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Built 2026-10-19 (19 October 2026)

Weather Records in 1988: Year in Review

353,266 weather records were set or tied in 1988, including 141,762 temperature record highs and 81,033 record lows, and 184,039 of them still stand.

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

Key Facts

  • 353,266 weather records were set or tied in 1988, including 141,762 record highs and 81,033 record lows of maximum and minimum temperature.
  • 184,039 of the 353,266 records set in 1988 still stand (52.1%).
  • June 1988 had the most records: 36,471.
  • United States had the most records in 1988: 178,390, with 78,904 highs and 46,673 lows.
  • 9,809 stations had a full year of temperature data in 1988, so counts differ between years partly because the number of reporting stations does.
  • Storms in 1988: 69 named storms worldwide, of which 37 reached hurricane strength (64 kt or more) and 18 were major (96 kt or more), with a combined 490.2 ACE.

Highs and Lows

Temperature records set or tied in 1988
Record highs and record lows set or tied in 1988
Record highs141,762
Record lows81,033

Still Standing

52.1% of the year's records
Records set in 1988 that still stand or have since been beaten
Still stand184,039 (52.1%)
Since beaten or tied169,227 (47.9%)

A record stands until a later observation beats or ties it, as of 2026-10-12.

By Type and Timescale

Records set or tied in 1988 by type
Record daily precipitation107,365
Record high maximum temperature71,657
Record high minimum temperature70,105
Record low minimum temperature41,950
Record low maximum temperature39,083
Record daily snowfall11,618
Record snow depth11,488
Records set or tied in 1988 by timescale
Daily336,618
Monthly14,423
All-time2,225

By Month

Records set or tied in each month of 1988 Weather records set or tied in each calendar month of 1988, all types together. 0 10,000 20,000 30,000 40,000 JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Weather records set or tied in each calendar month of 1988, all types together.
Records set or tied in each month of 1988
MonthRecords
Jan34,938
Feb27,061
Mar29,247
Apr30,648
May25,267
Jun36,471
Jul34,373
Aug32,772
Sep25,723
Oct25,138
Nov25,918
Dec25,710

Countries With the Most Records

Countries with the most records set or tied in 1988
CountryRecordsHighsLows
United States178,39078,90446,673
Mexico38,00118,93714,135
Australia33,6336,2482,090
Russia16,5997,7373,008
Germany13,1475,2292,433
China9,9875,4812,661
Sweden8,7102,5781,511
Brazil7,14400
South Africa6,3578882
Japan5,4742,1782,165
Norway4,8691,062599
Netherlands3,54632769
Thailand2,2391,416461
Kazakhstan1,742389102
Spain1,700892452

The Top 10 Records of 1988

By significance score
The 10 highest significance records of 1988
DateStationCountryRecordValueSignificance
1988-07-11ZametchinoRussiaAll-time precipitation125.9 mm (5.0 in)100 of 100 (Exceptional)
1988-12-26Mount Hope (Cypress Grove)AustraliaAll-time precipitation160.0 mm (6.3 in)92 of 100 (Exceptional)
1988-05-05Lillimur EstateAustraliaMonthly precipitation82.0 mm (3.2 in)89 of 100 (Exceptional)
1988-07-25Branxholm (Stoke Street)AustraliaMonthly precipitation110.0 mm (4.3 in)89 of 100 (Exceptional)
1988-04-30Braidwood (Wallace Street)AustraliaMonthly precipitation118.0 mm (4.6 in)88 of 100 (Exceptional)
1988-01-19ArmourUnited StatesAll-time snowfall45.7 cm (18.0 in)87 of 100 (Exceptional)
1988-04-21ArlingtonUnited StatesMonthly precipitation37.8 mm (1.5 in)87 of 100 (Exceptional)
1988-08-23Bauhinia Downs StoreAustraliaMonthly precipitation105.0 mm (4.1 in)87 of 100 (Exceptional)
1988-08-22Manfred Downs StationAustraliaMonthly precipitation68.8 mm (2.7 in)86 of 100 (Exceptional)
1988-09-15Lismore (Centre Street)AustraliaMonthly precipitation170.8 mm (6.7 in)86 of 100 (Exceptional)

Storms

Storms in 1988: 69 named storms worldwide, of which 37 reached hurricane strength (64 kt or more) and 18 were major (96 kt or more), with a combined 490.2 ACE.

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)) Source: International Best Track Archive for Climate Stewardship (IBTrACS) v04r01, NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, doi:10.25921/82ty-9e16. Some agency values come from third parties such as JMA, IMD and BoM. (NOAA NCEI terms (citation requested)) Data as of 2026-10-12. Records are computed by this site and are not official. Counts depend on how many stations reported.