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U.S.A.F. DATSAV3 Surface Observations, 1901-continuing

d463002
 

This historical dataset is recommended for ancillary use only and not as a primary research dataset. It has likely been superseded by a newer, improved dataset.

Abstract:

This ASCII data set (DATSAV3) is produced at the National Climatic Data Center (NCDC) from a USAF binary set (DATSAV2), a collection of worldwide surface weather observations from sources such as the the Global Telecommunications System (GTS) and Automated Weather Network (AWN). The Air Force Weather Agency (AFWA) decoded most of the collected observations for the Air Force Combat Climatology Center (AFCCC) where final decoding, validation, and quality control created DATSAV2.

Mandatory data includes pressure, temperature, visibility, sky condition, and wind observation, but there may also be additional data, data remarks, or data element quality sections.

NCDC provides quarterly updates to DSS, usually with a two-month delay. The earliest data is for 1901. The earliest years have the least volume of data, a few hundred megabytes; the volume in the 1950s-early 1960s increased by a factor of 10-20; 1965-1972 shows a decrease because of a loss of data; beginning in 1973 with about 5 gigabytes of data, volume has gradually increased to about 20 gigabytes per year. There are now about 10,000 active stations.

Similar data sets prepared by the National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) are ds464.0 (beginning February 1975), and ds461.0 (beginning April 2000).

This dataset has been superseded by ds463.3.

Temporal Range:
1901-01 to 2008-05
Updates:
Yearly
Variables:
Air Temperature Cloud Base Height Cloud Frequency Cloud Types
Dew Point Temperature Geopotential Height Hail Maximum/Minimum Temperature
Precipitation Amount Pressure Tendency Sea Level Pressure Sea Surface Temperature
Snow Station Height Surface Pressure Surface Winds
Visibility Wave Height Wave Period Wave Speed/Direction
Vertical Levels:
Ground or water surface
Data Types:
Platform Observation
Data Contributors:
DOC/NOAA/NESDIS/NCDC
National Climatic Data Center, NESDIS, NOAA, U.S. Department of Commerce
 |  DOD/USAF/AFCCC
Air Force Combat Climatology Center, U.S. Air Force, U.S. Department of Defense
 |  DOD/USAF/557WW
557th Weather Wing, U.S. Air Force, U. S. Department of Defense
Total Volume:
335.21 GB (Entire dataset) Volume details by dataset product
Data Formats:
Binary (see dataset documentation)
Related RDA Datasets:
-
NCDC TD9685 Global Surface Observations (from USAF DATSAV), hourly 1967-1980
-
U.S.A.F. DATSAV Surface Observations, 1973-1981
-
NCDC TD3505 Integrated Surface Hourly Data
-
AWS TD13 Global Surface Observations, daily 1901-1973
Metadata Record:
Data License:
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