Aug 28, 2026
Nepal’s August 2026 Flash Flood: What Hourly Station Data Can—and Cannot—Show
The nearest usable GHCNh station is about 66 km from the event. It provides regional context but cannot identify the high-mountain flood trigger.
Understanding our climate through data
Explore eleven interactive weather and climate data tools using official station observations from NOAA, DWD, JMA, Météo-France, IMGW, MeteoGate and WMO.
Move from local station detail to cross-country climate comparisons without switching platforms.
Choose an Explorer, follow a practical guide, or read evidence-led articles. Each dataset keeps its source-specific variables and documented limitations visible.
Explore weather and climate datasets
Compare global archives and national networks covering thousands of stations. The observations come from official meteorological providers and follow provider or WMO reporting conventions; available variables, time coverage and quality controls differ by source.
EuroMeteo – European Data
MeteoGate / EUMETNET
Near real-time cross-border observations for Europe, built on MeteoGate's WIS 2.0 / E-SOH feed. Best for tracking active weather as it moves between national networks.
OPERA – European Weather Radar
EUMETNET
Animate near-real-time pan-European radar frames to track precipitation, with maximum reflectivity (DBZH), rain rate, and accumulation products.
DWD – German Climate Data
Deutscher Wetterdienst OpenData
Germany's richest open station archive, from 10-minute observations to annual summaries. Ideal for local extremes, solar studies, and long station histories.
Météo-France – French Data
Independent view of official open data
Météo-France station observations published through France's open-data portals, with coverage for rainfall, wind, temperature, and rapid precipitation changes.
JMA – Japanese Data
Japan Meteorological Agency
High-frequency Japanese observations built for a country of typhoons, coastal winds, and steep terrain. Explore daily, hourly, and 10-minute records from the JMA network.
IMGW – Polish Data
Institute of Meteorology (IMGW-PIB)
Polish station observations spanning synoptic, climatological, and snow records. Useful for flood risk, winter conditions, and long-term regional comparisons.
WMO Normals – 1991-2020
Climatological Standard Normals
Official 30-year climate benchmarks (1991-2020) for thousands of global stations. Essential for assessing current anomalies against a modern baseline.
WMO Climate – Observations
Global Monthly CLIMAT reports
Near real-time and historical global monthly observations compiled from the WMO CLIMAT network. Essential for monitoring active climate anomalies and trends.
SSOD – Synoptic Summary of the Day
Independent view of NOAA/NCEI data
NOAA/NCEI SSODv2 daily summaries presented independently for UTC-aligned comparisons across more than 9,000 global station locations.
GHCNh – Hourly Observations
Independent view of NOAA/NCEI data
NOAA/NCEI GHCNh hourly station observations presented independently for extremes, diurnal cycles, and sub-daily analysis worldwide.
GHCNm – Monthly Summaries
Independent view of NOAA/NCEI data
NOAA/NCEI GHCNm monthly station records presented independently for long-term temperature, precipitation, and regional trend analysis worldwide.
Why We Built Climate Explorer
We built Climate Explorer to solve a practical problem: accessing high-resolution, station-level weather data is still far too difficult. While the warming climate is a global issue, the actual impacts hit locally. To track how heatwaves are intensifying in Germany or how rainfall patterns are shifting in France, you can't just rely on global averages. You need the raw data from the stations on the ground.
The issue is that National Meteorological Services usually publish their open data on separate platforms, using completely different formats and APIs. We decided to fix this by creating a unified portal. Instead of writing custom Python scripts to parse DWD datasets or figuring out the Météo-France API limits, researchers and journalists can use our interactive interfaces to get straight to the analysis.
Data Sources and Technical Approach
Climate Explorer is an independent visualization platform. Our tools use official public data infrastructure, but we are not affiliated with the data providers. For European weather, EuroMeteo connects to WIS 2.0 (WMO Information System) and the EUMETNET E-SOH network to display observations distributed by participating national weather services in near real-time. For historical analysis, the GHCN Explorers use NOAA's Global Historical Climatology Network, including hourly and monthly station records.
We preserve the source observations while handling the technical work needed to retrieve and present them, including parsing provider formats, timestamps and quality fields. Derived summaries and comparisons are identified in the relevant Explorer or guide, and provider-specific limitations remain important when interpreting results.
Putting Weather in Context
When a heatwave hits, the first question is usually, "How abnormal is this?" To answer that, you need a baseline. That's why we heavily integrate the WMO Climatological Standard Normals (1991-2020) into our tools. It allows users to instantly compare today's temperature or rainfall against the expected 30-year average for that exact location.
Whether you're a data journalist writing about consecutive summer extremes, a student mapping urban heat islands, or just a weather enthusiast, Climate Explorer gives you the raw facts. Good climate analysis requires good data, and our goal is to make sure that data is accessible to anyone who needs it.
Latest Insights & Articles
Read in-depth case studies about using open meteorological datasets, understanding climate anomalies, and the policy changes driving global climate research.
Aug 16, 2026
One UTC Day, Three Local Calendars: What an SSOD Date Means
NOAA's SSOD dataset uses the same UTC window worldwide. That makes observations easier to align, but the window crosses local dates differently from New York to Tokyo.
Aug 3, 2026
OPERA Radar Products Explained: DBZH, RATE and ACRR
Understand how Europe’s OPERA weather radar composites are produced, what DBZH, RATE and ACRR measure, and how to explore or export GeoTIFF frames.
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What You Can Do
Track Historical Trends
Explore long-term changes in precipitation and temperature to identify regional and global climate patterns.
Analyze Current Conditions
Access up-to-date measurements to monitor current weather events and their potential impacts.
Investigate Climate Variability
Delve into the fluctuations and extremes of precipitation and temperature to better understand climate risks.
By providing easy access to essential climate data, we contribute to a greater understanding of our planet's climate system and support informed decision-making for a more sustainable future.