Dataset of monthly potential evapotranspiration for ecological stations in arid central Asia from 2005 to 2020

Based on the meteorological data collected by 12 ecological field stations of Central Asia Ecosystem Monitoring Network and 11 ecological field stations of China Ecosystem Research Network in the arid region of Northwest China, and by using Penman-Monteith method recommended by FAO, the potential evapotranspiration was calculated from 2005 to 2020. The dataset contains two data files, one is the potential evapotranspiration data of 12 ecological stations in four Central Asian countries, with a total of 756 records; the other is the potential evapotranspiration data of 11 ecological stations in the arid area of northwest China, with a total of 1344 records.