Selected data that were once part of the Climate Analysis Section (CAS) Data Catalog at NCAR.
Climate data guide content with tag Climate Analysis Section (CAS) Data Catalog
Atlantic Multi-decadal Oscillation (AMO) and Atlantic Multidecadal Variability (AMV)
Years of record
- to
The Atlantic Multi-decadal Oscillation (AMO) has been identified as a coherent mode of natural variability occurring in the North Atlantic Ocean with an estimated period of 60-80 years. It is based upon the average anomalies of sea surface temperatures (SST) in the North Atlantic basin, typically over 0-80N. To remove the climate change signal from the AMO index,…
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Timestep
- Monthly, Decadal
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Collections
- Climate Analysis Section (CAS) Data Catalog
Experts contributing reviews
- Trenberth, Kevin, Zhang, Rong
Budgets: Mass, Moisture, Energy
Years of record
- N/A
The uneven distribution of incoming and outgoing radiation is the primary driver of the climate system. The resulting flows of energy by the climate components (atmosphere, ocean, ice, etc) determine the climate. Ultimately, the net difference between incoming and outgoing radiation determines if the climate is changing. Hence, estimating and understanding energy…
Main variables and Earth System components
Atmosphere Budget Evaporation Evaporation-Precipitation Radiation-
Formats
- N/A
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Timestep
- N/A
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Domain
- N/A
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Collections
- Climate Analysis Section (CAS) Data Catalog
Experts contributing reviews
- N/A
CERES EBAF: Clouds and Earth's Radiant Energy Systems (CERES) Energy Balanced and Filled (EBAF)
Years of record
- to
The CERES-EBAF product provides 1-degree regional, zonal and global monthly mean Top-of-Atmosphere (TOA) and surface (SFC) longwave (LW), shortwave (SW), and net (NET) fluxes under clear and all-sky conditions. EBAF is used for climate model evaluation, estimating the Earth's global mean energy budget, and to infer meridional heat transport. The data synthesized to…
Experts contributing reviews
- Loeb, Norman
Climate Forecast System Reanalysis (CFSR)
Years of record
- to
The CFSR is a third generation reanalysis product. It is a global, high resolution, coupled atmosphere-ocean-land surface-sea ice system designed to provide the best estimate of the state of these coupled domains over this period. The CFSR includes (1) coupling of atmosphere and ocean during the generation of the 6 hour guess field, (2) an interactive sea-ice model, and…
Main variables and Earth System components
Atmosphere Air Temperature Geopotential Height Precipitable water Ocean-
Formats
- GRIB
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Timestep
- Sub-daily, Monthly
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Domain
- Global
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Collections
- Climate Analysis Section (CAS) Data Catalog
Experts contributing reviews
- N/A
CMAP: CPC Merged Analysis of Precipitation
Years of record
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CMAP refers to a collection of precipitation data sets, though the 2.5°x2.5° global monthly version is probably the most widely used. This data set is constructed from an analysis of gauge data and satellite-derived precipitation estimates. An "enhanced" version (CMAP/A) is also available, which provides global coverage by filling in gaps with precipitation forecasts…
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Timestep
- Monthly, Pentad
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Domain
- Global
Experts contributing reviews
- Arkin, Phil, Xie, PIngping
ERA-Interim
Years of record
- to
Using a much improved atmospheric model and assimilation system from those used in ERA-40, ERA-Interim represents a third generation reanalysis. Several of the inaccuracies exhibited by ERA-40 such as too-strong precipitation over oceans from the early 1990's onwards and a too-strong Brewer-Dobson circulation in the stratosphere, were eliminated or significantly reduced…
Main variables and Earth System components
Atmosphere Air Temperature Geopotential Height Precipitable water Precipitation-
Timestep
- Sub-daily, Daily, Monthly
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Domain
- Global
Experts contributing reviews
- Dee, Dick
ERA-Interim: derived components
Years of record
- to
Era-Interim data are used to derive monthly mass, moisture and energy budget products. Each term is available. Atmospheric energy, mass, and moisture budgets can be computed by vertically integrating reanalysis fields and employing suitable corrections (e.g. mass). The budgets are uniquely valuable for interpreting the climate's mean state and its variability. They can…
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Formats
- netCDF
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Timestep
- Monthly
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Domain
- Global
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Collections
- Climate Analysis Section (CAS) Data Catalog
Experts contributing reviews
- N/A
Freshwater Discharge: 1948-2004
Years of record
- to
"A dataset of historical monthly streamflow at the farthest downstream stations for the world’s 925 largest ocean-reaching rivers has been created for community use. Compared with previous studies, the new dataset has improved homogeneity and enables more reliable assessments of decadal and long-term changes in continental freshwater discharge into the oceans." The data…
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Timestep
- Monthly
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Domain
- Global
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Collections
- Climate Analysis Section (CAS) Data Catalog
Experts contributing reviews
- N/A
GODAS: NCEP Global Ocean Data Assimilation System
Years of record
- to
GODAS is a real-time ocean analysis and a reanalysis. It is used for monitoring, retrospective analysis as well as for providing oceanic initial conditions for the CFS. Both temperature and synthetic salinity profiles are assimilated in a 3DVAR scheme. Beginning with March 2007, altimetry sea level is assimilated.
Main variables and Earth System components
Ocean 3D Velocity SST - sea surface temperature Salinity heat flux isothermal layer depth mixed layer depth potential temperature salt flux sea surface height-
Timestep
- Monthly, Pentad
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Domain
- Global
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Collections
- Climate Analysis Section (CAS) Data Catalog
Experts contributing reviews
- N/A
GPCP (Monthly): Global Precipitation Climatology Project
Years of record
- to
Data from rain gauge stations, satellites, and sounding observations have been merged to estimate monthly rainfall on a 2.5-degree global grid from 1979 to the present. The careful combination of satellite-based rainfall estimates provides the most complete analysis of rainfall available to date over the global oceans, and adds necessary spatial detail to the rainfall…
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Timestep
- Climatology, Monthly
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Domain
- Global
Experts contributing reviews
- Pendergrass, Angeline, Wang, Jian-Jian
Hurrell North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) Index (PC-based)
Years of record
- to
The principal component (PC)-based indices of the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) are the time series of the leading Empirical Orthogonal Function (EOF) of SLP anomalies over the Atlantic sector, 20°-80°N, 90°W-40°E. These indices are used to measure the NAO throughout the year, tracking the seasonal movements of the Icelandic low and Azores high. These movements…
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Formats
- ascii
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Timestep
- Monthly, Seasonal, Annual
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Domain
- Atlantic Ocean
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Collections
- Climate Analysis Section (CAS) Data Catalog
Experts contributing reviews
- Hurrell, James, Phillips, Adam
Hurrell North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) Index (station-based)
Years of record
- to
The winter (December thru March) station-based index of the NAO is based on the difference of normalized sea level pressure (SLP) between Lisbon, Portugal and Stykkisholmur/Reykjavik, Iceland since 1864. Positive values of the NAO index are typically associated with stronger-than-average westerlies over the middle latitudes, more intense weather systems over…
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Formats
- ascii
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Timestep
- Monthly, Seasonal, Annual
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Domain
- Atlantic Ocean
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Collections
- Climate Analysis Section (CAS) Data Catalog
Experts contributing reviews
- Hurrell, James, Phillips, Adam
ISCCP: International Satellite Cloud Climatology Project
Years of record
- to
The International Satellite Cloud Climatology Project (ISCCP) makes use of routine observations by operational weather satellites to provide a long-term (1983-2009), gridded, global record of cloud properties. ISCCP uses observations in the visible and infrared window portions of the spectrum to determine cloud optical thickness and cloud top temperature, from which the…
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Timestep
- Climatology, Sub-daily, Monthly
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Domain
- Global
Experts contributing reviews
- Pincus, Robert
Multivariate ENSO Index
Years of record
- to
The Multivariate ENSO Index (MEI) is said to capture a more holistic representation of the atmospheric and oceanic anomalies that occur during ENSO events than do single-variables timeseries like the NinoSST indices. The MEIv2 is based on five variables from the tropical Pacific. These five variables are: sea-level pressure (P), zonal (U) and meridional (V) components of…
Main variables and Earth System components
N/A-
Formats
- ascii
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Timestep
- Monthly
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Domain
- Pacific Ocean
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Collections
- Climate Analysis Section (CAS) Data Catalog
Experts contributing reviews
- N/A
NASA MERRA
Years of record
- to
The Modern Era Retrospective-Analysis for Research and Applications (MERRA) was undertaken by NASA’s Global Modeling and Assimilation Office with two primary objectives: to place observations from NASA’s Earth Observing System satellites into a climate context and to improve upon the hydrologic cycle represented in earlier generations of reanalyses. MERRA was generated…
Main variables and Earth System components
Atmosphere Air Temperature Geopotential Height Precipitable water Water Vapor-
Timestep
- Sub-daily, Monthly
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Domain
- Global
Experts contributing reviews
- N/A
NCAR Sea Level Pressure
Years of record
- to
NCAR Sea Level Pressure is a gridded analysis of SLP based on land station reports, covering 1899 to present for latitudes 30°N-90°N. Quality controlled raw data plus empirical corrections for changes in instrumentation and station location.
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Timestep
- N/A
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Domain
- NH - Northern Hemisphere
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Collections
- Climate Analysis Section (CAS) Data Catalog
Experts contributing reviews
- Hurrell, James, Trenberth, Kevin
NCEP-NCAR (R1): An Overview
Years of record
- to
NCEP-NCAR (R1) is the original reanalysis effort. It uses a frozen global state-of-the-art global data assimilation system (as of 11 January 1995). The original database was enhanced (additional, quality checked datasets) by NCAR's Data Support Section. Originally planned to span 1957-96 ("40-Year Reanalysis Project"), it was extended back to 1948 and continues to this…
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Timestep
- Sub-daily, Daily, Monthly
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Domain
- Global
Experts contributing reviews
- N/A
Nino SST Indices (Nino 1+2, 3, 3.4, 4; ONI and TNI)
Years of record
- to
There are several indices used to monitor the tropical Pacific, all of which are based on sea surface temperature (SST) anomalies averaged across a given region. Usually the anomalies are computed relative to a base period of 30 years. The Niño 3.4 index and the Oceanic Niño Index (ONI) are the most commonly used indices to define El Niño and La…
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Formats
- ascii
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Timestep
- Monthly
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Domain
- Pacific Ocean, Tropics
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Collections
- Climate Analysis Section (CAS) Data Catalog
Experts contributing reviews
- Trenberth, Kevin
North Pacific (NP) Index by Trenberth and Hurrell; monthly and winter
Years of record
- to
The North Pacific Index (NP index or NPI) is the area-weighted sea level pressure over the region 30°N-65°N, 160°E-140°W. The NP index is defined to measure interannual to decadal variations in the atmospheric circulation. The dominant atmosphere-ocean relation in the North Pacific is one where atmospheric changes lead changes in sea surface temperatures by one to two…
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Formats
- ascii
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Timestep
- Monthly, Seasonal
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Collections
- Climate Analysis Section (CAS) Data Catalog
Experts contributing reviews
- Hurrell, James, Phillips, Adam
ORAS4: ECMWF Ocean Reanalysis and derived ocean heat content
Years of record
- to
ECMWF's current ocean reanalysis uses a sophisticated data assimilation methodology which includes a model bias correction. The ocean model used is forced by atmospheric daily surface fluxes, relaxed to SST and bias corrected. The Balmaseda et al (QJRMS 2013) reference provides excellent peer reviewed documentation and evaluation.
Main variables and Earth System components
Ocean Ocean Heat Content Salinity Sea Level potential temperature u, v current components-
Timestep
- Monthly
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Domain
- Global
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Collections
- Climate Analysis Section (CAS) Data Catalog
Experts contributing reviews
- N/A
Palmer Drought Severity Index (PDSI)
Years of record
- N/A
The Palmer Drought Severity Index (PDSI) uses readily available temperature and precipitation data to estimate relative dryness. It is a standardized index that generally spans -10 (dry) to +10 (wet). Maps of operational agencies like NOAA typically show a range of -4 to +4, but more extreme values are possible. The PDSI has been reasonably successful at quantifying long…
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Timestep
- Monthly
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Domain
- Global
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Collections
- Climate Analysis Section (CAS) Data Catalog
Experts contributing reviews
- Dai, Aiguo
Southern Oscillation Indices: Signal, Noise and Tahiti/Darwin SLP (SOI)
Years of record
- to
The Southern Oscillation Index (SOI) is a time series used to characterize the large scale sea level pressure (SLP) patterns in the tropical Pacific. Monthly mean SLP at Tahiti [T] and Darwin [D] are used. An optimal SOI can be constructed. It consists of [T-D] which is a measure of the large scale phenomena while [T+D] is a measure of small scale and/or…
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Timestep
- Monthly
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Domain
- Australia, Pacific Ocean, Tropics
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Collections
- Climate Analysis Section (CAS) Data Catalog
Experts contributing reviews
- Trenberth, Kevin
TRMM: Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission
Years of record
- to
The Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) is a joint space mission between NASA and Japan's National Space Development Agency designed to monitor and study tropical and subtropical precipitation and the associated release of energy. The mission uses 5 instruments: Precipitation Radar (PR), TRMM Microwave Imager (TMI), Visible Infrared Scanner (VIRS), Clouds &…
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Timestep
- Sub-daily, Daily, Monthly
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Domain
- Tropics
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Collections
- Climate Analysis Section (CAS) Data Catalog, Obs4MIPS
Experts contributing reviews
- Huffman, George J., Pendergrass, Angeline