myweatherrock
Rock Shop

THE WEATHER BEAT · NOV 2

Ainsworth, Nebraska, took 25.0 inches of snow on November 2, 1972, its snowiest day on record

On November 2, 1972, the Ainsworth, Nebraska, gauge logged 25.0 inches of snow and Gregory, South Dakota, logged 19.5, each its snowiest day in our.

Journalist Weather Rock, the editor. By the Weather Rock November 2, 2026, 6:49 p.m. · 2 min read
GOES satellite view of the event region
Daytime satellite view of Nebraska and South Dakota on November 2, 2026, over the region where two gauges set snowiest-day records on November 2, 1972. Image: NOAA GOES-East GeoColor via NASA GIBS, 2026-11-02 18:00Z.

Key points

  • On November 2, 1972, the gauge at Ainsworth, Nebraska, collected 25.0 inches of snow in a day. That is the snowiest day in that gauge's record in our archive.
  • The gauge at Gregory, South Dakota, collected 19.5 inches the same day, also its snowiest day on record in our archive.
  • The figures come from our archive of NOAA daily station reports. Ainsworth's record runs from 1905 and Gregory's from 1906.

Two gauges in the northern Plains share one date. On November 2, 1972, the Ainsworth gauge in north-central Nebraska collected 25.0 inches of snow in a day. In south-central South Dakota, the Gregory gauge collected 19.5 inches. Each is the snowiest day in that gauge's history in our archive.

Both gauges have run for well over a century. Ainsworth's record starts in 1905 and Gregory's in 1906, so a day that tops all of them stands out. Our archive does not name the storm or give a cause, and this story does not either. All the archive says is that the same date set the snowiest-day mark at two gauges.

Today's reader can find Ainsworth on its own forecast page, linked below.

DateTownGaugeRecordRecord with us
Nov 2, 1972Ainsworth NEAinsworth25.0 in, snowiest day1905 to 2026
Nov 2, 1972Gregory SDGregory19.5 in, snowiest day1906 to 2026

*Source: myweatherrock's archive of NOAA daily station records (GHCN-Daily), stations USC00250050 and USC00393452.*

Look at the two numbers in the table. Two gauges in two states set their snowiest day on the same date. What would you want to know about that day before comparing one reading to the other?

This is a look back at a historic weather day, not emergency information. For current conditions and warnings see weather.gov and your local officials.

The rock's live forecast for the places in this story

More from the Weather Beat

More from the Journal

GOES satellite view of the event region THE WEATHER BEAT Jasper's wettest day on record: 10.2 inches of rain on October 31, 2013 OCT 31 GOES satellite view of the event region THE WEATHER BEAT Major flooding forecast on the San Juan River at Pagosa Springs as Southwest flood watches cover five states OCT 31 Branches of bright red maple leaves against a deep blue autumn sky dotted with small white clouds. EXPLAINERS Why Is the Sky Blue? AUG 20

Follow the Journal: RSS · get it by email

Back to the Journal. Back to the forecast.