Weather and Climate Data
What's the difference between weather and climate? To put it simply, climate is what you expect and weather is what you get. The climate is the prevailing, long-term pattern and the weather is the short-term state of atmospheric conditions. Weather and climate significantly influence ecosystem processes and biodiversity. Likewise, the analysis of historical patterns is a necessary step to predict future conditions and develop conservation measures. I have found that the NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) site is a great launch point for this investigation.
As discussed in earlier posts, drought is a worsening issue for the state of California. I have found this U.S. Drought Monitor Map to be a valuable tool to assess the current conditions. It gives the option of exploring several data layers pertaining to precipitation, temperature, soil moisture, and hydrology. It includes layers for monitoring and forecasting such as the National Weather Service (NWS) US Drought Outlook, Evaporative Stress Index (ESI), the Palmer Drought Severity Index (PDSI) and Hydrological Drought Index (PHDI), and a Vegetation Drought Response Index (VegDRI) remote sensing layer. There are also layers for climate divisions and Drought Early Warning Systems (DEWS) regions. Here's an idea of how I've interacted with this map:
If I'm after quantified data I utilize these NOAA Climate Data Tools. They allow me to access daily, monthly, and annual summaries and also hourly, daily, seasonal, and annual normals. I can select by location (country, US territory, state, county, or zip code) and all station data pertaining to the specified location is rendered. The wider my search area, the more stations and results. It's wise to narrow down the location or choose a more specific dataset. Once selected, the free data is added to my cart and I select my output format. For a general overview for research purposes I'd select a standard Word or PDF format. If I need to crunch some numbers of my own in Microsoft Excel of OpenOffice Calc, I'd select a CSV or Text output. Once the order is complete, it's sent to my email in mere minutes. This source is good to use in conjunction with the U.S. Drought Monitor Map. I'm able to pinpoint an area of interest or concern on the map and then choose my quantified data accordingly.
Another great source is this Climate at a Glance U.S. Plot Series link. It's user friendly and gives me easy access to other source links like "State of the Climate" and "Extremes." I can select from a number of parameters such as minimum, maximum or average temperature, and precipitation. I then select a time period and scale. This can be generated within a global, national, regional, statewide, divisional, county, or city context. I can also create maps and Haywood plots or generate rankings and consolidated data information for the parameters I set. Below is a graph I generated for average July temperatures in San Diego County from 1968-2018:
I also really like NASA's Vital Signs of the Planet website. It may not be specific to California's weather or climate, but it offers an overview of the evidence, causes, effects, and solutions for global climate change. I find that bearing these facts in mind helps drive my research in the right direction.
The point is, climate and weather are driving factors for the natural world and there's a great deal of relevant information available. When it comes to choosing the most accurate data to integrate into your research, it's vital that it comes from dependable sources. The NOAA and NASA are governing body in their respective fields, so I consider their resources to be reliable and indispensable.
Here's a list of the URLs I linked:
As discussed in earlier posts, drought is a worsening issue for the state of California. I have found this U.S. Drought Monitor Map to be a valuable tool to assess the current conditions. It gives the option of exploring several data layers pertaining to precipitation, temperature, soil moisture, and hydrology. It includes layers for monitoring and forecasting such as the National Weather Service (NWS) US Drought Outlook, Evaporative Stress Index (ESI), the Palmer Drought Severity Index (PDSI) and Hydrological Drought Index (PHDI), and a Vegetation Drought Response Index (VegDRI) remote sensing layer. There are also layers for climate divisions and Drought Early Warning Systems (DEWS) regions. Here's an idea of how I've interacted with this map:
If I'm after quantified data I utilize these NOAA Climate Data Tools. They allow me to access daily, monthly, and annual summaries and also hourly, daily, seasonal, and annual normals. I can select by location (country, US territory, state, county, or zip code) and all station data pertaining to the specified location is rendered. The wider my search area, the more stations and results. It's wise to narrow down the location or choose a more specific dataset. Once selected, the free data is added to my cart and I select my output format. For a general overview for research purposes I'd select a standard Word or PDF format. If I need to crunch some numbers of my own in Microsoft Excel of OpenOffice Calc, I'd select a CSV or Text output. Once the order is complete, it's sent to my email in mere minutes. This source is good to use in conjunction with the U.S. Drought Monitor Map. I'm able to pinpoint an area of interest or concern on the map and then choose my quantified data accordingly.
Another great source is this Climate at a Glance U.S. Plot Series link. It's user friendly and gives me easy access to other source links like "State of the Climate" and "Extremes." I can select from a number of parameters such as minimum, maximum or average temperature, and precipitation. I then select a time period and scale. This can be generated within a global, national, regional, statewide, divisional, county, or city context. I can also create maps and Haywood plots or generate rankings and consolidated data information for the parameters I set. Below is a graph I generated for average July temperatures in San Diego County from 1968-2018:
I also really like NASA's Vital Signs of the Planet website. It may not be specific to California's weather or climate, but it offers an overview of the evidence, causes, effects, and solutions for global climate change. I find that bearing these facts in mind helps drive my research in the right direction.
The point is, climate and weather are driving factors for the natural world and there's a great deal of relevant information available. When it comes to choosing the most accurate data to integrate into your research, it's vital that it comes from dependable sources. The NOAA and NASA are governing body in their respective fields, so I consider their resources to be reliable and indispensable.
Here's a list of the URLs I linked:
- https://www.ncei.noaa.gov
- https://gis.ncdc.noaa.gov/maps/ncei/drought/us
- https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/cdo-web/datatools/selectlocation
- https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/cag/national/time-series
- https://climate.nasa.gov
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