MDV ClimEx: An open-source tool for exploring climate anomalies in the McMurdo Dry Valleys of Antarctica

Antarctic ecosystems are among the most vulnerable to climate change, which is increasing the frequency and intensity of extreme climate events. In the McMurdo Dry Valleys (MDVs), three decades of high-resolution meteorological monitoring offer a rare opportunity to characterize climate baselines and detect anomalous conditions that may signal extreme events capable of triggering hydrological and ecological responses. However, identifying and assessing such anomalies from long-term records can be challenging without appropriate visualization tools and analytical frameworks. Here, we introduce MDV ClimEx, an open-source, interactive web application designed for user-driven exploration of long-term meteorological records from the MDVs. Specifically, this tool enables users to examine common meteorological variables at specific locations across multiple timescales to identify potential anomalies, combining dynamic visualizations with built-in functionality that quantifies the magnitude of user-identified anomalies as the number of standard deviations (σ) from the historical average. Through three use cases involving both known and previously unreported air temperature anomalies in Taylor Valley, we demonstrate how MDV ClimEx serves as a valuable resource for researchers, educators, and the public to identify anomalies and support investigations of climate-driven hydrological and ecological changes in this polar desert ecosystem.南极生态系统是受气候变化影响最脆弱的生态系统之一，当前气候变化正加剧极端气候事件的发生频率与强度。在麦克默多干谷（McMurdo Dry Valleys, MDVs），三十年来的高分辨率气象监测为该区域刻画气候基准、识别异常气象状况提供了难得的契机——这些异常状况或预示着能够引发水文与生态响应的极端事件。然而，若缺乏合适的可视化工具与分析框架，从长期观测记录中识别并评估此类异常仍颇具挑战。为此，我们推出MDV ClimEx——一款开源交互式网页应用程序，旨在支持用户自主探索麦克默多干谷的长期气象观测记录。具体而言，该工具支持用户在多时间尺度下，针对特定点位的常见气象变量展开分析以识别潜在异常；其结合动态可视化功能与内置算法，可将用户识别出的异常幅度量化为相对于历史平均值的标准差（σ）倍数。通过针对泰勒谷（Taylor Valley）中已被报道与首次被发现的气温异常开展三个案例研究，我们验证了MDV ClimEx可作为一项宝贵资源，助力研究人员、教育工作者及社会公众识别异常状况，支撑该极地荒漠生态系统中气候驱动的水文与生态变化相关研究。