1855	1
1858	1
1859	1
1862	1
1865	1
1871	1
1873	1
1874	1
1878	1
1879	3
1880	2
1881	1
1884	1
1885	2
1886	1
1887	1
1889	3
1890	2
1891	4
1893	2
1894	1
1897	7
1900	11
1901	6
1902	10
1903	10
1904	9
1905	7
1906	22
1907	5
1908	8
1909	26
1910	14
1911	29
1912	15
1913	64
1914	89
1915	12
1916	16
1917	65
1918	14
1919	47
1920	15
1921	73
1922	26
1923	45
1924	84
1925	224
1926	294
1927	105
1928	140
1929	130
1930	600
1931	646
1932	255
1933	702
1934	477
1935	55
1936	286
1937	1,102
1938	167
1939	265
1940	280
1941	438
1942	774
1943	248
1944	347
1945	322
1946	774
1947	413
1948	651
1949	362
1950	877
1951	742
1952	494
1953	850
1954	876
1955	365
1956	598
1957	190
1958	218
1959	270
1960	330
1961	540
1962	700
1963	597
1964	863
1965	285
1966	434
1967	277
1968	479
1969	710
1970	368
1971	651
1972	729
1973	941
1974	655
1975	660
1976	389
1977	1,332
1978	1,413
1979	819
1980	745
1981	1,119
1982	800
1983	1,054
1984	537
1985	2,379
1986	1,142
1987	666
1988	1,218
1989	986
1990	1,010
1991	798
1992	1,416
1993	1,211
1994	1,484
1995	1,237
1996	1,566
1997	461
1998	829
1999	493
2000	1,163
2001	843
2002	900
2003	1,242
2004	738
2005	432
2006	1,034
2007	1,151
2008	1,171
2009	1,184
2010	678
2011	816
2012	657
2013	411
2014	1,018
2015	733
2016	725
2017	451
2018	339
2019	791
2020	578
2021	414
2022	1,283
2023	554
2024	645
2025	660

Download the Data

Data for records on 1988-11-20: 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	901
50 to 100	127
100 to 150	26
150 to 200	4
200 to 250	1