This page lists the priority of variables in the NA-CORDEX archive. We have been able to include all of the variables in Essential and High Priority categories. Additional Aspirational variables may be added to the archive in the future.
Alternate Units variables are the same as the Essential variables, but with more commonly used units instead of the MKS units specified by the CORDEX requirements. The "BC" column indicates whether a bias-corrected version of the variable is available, and if so, for which observational dataset.
Except for static variables, all variables are available at daily and longer frequencies. In addition, sub-daily precipitation is available for some models.
Other variables not on this list (e.g. 3-D variables) may be available from the CORDEX archive on ESGF or directly from the modelers; inquire with the point of contact for each simulation for more information.
Additional information such as sign convention can be found in the CORDEX variables requirement table.
| Variable | Long Name | Units | BC |
|---|---|---|---|
| ESSENTIAL | |||
| pr | Precipitation | kg m-2 s-1 | -- |
| tas | Near-Surface Air Temperature | K | -- |
| tasmax | Daily Maximum Near-Surface Air Temperature | K | -- |
| tasmin | Daily Minimum Near-Surface Air Temperature | K | -- |
| ALTERNATE UNITS | |||
| prec | Precipitation | mm/day | both |
| temp | Near-Surface Air Temperature | degC | -- |
| tmax | Daily Maximum Near-Surface Air Temperature | degC | both |
| tmean * | Near-Surface Air Temperature | degC | both |
| tmin | Daily Minimum Near-Surface Air Temperature | degC | both |
| HIGH PRIORITY | |||
| hurs * | Near-Surface Relative Humidity | % | both |
| huss | Near-Surface Specific Humidity | kg kg-1 | both |
| prhmax | Daily Maximum Hourly Precipitation Rate | kg m-2 s-1 | -- |
| ps | Surface Air Pressure | Pa | -- |
| rsds | Surface Downwelling Shortwave Radiation | W m-2 | both |
| sfcWind * | Near-Surface Wind Speed | m s-1 | gridMET |
| uas | Eastward Near-Surface Wind Velocity | m s-1 | gridMET |
| vas | Northward Near-Surface Wind Velocity | m s-1 | gridMET |
| orog † | Surface Altitude | m | -- |
| sftlf † | Land Area Fraction | % | -- |
| ASPIRATIONAL | |||
| snw ** | Snow Amount | kg m-2 | -- |
| evspsbl | Evaporation | kg m-2 s-1 | -- |
| evspsblpot | Potential Evapotranspiration | kg m-2 s-1 | -- |
| mrros | Surface Runoff | kg m-2 s-1 | -- |
| mrso | Total Soil Moisture Content | kg m-2 | -- |
| psl | Sea Level Pressure | Pa | -- |
| snm | Surface Snow Melt | kg m-2 s-1 | -- |
| areacella † | Atmosphere Grid-Cell Area | m2 | -- |
| mrsofc † | Capacity of Soil to Store Water | kg m-2 | -- |
| rootd † | Maximum Root Depth | m | -- |
| sftgif † | Fraction of Grid Cell Covered with Glacier | % | -- |
| clt | Total Cloud Fraction | % | -- |
| mrro | Total Runoff | kg m-2 s-1 | -- |
| rsus | Surface Upwelling Shortwave Radiation | W m-2 | -- |
| snc | Snow Area Fraction | % | -- |
| sund | Duration of Sunshine | s | -- |
* This variable is calculated from other variables:
hurs: huss, ps, tas
(static ps is used for bias-corrected hurs)
tmean: tmin, tmax
sfcWind: uas, vas
** This variable will be added to the archive in the near future.
† Static variable