Met Data and Protocols - from the field to the database


Data Submission and the Database

First, read the MCM File Format Protocols document for general guidelines on how to correctly format data for submission

In order to ensure the database operates correctly, certain constraints are put on the values that can be entered into tables.

Data files are submitted in a comma-delimited format - one file per station that includes all measured parameters. Get these files to the data manager, you can share them with her using Dropbox, google-drive, or some file server share. The data manager then separates the files into measurements matching the existing database tables. Additional post-processing steps are performed by the data manager, including converting flags to human-readable text in the Comments column. After the files are entered into the database, the daily and monthly averages and join tables are updated. All Meteorology data are made public immediately on this website.

Due to the complexities of the meteorology data, submission protocols will not be outlined in detail. However, following the guidelines in the MCM File Format Protocols above are important.

Field Data Ops : Maciek Obryk

The following documents must be updated each year:

Table Formats / Templates

Since the data manager will generally take care of properly formatting the met data for insertion into the database, the following is for informational purposes only:

The design of the database tables is fairly consistent. All met tables contain the following columns.

  • DATASET_CODE – this is the same as the Oracle table name, it is the unique identifier for that table
  • METLOCID - the four letter Met Station ID code in all caps
  • DATE_TIME - the date/time should be in the format ‘MM/DD/YYYY’ for date only, or ‘MM/DD/YYYY HH24:MI’ for date and time.
  • COMMENTS - the data manager combines all the FLAG columns in the submitted file into this one COMMENTS column. The values are also converted to human-readable text.