Pennsylvania Climate Divisions

Variables: Temperature, Precipitation, Cooling Degree Days, Heating Degree Days, Palmer Drought Indices

Data Host: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information

Citation: Vose, Russell S.; Applequist, Scott; Squires, Mike; Durre, Imke; Menne, Matthew J.; Williams, Claude N., Jr.; Fenimore, Chris; Gleason, Karin; Arndt, Derek (2014): NOAA Monthly U.S. Climate Divisional Database (NClimDiv). NOAA National Climatic Data Center. doi:10.7289/V5M32STR

How to Download the Data
  1. Select a climate division by using the “Select Station” drop-down menu on the left, and the map on the right will display the area within the climate division.
  2. Select data set variables by checking/unchecking the boxes next to the corresponding variable names.
  3. Select the period of record under the Time panel by inserting the dates for the “Start Date” and “End Date” options by year (e.g., 2023) or full date (e.g., YYYY-MM-DD)
  4. Select the option for annual (averaged by year), seasonal (averaged by season),  and month (averaged by month) temporal resolutions for the data in the “Dataset Period” drop-down.
  5. Select the output by using the “File Type” drop-down menu.
  6. Download the data by clicking the “Download Data” button at the bottom of the panel.

 

Featured Variables

 

Variable Keyword Option Description
Total Precipitation PRCP_inches | PRCP_mm Total precipitation in inches (in) or millimeters (mm)
Palmer Drought Severity Index PDSI This is the value (index) generated that indicates the severity of a wet or dry spell. PDSI values 0 to -.5 = normal; -0.5 to -1.0 = incipient drought; -1.0 to -2.0 = mild drought; -2.0 to -3.0 = moderate drought; -3.0 to -4.0 = severe drought; and greater than – 4.0 = extreme drought.
Modified Palmer Drought Severity Index PMDI The modification of the Palmer Drought Severity Index (PMDI) incorporates a weighted average of the wet and dry index terms, using the probability as the weighting factor. This is the value (index) generated that indicates the severity of a wet or dry spell. PDSI values 0 to -.5 = normal; -0.5 to -1.0 = incipient drought; -1.0 to -2.0 = mild drought; -2.0 to -3.0 = moderate drought; -3.0 to -4.0 = severe drought; and greater than – 4.0 = extreme drought.
Average Temperature TAVG_degF | TAVG_degC Average temperature reported in degrees Fahrenheit (deg F) or Celsius (deg C)
Maximum Temperature TMAX_degF | TMAX_degC Maximum temperature reported in degrees Fahrenheit (deg F) or Celsius (deg C)
Minimum Temperature TMIN_degF | TMIN_degC Minimum temperature reported in degrees Fahrenheit (deg F) or Celsius (deg C)
Heating Degree Days HDDCDV Heating Degree Days (HDD) accumulate on days colder than 65 degrees Fahrenheit when a heating system is used.
Cooling Degree Days CDDCDV Cooling Degree Days (CDD) accumulate on days warmer than 65 degrees Fahrenheit when a cooling system is used.

 

Available File Types

These are the file options available from the GLADS. 

File Type Description
Comma Separated Values (CSV)  This option will create output as a delimited text file with values separated by commas. The data is not viewable within the web browser when this data export option is selected. The web browser will typically offer the user the option of opening the file in MS Excel or a similar spreadsheet program for display.
Web Output Table (HTML) This option will display data in a structured table (with variable names and units as headings) in the user’s web browser.
Network Common Data Framework (NetCDF) This option will download the desired data as a NetCDF file. The data is not viewable within the web browser when this data export option is selected. The user will need third-party software supporting this format when saving the file to their computer.
Select Variables:
Time (UTC) Dates must be formatted as either YYYY or a full ISO date string (YYYY-MM-DDTHH:MM:SSZ)