The Year in Rain & Snow
1972
102%
ran at 102% of normal — wetter than usual — across 371 cities, the 113th driest of 157 years on record.
Extremes
Biggest Rain Day of 1972
10.67in
Sterling-Dulles Airport, VA · Jun 21
Snowiest Station of 1972
267.7in
Yakutat, AK · calendar-year snowfall
Records Set in 1972
Daily Rainfall Records Set
1,241
calendar-day rainfall records set in 1972 that still stand today
National Precipitation
102%
of the 1996–2025 average across 371 cities
Where the Year Ran Wet & Dry
Each city's 1972 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.
90%J
91%F
88%M
84%A
96%M
181%J
95%J
99%A
111%S
122%O
165%N
117%D
Driest Stations & States
Driest Stations of 1972
| 1 | Burbank Glendale Pasadena CA | 37% |
| 2 | Camarillo CA | 39% |
| 3 | Palmdale CA | 39% |
| 4 | Los Angeles Downtown CA | 46% |
| 5 | Bishop CA | 47% |
| 6 | Kodiak AK | 50% |
| 7 | Riverside CA | 50% |
| 8 | Long Beach CA | 51% |
| 9 | Santa Maria CA | 52% |
| 10 | Palm Springs CA | 53% |
Wettest Stations of 1972
| 1 | Winslow AZ | 194% |
| 2 | Phoenix AZ | 170% |
| 3 | Bridgeport CT | 166% |
| 4 | Honolulu HI | 165% |
| 5 | Eugene OR | 152% |
| 6 | Rockford IL | 150% |
| 7 | Tucson AZ | 147% |
| 8 | Worcester MA | 146% |
| 9 | Roswell NM | 144% |
| 10 | Charlottesville VA | 143% |
By State
Wettest states of 1972
Connecticut150%Arizona143%Rhode Island133%New Mexico130%Massachusetts127%Virginia126%
Driest states of 1972
Puerto Rico60%California70%Guam71%Alaska81%North Dakota85%Oklahoma85%
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