19.06.2023
ERA5 is the fifth generation of global weather and climate reanalyses produced at the European Center for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) as part of the Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S). The data sets is widely used, for example, as forcing data for climate model simulations, for model evaluation or for the analysis of climate trends.
For this reason, the DKRZ has been providing its users with ERA5 time series for several years via the data pool of its high-performance computer system. Initially, this data set covered the period from 1979 onwards.
The DKRZ team has now also transferred and processed the recently published extension of the ERA5 time series for the years 1940 to 1978 to Levante. As a result, the DKRZ now provides its users with the complete time series from 1940 to 2023 for research purposes. The time series at DKRZ will be extended continuously (monthly) after publication by C3S. This service is only possible with the long-term support and funding of the Scientific Steering Committee (WLA) of the DKRZ.
Observational data as well as model simulations have been used to generate the latest generation of reanalyses ERA 5 in order to establish consistent global time series for a wide range of meteorological parameters. The data set is produced with a spatial resolution of approx. 31 km, 137 vertical model levels, with hourly time steps, and is archived using a spectral grid or reduced Gaussian grid (T639/N320) on the MARS system of the ECMWF.
As a special service, the DKRZ provides a large part of this ERA5 data on Levante. In addition to the surface fields of the analysis and forecast data, the data also includes analysis data at model and pressure levels, which can be efficiently accessed via /pool/data/ERA5. The DKRZ offers detailed documentation with a description of the data, directory structure and naming conventions. For easy data access using Python, the DKRZ also maintains an ERA5 intake catalogue, which users can use to easily find the desired data, read it in as a Xarray object and use it for further analysis. The DKRZ also offers intake catalogs for other datasets that are available under /pool/data/ (see: tutorials).
Total precipitation in Hamburg, Germany, over the period 1949–2022 based on ERA5 data available at DKRZ Data Pool. The values represent precipitation for the ≈ 31 km x 31 km km2 native grid cell centering at 53.536°N and 10.125° E.
The top panel displays a heatmap of monthly precipitation. The bottom panel shows a line plot of annual precipitation, together with a linear regression line and the associated 95% confidence interval. There is a significant positive linear trend in annual precipitation from 1940 to 2022 with a slope (b) of 1.45 mm per year (Copyright: CC-BY NC-ND 4.0: DKRZ).
The copyright for the EU-funded ERA5 data are not subject to any particular restrictions (see licence to use Copernicus products). However, it is essential that the users of the ERA5 data clearly communicate the source by crediting the C3S. Details can be found in the documentation.
DKRZ regularly informs about about recent changes to the content of /pool/data/ERA5 via the moderated mailing list https://lists.dkrz.de/mailman/listinfo/era-data.
For further information please contact: ZGF0YUBka3J6LmRl