Hourly Precipitation Data in the U.S.

Hourly Precipitation Data in the U.S. is provided as a zip-compressed file containing a SQLite database, designed for analysis with a visual analytics system. SQLite is a small, fast, self-contained SQL database engine widely used across computing platforms. To explore this dataset, we recommend using DB Browser for SQLite, an open-source visual tool that provides both a spreadsheet-like interface and full SQL query capabilities for working with SQLite database files.

The dataset includes (a) a Unified Weather Station List and (b) multiple hourly precipitation data (HPD).

A unified station list is created to track the geographical locations of weather stations effectively. Various organizations and agencies operate and manage their weather stations and collect data, including the National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI), NWS, FAA, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), and more. Each organization uses unique identifiers to handle its stations. Thus, we created a unified station list by cross-referencing attributes from multiple data sources. Each station on the list has 46 attributes, including longitude, latitude, elevation, station name, physical address, and the dates marking the beginning and end of data collection. The list includes 85,003 stations, averaging about 1,700 stations per U.S. state. Delaware has the fewest stations, numbering 181, whereas Texas has the most, with 6,794 stations. 

A multi-table database structure is used to manage a large amount of HPD (approximately 163,779,579 hourly precipitation records and continuously growing) and enhance data access performance and management. Specifically, a per-state structure is designed to store and handle HPD for each U.S. state.