Communicating Research Findings and Supporting Planning

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Seasonal Anomaly Maps

About this tool:

PCIC has created a web mapping tool to explore the monthly weather anomalies from 1970 onward using data collected by the BC Ministry of Environment and Climate Change’s Climate Related Monitoring Program and assembled into PCIC's Provincial Climate Data Set (PCDS). Maps of departures in monthly average daily maximum and minimum temperature as well as total precipitation are provided.

This tool:

The Seasonal Anomaly Maps:

  • Provide users with a quick, informative look at recent anomalous weather in and surrounding the province that users can relate to conditions and impacts that they have observed.
  • Shows historical anomalies for any month in years from 1970 to present by using the date selector.
  • Allows users to explore the climate baseline values (1971-2000) for each station by clicking on that station, as well as the monthly values and monthly anomalies.

Data are updated at at the beginning of each month after new data has become available. 

 

Access Seasonal Anomaly Maps
PRISM 

 

 

Legacy maps:

In addition, PCIC retains a set of older maps for all months from 1900 to summer 2018, using the same data as above. Monthly maps of maximum and minimum temperature departures as well as total precipitation departures are provided on a monthly average and a seasonal average basis (for the purpose of these maps, seasons are defined as SON for fall, DJF for winter, MAM for spring, and JJA for summer). To access these maps, use the following tool to select a year and season of interest and then click on “Get Maps”. You will be directed to a page showing the monthly climate anomaly maps along with the anomaly for the season if all maps for the selected season have been completed. These maps provide a quick, informative look at anomalous weather in and surrounding the province that users can relate to conditions and impacts that they have observed. All anomalies are presented relative to the 1971–2000 climate baseline.

Access Legacy Maps


Background information:

The differences between average weather conditions that normally prevail at a given time of year and what is experienced is a critical link between people and climate. The normal, or expected, weather conditions for a month or season is known as the climatology for an area and plays a major role in defining the locale. Departures from normal conditions are experienced as unusual weather such as rainier or colder than normal periods or the opposite (drier or warmer). A simple and intuitive way to understand and depict how different observed conditions are from normal is to map departures of average temperature and total precipitation from the long term climatology at observational weather stations. The results indicate spatial patterns and extents of warm/cold and wet/dry regions.