World Monthly Surface Station Climatology 1. TYPE OF DATA 1.1 Parameter/Measurement 1.2 Unit of Measurement 1.3 Data Source 1.4 Data Set Identification 2. SPATIAL CHARACTERISTICS 2.1 Spatial Coverage 2.2 Spatial Resolution 3. TEMPORAL CHARACTERISTICS 3.1 Temporal Coverage 3.2 Temporal Resolution 4. INSTRUMENT DESCRIPTION 5. DATA PROCESSING SEQUENCE 5.1 Processing Steps and Data Sets 5.2 Derivation Techniques/Algorithms 5.3 Special Corrections/Adjustments 5.4 Processing Changes 6. QUALITY ASSESSMENT 6.1 Data Validation by Producer 6.2 Confidence Level/Accuracy Judgment 6.3 Usage Guidance 7. CONTACTS FOR DATA PRODUCTION INFORMATION 8. OUTPUT PRODUCTS AND AVAILABILITY 8.1 Tape Products 8.2 Film Products 8.3 Other Products 9. DATA ACCESS 9.1 Archive Identification 9.2 Procedures for Obtaining Data 9.3 NCDS Status/Plans 10. CONTACTS FOR ARCHIVE/DATA ACCESS INFORMATION 11. REFERENCES 11.1 Satellite/Instrument/Data Processing Documentation 11.2 Journal Articles and Study Reports 11.3 Archive/DBMS Usage Documentation 12. RELATED DATA SETS 13. SUMMARY/SAMPLE 14. NOTES ENDOFTOC 1. TYPE OF DATA 1.1 Parameter/Measurement Parameter Units ----------- -------------- Pressure .1 mb Elevation m Temperature .1 deg C Precipitation .1 mm Relative Humidity percent (%) Vapor Pressure .1 mb Sunshine % of Average percent (%) Sunshine Duration hours Sea Temperature (from ships .1 deg C and some coastal nations) (Includes annual means, 10- and 30-year monthly means, and 10- and 30-year annual means in packed binary format.) 1.2 Unit of Measurement. Units are as stated for the parameter (see item 1.1 above). 1.3 Data Source. Over 3900 stations worldwide have reported measurements to the National Climatic Data Center (NCDC), which provides most of the data making up this data set. Much of the data prior to 1961 came from the Smithsonian miscellaneous collections and the World Weather Records of the U.S. Weather Bureau and the Environmental Data Services. African precipitation data for 250 stations from 1900 through 1973 were provided by Sharon Nicholson of Clark University, and data from various other countries were supplied by Dennis Shea of NCAR. 1.4 Data Set Identification. World Monthly Surface Station Climatology data set (Level II). The data are available in binary packed format or character format on tape. Annual and monthly averages are available in binary format only. NCDS offers these data as the SSCLIMATE data set in several temporal resolutions and geographic subsets. 2. SPATIAL CHARACTERISTICS 2.1 Spatial Coverage. Currently (1980-1989), there are approximately 2500 stations scattered around the world providing global coverage. From 1731 to 1860, the number of stations increased from 1 to 103, and from 1870 to 1900 the number increased from 187 to 679. From 1961 to 1970 there were 2875 stations, of which 1089 stations were in the southern hemisphere. Please note, however, that a number of the stations no longer operate in the same site. A separate data set of long period African rainfall data has about 250 stations. 2.2 Spatial Resolution. The weather stations are usually 100 to 200 km apart. 3. TEMPORAL CHARACTERISTICS 3.1 Temporal Coverage. The data set contains world monthly surface climatological data through 1989. These are updated around August of each year for the previous year. The data for some stations extend to the mid-1700's. (See the references in Item 11 below for more detailed statistics on coverage.) There are gaps in the data, some of which could be filled from published sources in the USA; however, funds are needed to locate and enter these data. 3.2 Temporal Resolution. The binary data set contains monthly means, annual means, 10-year monthly means, 10-year annual means, 30-year monthly means and 30-year annual means of temperature, pressure, precipitation, sunshine (% and duration), and sea surface temperature (where available) for each station. The character data set only contains monthly means. The data are based on daily measurements of maximum/minimum temperature and other quantities. 4. INSTRUMENT DESCRIPTION The parameters are measured using conventional instruments. 5. DATA PROCESSING SEQUENCE 5.1 Processing Steps and Data Sets. The National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) consolidated data from several sources, scanning for gross format errors and correcting where possible. The resulting data set includes the World Weather Records and Clayton's (Smithsonian) Weather Records. NCAR obtained most of the World Weather Records directly from NCDC in digitized form, but the first 6 months of 1961 were digitized at NCAR. NCAR obtained the Smithsonian records (data before 1951) directly from John Wolback of Harvard College Observatory, who contracted with NCDC to have these data digitized. NCAR has also included data from Dennis Shea (NCAR) and African precipitation data from Sharon Nicholson (Clark University). The data have been reformatted and are available in either a packed binary or a character format. The missing codes and the biases put on the data are the same in either format. After unpacking (or decoding), the true data value is obtained as follows: True Value=Unpacked (or Decoded) Value - Bias. Missing codes which are unique with respect to actual data values have been chosen for missing parameters. 5.2 Derivation Techniques/Algorithms. Not applicable. 5.3 Special Corrections/Adjustments. At NCAR, the data through 1973 were scanned for gross format errors in card-punching, and several hundred such errors were corrected. Extreme values were inspected on the basis of being 4 or 5 standard deviations from the long period monthly mean. Card-punching or publication errors were corrected, and extreme values were set to missing. Some of the data received on tape from NCDC overlapped that received on earlier tapes. These overlaps were considered to be updates and were merged with or replaced the data previously received. NCAR makes available a list of all changes and corrections made. 5.4 Processing Changes. Not applicable. 6. QUALITY ASSESSMENT 6.1 Data Validation by Producer. See Item 5.3 above. 6.2 Confidence Level/Accuracy Judgment. Variable. 6.3 Usage Guidance. The data records that give height of instruments prior to 1961 contain some cases in which 6 height values are given for each of 4 parameters. This is because it was discovered that the values given for a particular height were different for the different parameters. For example, the height of a barometer above mean sea level associated with standard pressure is 17.7 m, but the height of a barometer above mean sea level associated with temperature is 78.9 m. This discrepancy has not currently been resolved, and all heights are carried along. The station number in the data set is a 6-digit number. The left-most 5 digits, in most cases, make up the normal World Meteorological Organization (WMO) number with the unit's digit a zero. For the stations for which there is no WMO number currently in use, one was created from a non-zero unit's digit (usually 7) along with the actual WMO number of a nearby station. This number was checked for uniqueness. SSCLIMATE data should be accessed via station number. 7. CONTACTS FOR DATA PRODUCTION INFORMATION Roy L. Jenne or Wilbur Spangler Data Support Section National Center for Atmospheric Research P.O. Box 3000 Boulder, CO 80307 (303) 497-1215 8. OUTPUT PRODUCTS AND AVAILABILITY 8.1 Tape Products 8.1.1 World Monthly Surface Station Climatology, available from NCAR, in packed, binary format. Medium/Specification: 9-track, 1600- or 6250-bpi computer compatible tape. Format and Content: Each logical binary record contains one year of data for one station. Logical record lengths vary from 21 to 42 64-bit words and are blocked together into longer physical records. The right-most 60 bits of the first word of each physical record contains the number of words in the physical record. The last word in the physical record is a checksum of the previous words. The logical records are sorted in ascending order by World Meteorological Organization (WMO) number (see note under Usage Guidance in Item 6.3 above) and year. However, the 10- and 30-year mean records for all stations follow the yearly records for all stations. The records include an indication of data source (NCDC, Wolbach, other individual). Quantity/Rate: 3 1600-bpi tapes or 1 6250-bpi tape. Plans/Schedule: NCAR incorporates NCDC and other updates about once a year. 8.1.2 World Monthly Surface Station Climatology available from NCAR or World Monthly Weather Record--Surface available from NCDC in character format. Medium/Specification: 9-track, 1600- or 6250-bpi magnetic tape Format and Content: Each logical record contains one month of data for one station. Logical records consist of 50 characters. The logical records are sorted in ascending order by WMO number, year, month, and record type. The annual means, 10-year, and 30-year means have been dropped from this data set because of volume considerations. Quantity/Rate: 3 1600-bpi tapes for 1738-1989, or 1 6250-bpi tape. Status: Available from NCAR and NCDC Plans/Schedule: NCAR incorporates NCDC and other updates about once a year. 8.1.3 World Monthly Weather Record--Upper Air available from NCDC and NCAR in character format. Medium/Specification: 9-track, 1600-bpi computer compatible tape Format and Content: Each logical record contains one month of data for one station. Logical records consist of 280 characters. The logical records are sorted in ascending order by WMO number, year, and month. Quantity/Rate: 1 1600-bpi tape or 1 6250-bpi tape. Plans/Schedule: NCAR incorporates NCDC updates about once a year. 8.2 Film Products 8.2.1 World Monthly Surface Seasonal Means, Long Term Means, and Standard Deviations. Medium/Specification: Microfilm or microfiche Format and Content: One film contains a print of the data including seasonal means, long term means, and standard deviations. Another provides station plots for selected stations. Quantity/Rate. 2 sets as indicated above Status: Available from NCAR. Plans/schedule: Future schedule is unclear. 8.3 Other Products. 8.3.1 The entire time range and all variables for this data set are stored in CDF on disk. There is one CDF file for each continent. The following list describes the location of each CDF file and its contents: SSCLIMATE_10YR_GLOBAL Contains 10-year temperature/precipitation means for all global stations. Temporal coverage is 1750 - 1970. SSCLIMATE_30YR_GLOBAL Contains 30-year means for all global stations. Temporal coverage is 1955 - 1970. SSCLIMATE_GLB_ANNUAL Contains annual means for temperature/precipitation for all global stations. Temporal coverage is 1739 - 1989. SSCLIMATE_GLB_YR_PST61 Contains annual means for some stations with many meteorological variables since 1961. Temporal coverage is 1962 - 1989. SSCLIMATE_AFRICA_MONTH Contains monthly means for Africa. Exact coverage is from 60 degrees South to 40 degrees North latitude, and 30 degrees West to 60 degrees East longitude. Temporal coverage is 1837 - 1989. SSCLIMATE_ANTARC_MONTH Contains monthly temperature/precipitation means for Antarctica. Exact coverage is from 90 degrees to 60 degrees South latitude, and all longitudes. Temporal coverage is 1903 - 1989. SSCLIMATE_ARCTIC_MONTH Contains monthly temperature/precipitation means for the Arctic. Exact coverage is from 60 degrees to 90 degrees North latitude, and all longitudes. Temporal coverage is 1816 - 1989. SSCLIMATE_ASIA_MONTH Contains monthly temperature/precipitation means for Asia. Exact coverage is from 10 degrees South to 90 degrees North latitude, and 60 degrees to 180 degrees East longitude. Temporal coverage is 1813 - 1989. SSCLIMATE_AUSTRL_MONTH Contains monthly temperature/precipitation means for Australia. Exact coverage is from 60 degrees to 10 degrees South latitude, and 60 degrees to 180 degrees East longitude. Temporal coverage is 1839 - 1989 SSCLIMATE_EUROPE_MONTH Contains monthly temperature/precipitation means for Europe. Exact coverage is from 30 degrees to 90 degrees North latitude, and 30 degrees West to 60 degrees East longitude. Temporal coverage is 1752 - 1989. SSCLIMATE_NAMERICA_MONTH Contains monthly means for North America. Exact coverage is from 15 degrees to 90 degrees North latitude, and 180 degrees to 30 degrees West longitude. Temporal coverage is 1738 - 1989. SSCLIMATE_SAMERICA_MONTH Contains monthly means for South America. Exact coverage is from 60 degrees South to 15 degrees North latitude, and 180 degrees to 30 degrees West longitude. Temporal coverage is 1850 - 1989. 8.3.2 The Greenhouse Detection Experiment (GEDEX) CD-ROM Medium/Specifications: CD-ROM in ISO 9660 standard Format and Content: The data on this disk will be stored in a special data-set-independent format, designated the Common Data Format (CDF). CDF was developed as a uniform method of storing and retrieving data on disk. The CDF contains data and descriptions about the data. A standard software package called the "CDF Library" will be included with this CD-ROM allowing a user to create and access these data and descriptions. The CD-ROM will consist of many different data sets related to the study of the Greenhouse Effect, including the CAC_SST blended and climatology data, with the accompanying NCDS data set documentation. The above listed SSCLIMATE datayptes in Common Data Format (CDF) are contained on the GEDEX CD_ROM. Data Quantity/Rate: 1 CD-ROM disk set. Status: Release date for this product is scheduled for early 1992. Plans/Schedule: Users interested in this product should contact NCDS staff for more details. 9. DATA ACCESS 9.1 Archive Identification Data Support Section National Center for Atmospheric Research P.O. Box 3000 Boulder, CO 80307 (303) 497-1215 National Climatic Data Center (NCDC) Federal Building Asheville, NC 28801 704-259-0682 Goddard DAAC User Support Office NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, MD 20771 (301) 286-3209 9.2 Procedures for Obtaining Data. Contact one of the archives above. 9.3 NCDS Status/Plans. NCDS provides access to the World Monthly Surface Station Climatology Data Set. The data reside online. As updates are made available by NCDC and NCAR, NCDS will incorporate them into its online data sets. 10. CONTACTS FOR ARCHIVE/DATA ACCESS INFORMATION Wilbur M.L. Spangler and Roy L. Jenne Data Support Section National Center for Atmospheric Research P.O. Box 3000 Boulder, CO 80307 (303) 497-1215 World Data Center-A for Meteorology National Climatic Data Center Federal Building Asheville, NC 28801 (704) 259-0370 NASA funded scientists can obtain information and data from Goddard DAAC User Support Office NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, MD 20771 (301) 286-3209 11. REFERENCES 11.1 Satellite/Instrument/Data Processing Documentation a. Jenne, R.L., July 1975. Data Sets for Meteorological Research, NCAR TN/IA-111. Boulder, Colorado. b. Shea, D.J., K.E. Trenberth and R.W. Reynolds, November 1990. A Global Monthly Sea Surface Temperature Climatology, NCAR/TN-345+STR. Climate and Global Dynamics Division, Boulder, Colorado. c. Spangler, W., and R.L. Jenne, February 1990. World Monthly Surface Station Climatology. NCAR Computing Facility, Boulder, Colorado. d. Woodruff, S.D., S.J. Lubker, R.G. Quayle, U. Radok, and E. D. Doggett, October 1991. Differences Within and Among Surface Marine Datasets, NOAA Environmental Research Laboratories, Climate Monitoring and Diagnostics Laboratory, Climate Research Division, Boulder, Colorado. 11.2 Journal Articles and Study Reports a. Bradley, R.S., P.M. Kelly, P.D. Jones, H.F. Diaz and C. Goodess, January 1985. A Climatic Data Bank for the Northern Hemisphere Land Areas, 1851-1980. DOE Technical Report TR017. U.S. Department of Energy, Carbon Dioxide Research Division, Washington, D.C. b. Jones, P.D., S.C.B. Raper, B. Santer, B.S.G. Cherry, C. Goodess, P.M. Kelly, T.M.L. Wigley, R.S. Bradley, H.F. Diaz, July 1985. A Grid Point Surface Air Temperature Data Set for the Northern Hemisphere. DOE Technical Report TR022. U.S. Department of Energy, Carbon Dioxide Research Division, Washington, D.C. 11.3 Archive/DBMS Usage Documentation a. Boden, T.A., 1987. "United States Historical Climatology Network (HCN) Serial Temperature and Precipitation Data." Carbon Dioxide Information Analysis Center, Oak Ridge, Tennessee. U.S. Dept. of Energy Contract No. DE-AC05-84OR21400. b. Boden, T.A., 1986. "A Global Grid Point Surface Air Temperature Data Set: 1851-1984." U.S. Dept. of Energy Contract No. DE-AC05-84OR21400. c. Carbon Dioxide Information Analysis Center, 1987. "U.S. Department of Energy Carbon Dioxide Research Division Publications and Other Documents." Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tennessee. d. Environmental Data Services, 1966. "1951-1960, World Weather Records." 6 vols, U.S. Department of Commerce, Washington, D.C. e. Environmental Data and Information Service, 1983. "1961-1970, World Weather Records." 4 vols, U.S. Department of Commerce, Washington, D.C. f. National Climatic Data Center, (monthly publications). Monthly Climatic Data for the World, 1961-current. U.S. Department of Commerce. (Available from the National Climatic Data Center, Federal Building, Asheville, N.C. 28801. Attn: Publications). g. Olsen, L.M., Closs, J.W., Corprew, F.E., November 1991. NASA's Climate Data System Primer: Version 4.0." EOS DAAC, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland. h. Smithsonian Institution, 1927. " --1920, World Weather Records," Smithsonian Miscellaneous Collections 79. Washington, D.C (prepared for publication by H.H. Clayton and F.L. Clayton). i. Smithsonian Institution, 1934. "`1921-1930,' World Weather Records," Smithsonian Miscellaneous Collections 90. Washington, D.C. (prepared for publication by H.H. Clayton and F.L. Clayton). j. Smithsonian Institution, 1947. "`1931-1940,' World Weather Records," Smithsonian Miscellaneous Collections 105. Washington, D.C. (prepared for publication by H.H. Clayton and F.L. Clayton). k. Spangler, Wilbur M.L., and Roy L. Jenne, October 1988. "World Monthly Surface Station Climatology." National Center for Atmospheric Research Scientific Computing Division, Boulder, Colorado. l. U.S. Weather Bureau, 1959. "`1941-1950,' World Weather Records," U.S. Department of Commerce, Washington, D.C. 12. RELATED DATA SETS 1) The Climate Research Unit Temperature Deviations data set contains departures of 1854-1990 surface air temperatures from the 1950-1979 reference period. These data are available online through NCDS in Common Data Format (CDF). To access this CDF, specify the following as input within the Data Applications subsystem of the NCDS. NCDS$DATA:CLIM-RSRCH-U_TMP-DEV. 2) The Vinnikov, Groisman and Lugina Temperature Deviations data sets contain mean monthly, seasonal and yearly temperature deviations and mean monthly station temperatures for the Southern and Northern Hemispheres. These data are available online through NCDS in Common Data Format (CDF). To access this CDF, specify the following as input within the Data Applications subsystem of the NCDS. NCDS$DATA:VGL-TMP-DEV_MONTHLY NCDS$DATA:VGL-TMP-DEV_SEASONAL NCDS$DATA:VGL-TMP-DEV_ANNUAL NCDS$DATA:VGL-TMP-MON_NORTH-STATN NCDS$DATA:VGL-TMP-MON_SOUTH-STATN 13. SUMMARY/SAMPLE This data set has been stored online in NCDS's Common Data Format (CDF). This format is "data-independent" in that data from any source can be put in this format and accessed through the NCDS subsystems. These CDFs can be found listed in Item 8.3 of this catalog. A sample plot is available for this data set. It is accessible via the Display Demonstration Plot option of the Data Applications subsystem. To view this sample plot, specify the plot SSCLIMATE. 14. NOTES None. *92/03/14