SRHrTD: A high-resolution air temperature dataset for the glacierized high mountain regions of Asia (1980-2022)

SRHrTD is a high-resolution near-surface air temperature (SAT) dataset developed for the high mountain regions of Central Asia over the period 1980–2022. The dataset provides monthly mean temperature fields at a spatial resolution of 1 km, enabling detailed investigations of long-term climate variability, elevation-dependent warming, cryospheric processes, and mountain hydrology in one of the world's most climate-sensitive regions. The dataset was generated through an integrated framework that combines pressure-level-based atmospheric downscaling with a machine-learning approach. Multiple sources of information, including in situ meteorological observations, ERA5 reanalysis data, topographic variables, and land-surface characteristics, were incorporated to reconstruct spatially continuous temperature fields over complex mountain terrain. Extensive evaluations against independent station observations demonstrate that SRHrTD provides improved performance relative to several widely used temperature datasets across Central Asia. This archive contains monthly mean SAT data for the period January 1980–December 2022 in NetCDF format, together with supporting documentation describing the data structure, variable definitions, and quality-control procedures. The dataset is intended to support studies of climate change, glacier and snow processes, water resources, ecosystem dynamics, and other environmental applications in the high mountains of Central Asia. The present release contains monthly mean temperature fields. The full hourly SRHrTD dataset (1980–2022) will be made available in a future release after further data packaging and archiving. Spatial coverage: High Mountain Central Asia (HMCA). Temporal coverage: January 1980–December 2022. Spatial resolution: 1 km. Temporal resolution: monthly. Data format: NetCDF. The dataset is distributed as annual NetCDF files, with one file provided for each year from 1980 to 2022. Each file contains monthly mean near-surface air temperature fields for all 12 months of the corresponding year. The primary temperature variable is stored under the name 'monthlyMean', with dimensions of longitude, latitude, and month. Geographic coordinates are provided as lon and lat, and the month index (1–12) is stored in the variable month. Variables included in each NetCDF file: 1. monthlyMean: Monthly mean near-surface air temperature (K)2. lon: Longitude (degrees east)3. lat: Latitude (degrees north)4. month: Month index (1–12) The data are provided in NetCDF format and can be readily visualized using common scientific software such as Panoply. They can also be accessed and processed using programming environments including MATLAB, Python, R, and other software packages that support NetCDF files. The dataset is designed to facilitate efficient analyses of long-term temperature variability and climate change across the high mountain regions of Central Asia.