International Climate Assessment & Dataset: Climate Services across Borders

Abstract

he International Climate Assessment & Dataset (ICA&D) concept provides climate services on a regional scale for users in participating countries and the broader scientific community. It builds on the expertise gained in Europe, where national meteorological services collaborate by sharing climate data in order to produce regional climate assessments. Universities and data-rescue initiatives have joined this collaboration. The result is a web-based information system that combines quality-controlled daily station data with derived climate indices. Indices are provided for mean and extreme climate conditions including droughts, heat waves, and heavy rainfall events. ICA&D systems currently exist in Europe and in three regions of the world vulnerable to climate change: Southeast Asia, Latin America, and West Africa. Historical perspectives on climate variability and change are integrated with the monitoring of current climate evolution through regular updates of the data series obtained from meteorological observing stations. Web users have access to plots and maps of climate indices, showing time series, trends, or deviations from climatology. All information can be downloaded for noncommercial research and educational purposes, except for a part of the daily data that the data provider does not want to share.