Our API dynamically selects the nearest available station data, and combines it with additional datasets to compensate for sources of error such as: Distance from point, quality of station data, availability of data for time of interest.
Ground truth (station data) is always preferred in a response. As the distance from the requested point, and nearby available station data increases - other available data-sources (ie. the ERA-5 re-analysis) will be preferred.
As a result of this functionality our API provides one of the only multi-source historical weather datasets on the market by combining the advantages of spatially complete gridded datasets with station data.
These advantages include:
- Global coverage - even in remote areas, and over open water at a 1-13 KM spatial resolution.
- Improved accuracy in most areas due to assimilation of non-station observations (such as radiosondes, airplane observations, satellite estimations, ground radar, etc.)
- Excellent quality control.
- Temporal completeness (minimal missing data)
Most providers of weather data use only station data. As such the differences between our API, and others will likely be significant in areas of poor station coverage.