🌍 Climate Data Access and Extraction¶

Welcome to the comprehensive guide for accessing climate datasets! This page provides you with direct access to various climate data sources essential for VECTRI modeling and climate research.

🎯 Overview¶

Climate data forms the backbone of malaria modeling and forecasting. This guide covers:

• Historical data for model validation and retrospective analysis
• Near-real-time data for operational monitoring
• Forecast data (sub-seasonal to seasonal) for early warning systems
• Climate projections for impact assessment and planning

🌧️ Precipitation Data Sources¶

Precipitation data is essential for modeling mosquito breeding site dynamics and population emergence.

📊 Historical Rainfall Data¶

Historical datasets provide validated, quality-controlled rainfall records for model calibration and validation.

⚡ Near-Real-Time Rainfall Data¶

Near-real-time products enable operational monitoring and short-term forecasting.

# Coming soon - CHIRPS-GEFS download script

# Coming soon - GFS download script

# Coming soon - ECMWF HRES download script

🔮 Sub-Seasonal Rainfall Forecasts¶

Sub-seasonal forecasts (weeks 2-6) fill the gap between weather and seasonal predictions.

ECMWF S2S

• Resolution: 0.4° (~40 km)
• Temporal: Daily, 46-day forecast
• Coverage: Global
• Ensemble: 51 members
• Update: 2 times per week (Monday, Thursday)
• Best for: Week 2-6 rainfall probability forecasts

Key Variables:

• Total precipitation
• Probability of exceeding thresholds
• Ensemble spread (uncertainty)

Download Script:

# Coming soon - ECMWF S2S download script

📅 Seasonal Rainfall Forecasts¶

Seasonal forecasts (1-6 months ahead) enable strategic planning for malaria control campaigns.

Download Scripts:

# Coming soon - Seasonal forecast download scripts

🌍 Long-Term Climate Projections¶

Climate projections assess future malaria risk under different emissions scenarios.

# Coming soon - CMIP6 download script

# Coming soon - ISIMIP3b download script

# Coming soon - CHC-CMIP6 download script

# Coming soon - CORDEX download script

🌡️ Temperature Data Sources¶

Temperature data drives vector and parasite development rates in VECTRI.

📊 Historical Temperature Data¶

⚡ Near-Real-Time Temperature Data¶

# Coming soon - GFS temperature download script

# Coming soon - ECMWF temperature download script

🔮 Sub-Seasonal & Seasonal Temperature Forecasts¶

ECMWF S2S

• Resolution: 0.4° (~40 km)
• Temporal: Daily, 46-day forecast
• Ensemble: 51 members
• Variables: T2m, Tmax, Tmin

ECMWF SEAS5

• Resolution: 0.4° (~40 km)
• Temporal: Monthly, 7-month forecast
• Ensemble: 51 members
• Variables: T2m, Tmax, Tmin

NCEP CFSv2 & NMME

• Similar to rainfall products
• Temperature ensemble forecasts available

Download Scripts:

# Coming soon - Forecast temperature download scripts

🌍 Long-Term Temperature Projections¶

ISIMIP3b (Recommended)

Specifications:

• Resolution: 0.5° (~50 km)
• Temporal: Daily, 1850–2100
• Variables: tas, tasmax, tasmin, hurs, pr
• Scenarios: SSP1-2.6, SSP3-7.0, SSP5-8.5
• Models: 5 bias-corrected CMIP6 models

Available Models:

• GFDL-ESM4
• IPSL-CM6A-LR
• MPI-ESM1-2-HR
• MRI-ESM2-0
• UKESM1-0-LL

Advantages:

• Daily temperature extremes (Tmax, Tmin)
• Bias-corrected to W5E5 reanalysis
• Consistent across sectors
• Impact-model ready

Download Script:

# Coming soon - ISIMIP3b download script

📥 General Download Workflow¶

All datasets follow a similar download workflow:

graph LR
    A[Identify Data Source] --> B[Set Parameters]
    B --> C[Authenticate]
    C --> D[Download]
    D --> E[Process]
    E --> F[Quality Check]
    F --> G[Save]

Common Steps¶

1. Identify Requirements
2. Spatial domain (bounding box or region)
3. Temporal range (start/end dates)
4. Variables needed

5. Resolution requirements

6. Authentication

7. Create accounts (CDS, NOAA, etc.)
8. Obtain API keys

9. Configure credentials

10. Download

11. Use provided Python scripts
12. Handle large files efficiently

13. Monitor progress

14. Quality Control

15. Check for missing data
16. Verify spatial/temporal coverage

17. Validate against known values

18. Format Conversion

19. Convert to NetCDF (if needed)
20. Standardize variable names
21. Add metadata

🛠️ Tools and Libraries¶

All download scripts use these Python libraries:

# Data access
import cdsapi          # Copernicus Climate Data Store
import requests        # HTTP requests
import ftplib          # FTP downloads

# Data processing
import xarray as xr    # NetCDF handling
import pandas as pd    # Time series
import numpy as np     # Numerical operations

# Geospatial
import rioxarray       # Raster operations
import geopandas as gpd # Vector data

Installation:

pip install cdsapi requests xarray pandas numpy rioxarray geopandas netCDF4

📚 Data Access Tutorials¶

Detailed step-by-step tutorials are available for downloading each dataset. All tutorials can be found in the Data Sources Reference section.

🌧️ Precipitation Data Tutorials¶

🌡️ Temperature Data Tutorials¶

🌍 Environmental Data Tutorials¶

🔗 External Resources¶

Data Portals¶

• Copernicus Climate Data Store - ERA5, SEAS5, and more
• CHIRPS Data Portal - CHIRPS rainfall
• IRI Data Library - Climate data repository
• NOAA PSL - Reanalysis and forecasts
• ISIMIP - Impact model data

Documentation¶

• ECMWF API Documentation
• CHIRPS Documentation
• CMIP6 at ESGF
• CORDEX at ESGF

Python API Libraries¶

• cdsapi - Copernicus Climate Data Store
• ecmwf-api-client - ECMWF public datasets
• siphon - THREDDS and weather data

💡 Tips and Best Practices¶

📞 Support and Help¶

Need assistance with data access?

• Workshop Support: yonas.mersha14@gmail.com
• CHIRPS Support: chc@ucsb.edu
• ECMWF Support: Copernicus Support
• Community: Climate Data Operators Forum

🎯 Next Steps¶

Ready to start downloading climate data?

1. Choose your dataset based on your needs (historical, forecast, or projection)
2. Follow the tutorial for your selected dataset
3. Run the download script with your parameters
4. Quality check the downloaded data
5. Proceed to data processing and VECTRI modeling

Start with CHIRPS → View All Tutorials →