🌍 Climate Check

A Streamlit-based web application for visualizing and analyzing global climate trends across different locations and time periods.

---

🌐 Data Source

This app uses the NOAA Climate Data Online (CDO) API to fetch historical weather data:

• GSOM (Global Summary of the Month)

  • Monthly summaries from 1763+
  • Faster loading, ideal for long-term trends
  • 10-year batch processing for efficiency

• GHCND (Global Historical Climatology Network - Daily)

  • Daily measurements from 1700+
  • More detailed granularity
  • 1-year batch processing

Data Types:

• Temperature: TMIN (minimum), TMAX (maximum)
• Precipitation: PRCP (total precipitation)

API Documentation: https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/cdo-web/webservices/v2

---

🚀 Setup

Prerequisites

• Python 3.11 or higher
• NOAA CDO API token (free)

1. Get a NOAA API Token

1. Visit https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/cdo-web/token
2. Enter your email address
3. Check your email for the API token
4. Save the token - you'll need it for setup

2. Installation

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/yourusername/climate_check.git
cd climate_check

# Install dependencies using uv (recommended)
uv sync

# Or using pip
pip install -e .

3. Configuration

Create a .env file in the project root:

NCEI_TOKEN=your_api_token_here

4. Run the Application

# Using streamlit
streamlit run main.py

# Or using uv
uv run streamlit run main.py

The app will open in your default browser at http://localhost:8501

---

📊 Example Insights

With Climate Check, you can answer questions like:

• "How much warmer are Julys in New York now compared to 50 years ago?"
• "Has precipitation in Seattle increased over the past century?"
• "What was the coldest January on record for my city?"
• "Are winters getting milder in my region?"
• "How variable is rainfall in monsoon months over time?"

---

🐛 Known Limitations

• API Rate Limits: NOAA CDO API has limits (5 requests/second, 10,000/day)
• Data Availability: Not all stations have complete data for all time periods
• Geographic Coverage: Station density varies by region
• Missing Data: Some weather stations may only have TMIN or TMAX (not both)
• Batch Failures: Long date ranges may have some failed batches (warnings displayed)

---