Updated: 2026-07-31
The point of measurement closest to Glasgow is the Met Office station at Aberdeen (province of Perthshire in Central Region), located at 28 m altitude, about 35.6 km from the city centre. These are its historical records. The actual climate of Glasgow can differ from what this station registers due to local factors such as altitude differences, proximity to rivers or sheltered valleys, so treat these figures as the best available reference for the area, not as an exact measurement of Glasgow itself.
The single wettest December day recorded at the measurement point closest to Glasgow happened on 28 December 1997, when the rain gauge collected 82.6 mm — that is the highest daily precipitation total for December across the entire period with records.
To put those 82.6 mm into perspective, that single day's rainfall exceeds what many drier December months produced in total at this station. For example, December 1989 brought 87.7 mm for the whole month, and December 1993 managed just 11.1 mm in total across all its rainy days. The December 1997 record day alone nearly matched the precipitation that other years accumulated over 30 days.
The wettest December as a whole month at this station was 1994, with a total of 324.5 mm collected during that month. That stands as the highest December total in the series, followed by December 1997 with 209.1 mm, December 2000 with 204.3 mm, December 1990 with 191.4 mm, and December 1987 with 181.0 mm.
| Year | Total precipitation in December (mm) |
|---|---|
| 1994 | 324.5 |
| 1997 | 209.1 |
| 2000 | 204.3 |
| 1990 | 191.4 |
| 1987 | 181.0 |
Notice how December 1994 dominates that ranking with a margin of over 100 mm over the second wettest year — a striking outlier for this series.
The full series for this station covers the period from 1968 to 2001. The table below shows each year with data, the total precipitation measured across December, and the highest single-day precipitation recorded within that month.
| Year | December total (mm) | Maximum daily precipitation (mm) |
|---|---|---|
| 1987 | 181.0 | 34.8 |
| 1988 | 149.0 | 21.2 |
| 1989 | 87.7 | 46.0 |
| 1990 | 191.4 | 26.5 |
| 1991 | 153.5 | 29.8 |
| 1992 | 134.8 | 29.5 |
| 1993 | 11.1 | 11.1 |
| 1994 | 324.5 | 43.0 |
| 1995 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| 1996 | 71.9 | 17.4 |
| 1997 | 209.1 | 82.6 |
| 2000 | 204.3 | 29.5 |
A few details stand out in that series. December 1995 recorded a total of 0.0 mm — no measurable precipitation fell during that entire month at the station, and the maximum daily precipitation was also 0.0 mm. December 1993 was also remarkably dry with just 11.1 mm total and a single wettest day of 11.1 mm, meaning all the rain that month fell in one day. On the other end, December 1994's 324.5 mm makes it the wettest month of the series by a wide margin, even though its wettest single day (43.0 mm) was far below the 82.6 mm record set in December 1997. That year, 1997, combined a very wet month overall (209.1 mm) with the most intense single day on record — the 82.6 mm deluge on 28 December.
The record of 82.6 mm in one day, set on 28 December 1997, remains unbeaten across all the December days recorded at this station up to the end of the series. And the monthly record of 324.5 mm, set in December 1994, also stands as the highest December total in the period covered here.
For anyone planning outdoor events or travel in the Glasgow area around December, these historical records from the closest measurement point give a sense of what is possible: while a December with no measurable rain at all has occurred (as in 1995), the more common pattern includes substantial precipitation, and in exceptional years a single day can deliver over 80 mm. The climate of Glasgow itself may differ in local detail, but the data from Aberdeen station remains the most reliable long-term reference available for this part of the Central Region.
Source: Met Office (MIDAS archive, UK national weather station network), station at Aberdeen, Perthshire in Central Region, period 1968–2001.
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