Weather data
Hi
I think here have been talk about weather sometimes.
It is not easy to find weather data on internet that
is easy to use. In form that is easy to use i meant.
I can give those internet address so you can look to
them, if you want to see weather data. Hopefully
those are useful to someone. I have found some
temperature data on internet that is easy to use.
Temperature is probably the most important weather
information in gardening. Those sites have
temperature data and other data if you need past
weather data.
First site is classic.wunderground.com . There is
weather data which you can see and copy to Excel. If
you want get that data to Excel, just select it then
copy it and paste it to Excel. It should make it
right way so you can in Excel do calculations. Many
weather station in U.S.A. report once per hour data,
sometimes there is more than one report per hour
because there might be rain or some other event that
have made more reports. There is temperature, dew
point. relative humidity in percent, air pressure in
sea level, weather conditions data. It also
calculates average high, average and average low
temperature when you have selected many days time
range. That site also calculates growing degree days.
It use formula daily high + daily low and then divide
it by 2 in fahrenheit degrees and result is then
reduced base of 50 fahrenheit. If that calculation is
negative then that day is zero growing degrees,
nothing growing degrees is reduced. When you choose
time range then growing degrees are sum of those days
calculated same way.
http://www7.ncdc.noaa.gov/CDO/cdoselect.cmd?
datasetabbv=SUMMARIES&countryabbv=&georegionabbv=&res
olution=0
This site is global hourly weather data. Next link is
from same global hourly weather data site it couldn't
be selected from above link, so another link was
needed. I think i should mention this.
Before we start, i need to say something about this
weather data. Global hourly weather data use GMT
times, not local times. So you need to adjust times
in your head to local times. For example Miami,
Florida, U.S.A. is 5 hours less than GMT time so if
it says 17:52, local time is then 17:52-5 hours which
is 12:52. Also GMT time don't change to summer time,
so in summer time this difference is 4 hours less
than GMT time. So you need to know your time zone,
otherwise you might be thinking why highest
temperature occur in night or something other similar
situation. Global hourly weather data use 24 hour
time in day, that is good to know if you live in
U.S.A. which use a.m. and p.m. time. So 17:52 is 5:52
pm in GMT time. Global hourly weather data use year,
month, day way to write dates, not same way as in
U.S.A. where you write month first, then day,then
year, also dates are written in numbers, so you can't
write like month june. This site write year in 4
numbers, month in 2 numbers, day in 2 numbers, hours
in 2 numbers and minutes in 2 numbers. If month is
less than 10, you put 0 forward to it number, for
example 6 is june, you put 06 to number. Same way to
days, hours and minutes. For example 200806241752 is
24 day june 2008 time 17:52. That way all dates have
same amount of numbers, it is easy to remember that
they go from biggest time to smallest time from left
to right. Weather data is text format, so you can
search it by contol + f, just remember how dates are
written and don't search word like june. That was
idea to next link. I think that was about common
ideas global hourly weather data. I show you how to
get data, i got mine data and you can follow me same
time and do same things and get your own data. If i
say Miami data, you can choose your own location and
get your own data, way to get it is same. Many of
those data need your e-mail address where your
requested data link can be sent. It is free to get
data. Now we can go to statistic data.
Actually it is summary data, it is statistic weather
data. It calculates statistic from weather data.
First you choose where you want data, location in
other words. I suggest choosing country and in that
box country you want the data. For example if we want
Miami, Florida, U.S.A. let's choose United states
country and continue. Next page let's choose Florida
and continue. Next page let's choose Miami
international airport as it has newest data and click
continue. Dates are which data are available,
starting from first date and ending last date. Now we
need to make selections what time period we want
statistic to be calculated and choose which weather
observation we want to use. Number 3 section we can
choose time period from to which statistic is
calculated, everything between those date are
calculated to statistic. For example if we choose
from year 2008 month 01 day 01 hour 00 to year 2012
month 12 day 31 hour 23 everything between those are
calculated to statistic. If i remember right this
doesn't allow you to make statistic less than 1 year,
if you choose less than 1 year then results might be
made to 1 year statistic even you choosed less than 1
year time range. You can use section 1 times too but
those other give you more flexibility to make
statistic. You can use section 4 too, If you want use
other than section 3 remember change that button to
that section BTW forgot to say. Section 4 allows you
to choose selected times and dates. You can click
year, month and hour. You can select many dates and
times when you press Ctrl button and then select
them. Then statistic is calculated from them. On
section 3 there was also output format, single table
summary give summary of all year you choose. If you
choose multiple table summary i think it gives
summary of each selected year plus summary of all
years. That might be faster way to see years
statistic than doing one year search at a time.
Section 5 observation type, i would leave it as it
is. Section 6 now you select what kind of summary you
want. If you want temperature, then select
temperature statistic summary and continue. If you
select current year temperature data, then you don't
need to give e-mail address. Give your e-mail address
here, you get e-mail message to that address when
your statistic is ready which have internet address
to your statistic. After you gave your e-mail
address, you can leave or do another statistic
request if you want, you don't need to wait your
request to be ready. It may take little bit time to
do your request. If you requested temperature data,
results show temperature in celsius degrees. Left to
right you see first months and annual which means
yearly temperature. Then you see hours going down in
left column. Mean means average temperature, stdv
means standard deviation it is one kind of measure
how much there is variation in numbers around
average, smaller number means less variation and
bigger number means bigger variation, obs is number
of observation. For example jun hour 17 means on
average on years you selected in june time 17
temperature was that, had that standard deviation and
was calculated from that number of observation.
Annual column 17 means on all days that years you
selected on time 17 temperature, standard deviation
and number of observation was. Total in last is
monthly average, standard deviation and number of
observation and annual total is years you selected to
be calculated years average temperature, standard
deviation and number of observation. When i checked
Charlotte, North Carolina, U.S.A. weather data FM-15
and FM-12 observation was counted to statistic, but
not FM-16, i calculated it so. I think that has done
that way because that way statistic don't go bad so
easily. Don't worry i tell later what those are, if
you didn't understand them. Now we can go to next
link.
http://cdo.ncdc.noaa.gov/pls/plclimprod/poemain.acces
srouter?datasetabbv=DS3505
In this site we have actual weather data which we can
look. We have advanced and simplified option. Let's
first look advanced option. Let's click advanced
option. Let's get Miami, Florida, U.S.A. so let's
choose country United States and continue. Then
choose Florida and continue. Then Miami international
airport continue. Now we can choose data we want to
get. Let's get temperature data, air temperature
observation. You can select many of those if you
want, tips to doing do is end of that site as you
see. All data elements give all data, not all of
those probably are not available but you can try it
if you want to see what data is available. You can
request small let's say 1 day all data to see what
those elements have data available. It is good to
know weather station reports different way extreme
temperatures which don't show in observations. Those
shows probably higher maximum and lower low
temperatures than weather observation because they
are maximum and minimum temperature. You can see them
if you select Extreme air temperature if you are
interested those temperatures. Let's get temperature
data so let's choose air temperature observation. Now
we can choose dates same way as in statistics. Let's
choose for example from year 2008 month 01 day 01 to
year 2014 month 08, day 05. I would leave those other
as they are. Then continue. Then it shows your
request, now you need to look inventory to see there
is data from period you selected. Inventory shows
your weather station name and year and 12 numbers
left to right, those are months, 6th number is june
for example. It shows we have over 83 000
observations available, which quite good amount of
observations. Those months numbers are how many
observation is in month. Usually there is over 1 000
observations in month. This is hourly weather data so
there is hourly weather observation and sometimes
more than 1 observation in hour. After that write
your e-mail and submit your request. This will give
temperature data in celsius degrees. Wait until next
page loads. Now you see your files. First is you data
file, it contains your requested data. You can click
it if it don't load it is not ready yet. it may take
some time to get it ready. You get e-mail when your
data is ready. You can write to that address to
notepad and save it if you don't want to wait. You
can make another request if you want, no need to wait
when your request is ready. Inventory shows your
station and time data which you requested. Station
list shows station you choosed. Now let's look
temperature data. It is text file, third from left is
date and then hours and minutes. Remember what i told
earlier about dates? They are not local times. Then
there is observation type. Now let's look Surface
Data Hourly Global format documentation, it is last
file on site, if you didn't close it. This explain
what are those information on your data. FM-12 is
hourly weather. FM-15 is routinely data many times 3
hours interval, those might have maximum and minimum
temperature data. Those 2 are calculated to statistic
as they are regular on their times. Sometimes we have
FM-16 observation too, they are special weather
report. Those are not calculated to statistic, if i
figured it right. Those are sometimes reported when
there is rain, or other things occuring which would
need more often observation in airport.
You can get this data to Excel if you want so you can
make calculations. You can't copy it to Excel as all
data goes A1 column. In your data save it .TXT file.
For example weather.TXT . Write txt in big character.
Then open Excel and open your file which you just
saved. Excel ask what you want to do with file.
Choose that way what makes difference is comma and
next choose comma and then ready. Now your data is
that way you can use it in Excel. It have . in
temperature go to edit and replace . with this to
this , so you can calculate temperatures, replace all
of them. Then you can calculate them. Now we can look
simplified option above mentioned address.
Let's choose simplified option. Then coutry United
States. Then Florida. Then Miami international
airport. Then choose time range you want to get
data. Next check inventory same way as above and then
submit request. This gives text file and HTML file
when it is ready. This gives temperature in
fahrenheit degrees. HTML file can be directly copy to
Excel, text file is same but without form. Those are
same data as above but showed little different way.
Those people in U.S.A. you might like more those
fahrenheit degrees than celsius. Wait when next page
loads. You can leave site, and do another request if
you want, no need to wait your request to be ready.
First link is your HTML files, it have one file for
each month you have, you see them when you click the
link. Text file have probably all your data in one
file. Station have station you choosed. Surface Data
Hourly Global format documentation tells you what
those numbers are and what they mean which is last
link on that site. It have temperature, dew point,
wind direction, wind speed, wind gust, sea level
pressure, snow depth, maximum and minimum
temperature.
I forgot to say about extreme air temperature are not
alwayss from 24 hour period time, look how many hours
is calculated to it. Also 24 hour is not alwayss
calendar day from 00:00 23:59. In U.S.A. eastern time
time 4:59 24 hour period is calendar day because that
is last minute in that day U.S.A. eastern time for
example Miami, U.S.A.
http://www.sercc.com/nowdata.html
Now lastly look NOwdata. This site have U.S.A.
weather forecast office. They have weather data.
Select place which is near location you want to have
weather data. Let's look Miami, let's click Miami.
Then you have NOWdata open. Now you can select Miami
international airport data or Miami area data and
then select daily data to get temperature data.
Select from those products and options your time and
you can look yourself the data. It have temperature
data.
Hopefully this is helpul someone and liked data i
found to you. Those are data i found on internet to
have weather data.
fawnridge (Ricky)
hester_2009
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