Places to Start
Welcome to the climate and weather data research guide!
If you're not sure where to start, one of the best sites to consult is NOAA's Frequently Asked Questions page. This page explains how to find climate and weather data and provides links to most of the major databases.
The next best place to start is the National Climate Data Center (NCDC), a major data repository for climate data in the U.S.
- National Climate Data CenterYou can get yearly and monthly averages, search for data at particular locations, as well as get Global and U.S. Annual Climate reports. Data is sorted by method collected (i.e. weather balloon, marine and ocean, satellite, radar, etc.). My preference is to use the "Quick Links" feature to access data by category.
If you're looking for more specific regional datasets in the United States the best place to start is the NOAA Regional Climate Centers web site.
- NOAA Regional Climate Centers
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There are six total regions in the U.S. and this resource is more likely to have specific data than the NCDC.
Alternatively, if you're looking specifically at water data (groundwater, aquifers, etc.) try the U.S. Geological Service's (USGS) National Water Information System (NWIS).
- U.S. Geological Survey: National Water Information Service
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This web site allows you to search for datasets by data type, update time, state/territory, altitude and numerous other criteria.You can also narrow your search to groundwater, water quality,surface water, or water use.
If your climate or weather data needs are Northfield specific, try the Carleton College Weather Database.
- Carleton College Weather Database
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Includes temperature, heat index, wind chill, barometric pressure, rainfall, wind speed, humidity and wind chill. Plot any variable by minute, month or year.
Data Repositories
- National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR): DASH search
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Collection of earth science datasets from participating international and national organizations. Find data sets in categories from climate and weather to polar data. - IRI/LDEO Climate Data Library
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The Data Catalog was developed by the Climate Group at Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory. The data library helps you find data and work with it. The interface allows you to make plots, tables, and files from any dataset. - Environmental Data Explorer (United Nations Environment Programme)
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Compilation of climate data. Datasets contain variables from temperature to CO2 emissions. - National Institute of Polar Research (NIPR) Science Database
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Data repository for the Japanese Antarctic Research Expedition as well as data for the international polar year 2007-2008. - Goddard Earth Sciences: Data Information and Services Center
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The GES DISC is home to the data archive of NASA Precipitation and Hydrology, as well as Atmospheric Composition and Dynamics remote sensing data and information. The site also houses the North American Land Data Assimilation System (NLDAS) and Global Land Data Assimilation System (GLDAS) data products. - Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory
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The site provides access to oceanographic and atmospheric datasets. The datasets include Atlantic Expendable Bathythermograph, Global Lagrangian Drifting Buoy, Hurricane Flight Level, and Atlantic Hurricane Tracks (North Atlantic Best Track and Synoptic). Other available datasets include Pacific Conductivitiy/Temperature/Depth Recorder (CTD) and World Ocean Atlas 1998.
Additional Data Sources
- Bureau of Transportation Statistics DataminerIncludes data such as marine casualty and pollution incidents, national air quality database, national emission trends database, national toxics emissions data, greenhouse gas data.
- EPA DataLists various means to access EPA data.
- National Centers for Environmental InformationMost frequently accessed data sets. Formerly "National Climatic Data Center" (NCDC).
- EIA: U.S. Energy Information AdministrationSource for U.S. government data and reports.
- United Nations Environmental Program DataLinks to international environment data sources.
- World Bank Environment DataCross-national comparable data on emissions, threatened species, water, and more.
- Data.govThe home of U.S. government open data, with almost 200,000 datasets on deposit from across the government.
- Minnesota Geospatial Commons
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Start here if you're looking for Minnesota GIS data.
