The Year in Rain & Snow
1971
96%
ran at 96% of normal — drier than usual — across 380 cities, the 56th driest of 157 years on record.
Extremes
Biggest Rain Day of 1971
9.66in
Hilo, HI · Apr 23
Snowiest Station of 1971
338.7in
Yakutat, AK · calendar-year snowfall
Records Set in 1971
Daily Rainfall Records Set
1,079
calendar-day rainfall records set in 1971 that still stand today
National Precipitation
96%
of the 1996–2025 average across 380 cities
Where the Year Ran Wet & Dry
Each city's 1971 precipitation as a percent of its 1996–2025 normal — brown where the year ran dry, green-to-blue where it ran wet.
Month by Month
Precipitation by month as a percent of normal — blue above the line is a wet month, amber below is dry.
83%J
126%F
78%M
73%A
114%M
82%J
98%J
106%A
108%S
104%O
97%N
122%D
Driest Stations & States
Driest Stations of 1971
| 1 | Palm Springs CA | 35% |
| 2 | Nome AK | 49% |
| 3 | San Francisco Airport CA | 50% |
| 4 | Barrow AK | 51% |
| 5 | Santa Maria CA | 51% |
| 6 | Glasgow MT | 52% |
| 7 | Sacramento CA | 55% |
| 8 | Phoenix AZ | 56% |
| 9 | San Juan PR | 57% |
| 10 | Kotzebue AK | 58% |
Wettest Stations of 1971
| 1 | Laredo TX | 234% |
| 2 | Honolulu HI | 164% |
| 3 | Pullman WA | 160% |
| 4 | Eugene OR | 160% |
| 5 | Columbia SC | 155% |
| 6 | McMinnville OR | 151% |
| 7 | Lander WY | 147% |
| 8 | Charleston Downtown SC | 146% |
| 9 | Pocatello ID | 144% |
| 10 | Klamath Falls OR | 143% |
By State
Wettest states of 1971
Hawaii140%South Carolina133%Oregon123%Utah123%Georgia120%Wyoming118%
Driest states of 1971
Puerto Rico57%California74%Missouri75%Rhode Island78%Ohio79%Iowa80%
DriestSince · browse by state · precipitation & snowfall records · NOAA/RCC-ACIS ThreadEx gauge record · part of Weather Trader · supported by Substack Subscribers
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© 2026 Weather Trader · All rights reserved