The Year in Rain & Snow
1979
108%
ran at 108% of normal — wetter than usual — across 374 cities, the 12th wettest of 157 years on record.
Extremes
Biggest Rain Day of 1979
16.87in
Hilo, HI · Feb 20
Snowiest Station of 1979
180.7in
Marquette County, MI · calendar-year snowfall
Records Set in 1979
Daily Rainfall Records Set
1,429
calendar-day rainfall records set in 1979 that still stand today
National Precipitation
108%
of the 1996–2025 average across 374 cities
Where the Year Ran Wet & Dry
Each city's 1979 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.
169%J
115%F
125%M
110%A
116%M
82%J
309%J
129%A
99%S
93%O
113%N
76%D
Wettest Stations & States
Wettest Stations of 1979
| 1 | Palm Springs CA | 231% |
| 2 | Las Vegas NV | 176% |
| 3 | Kahului HI | 174% |
| 4 | Camarillo CA | 173% |
| 5 | Jackson MS | 161% |
| 6 | Palmdale CA | 160% |
| 7 | Yuma AZ | 157% |
| 8 | Redding CA | 156% |
| 9 | Klamath Falls OR | 153% |
| 10 | Salisbury MD | 150% |
Driest Stations of 1979
| 1 | Barrow AK | 50% |
| 2 | Bishop CA | 51% |
| 3 | Salt Lake City UT | 57% |
| 4 | Billings MT | 60% |
| 5 | Glasgow MT | 61% |
| 6 | Bismarck ND | 62% |
| 7 | Burley ID | 65% |
| 8 | El Paso TX | 68% |
| 9 | Saginaw MI | 68% |
| 10 | Great Falls MT | 69% |
By State
Wettest states of 1979
Mississippi136%Maryland135%Hawaii131%Virginia125%South Carolina124%California123%
Driest states of 1979
Utah57%Montana74%North Dakota77%Guam81%Vermont82%Missouri82%
WettestSince · 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