Abstract:
Surface METAR Monthly Airways Extract from ASOS is digital data set DSI-6407, archived at the National Climatic Data Center (NCDC). DSI-6407 is surface meteorological data. It is primarily derived from another digital data set, ASOS 5-Minute Weather Duration, DSI-6403. (ASOS means Automated Surface Observing System.) DSI-6407 also contains Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES) ... data. METAR is an acronym for an internationally accepted weather reporting format, whose full English name is Aviation Routine Weather Report. The USA began using the METAR format in 1996. DSI-6407 contains METAR hourly surface weather observations that are measured primarily at major airports. Data includes several types of records: hourly METAR, daily, daily synoptic, monthly and weather duration. Hourly record major parameters are: Sky condition, Runway visual range, Visibility, Current weather, and obstructions to vision, Station and sea level pressure, Pressure tendency, Net pressure change, Temperature, Dew point, and wet bulb temperatures, Relative humidity, Wind direction, speed, and character (gust or squall), Variable wind direction, Altimeter, Hourly precipitation amount. Daily record major parameters are: Maximum and minimum temperatures, Temperature departure from normal, 24 hour precipitation total, Average 2-minute wind speed, Fastest 2-minute wind direction, and time Peak gust speed, direction and tim. Daily synoptic record is in six groups for different periods of the day. Each group contains Precipitation, Snow, Snow depth, Maximum and minimum temperature, Low, medium, and high cloud types, Station pressure, Barograph value and correction. Monthly record contains Maximum, minimum, and average temperatures and departures from normal, Average dew point and wet bulb temperatures, Heating and cooling degree days with averages and departures, Heating and cooling degree day standard deviations with departures, Mean station and sea level pressures, Maximum and minimum sea level pressures with dates and times, Total monthly precipitation with departure, Greatest 24 hour precipitation with date, Weather durations with dates, times and amounts, Minutes of sunshine with total possible minutes and % of possible, Total monthly snowfall, Greatest 24 hour snowfall with date, Greatest daily 12Z snow depth with date, Number of days with clear skies, Number of days with partly cloudy skies, Number of days with cloudy skies, Number of days with maximum temperature 90 degrees F or above, Number of days with maximum temperature 32 degrees F or below, Number of days with minimum temperature 32 degrees F or below, Number of days with minimum temperature 0 degrees F or below, Number of days with precipitation 0.01 inch or more, Number of days with precipitation 0.1 inch or more, Number of days with snowfall 1 inch or more, Number of days with thunderstorms, Number of days with heavy fog, Maximum 2 minute wind speed and direction with date Maximum peak wind speed and direction with date Water equivalent, Resultant wind speed and direction, Average wind speed. Weather duration record contains: Number of weather entries, Weather type with beginning and ending time. Data are from the United States including Alaska and Hawaii, plus Puerto Rico. NCDC has continuous archived data starting in April 1998. A few months from 1996 are also archived.
Purpose:
To make a wide range of climatic data available to researchers and the public.
