1. Home
  2. Organizations
  3. National Oceanic and ...
  4. NCDC International Best Track ...

NCDC International Best Track Archive for Climate Stewardship (IBTrACS) Project, Version 2 (Version Superseded)

Version 2 of the dataset has been superseded by a newer version. Users should not use version 2 except in rare cases (e.g., when reproducing previous studies that used version 2). The International Best Track Archive for Climate Stewardship (IBTrACS) dataset was developed by The NOAA National Climatic Data Center, which took the initial step of synthesizing and merging best track data from all official Tropical Cyclone Warning Centers (TCWCs) and the WMO Regional Specialized Meteorological Centers (RSMCs) who are responsible for developing and archiving best track data worldwide. In recognizing the deficiency in global tropical cyclone data, and the lack of a publically available dataset, the IBTrACS dataset was produced, which, for the first time, combines existing best track data from over 10 international forecast centers. The dataset contains the position, maximum sustained winds, minimum central pressure, and storm nature for every tropical cyclone globally at 6-hr intervals in UTC. Statistics from the merge are also provided (such as number of centers tracking the storm, range in pressure, median wind speed, etc.). The dataset period is from 1848 to the present with dataset updates performed semi-annually--in the boreal spring following the completion of the Northern Hemisphere TC season and in the boreal autumn following the completion of the Southern Hemisphere TC season. The dataset is archived as netCDF files but can be accessed via a variety of user-friendly formats to facilitate data analysis, including netCDF and CSV formatted files. Version 2 changes include source data updates, bug fixes, adjustments and corrections as well as additional source datasets.

Data and Resources

Additional Info

Field Value
Last Updated November 5, 2018, 22:21
Created June 7, 2017, 23:10
access_constraints ["Version 2 of the dataset has been superseded by a newer version. Users should not use version 2 except in rare cases (e.g., when reproducing previous studies that used version 2).", "Cite as: Kenneth R. Knapp, Michael Kruk, David Levinson, and Howard Diamond (2008). NCDC International Best Track Archive for Climate Stewardship (IBTrACS) Project, Version 2. [indicate subset used]. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. DOI:TBD [access date].", "Distribution liability: NOAA and NCEI make no warranty, expressed or implied, regarding these data, nor does the fact of distribution constitute such a warranty. NOAA and NCEI cannot assume liability for any damages caused by any errors or omissions in these data. If appropriate, NCEI can only certify that the data it distributes are an authentic copy of the records that were accepted for inclusion in the NCEI archives.", "Use liability: NOAA and NCEI cannot provide any warranty as to the accuracy, reliability, or completeness of furnished data. Users assume responsibility to determine the usability of these data. The user is responsible for the results of any application of this data for other than its intended purpose."]
bbox-east-long 180.0
bbox-north-lat 80.0
bbox-south-lat -80.0
bbox-west-long -180.0
contact-email IBTrACS.Team@noaa.gov
coupled-resource []
dataset-reference-date [{"type": "publication", "value": "2008-12-15"}]
frequency-of-update notPlanned
graphic-preview-description IBTrACS storm tracks for seasons 1947 through 2007.
graphic-preview-file https://www1.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/data/metadata/images/C00800_IBTRACS-v2-browse-image.png
graphic-preview-type PNG
guid gov.noaa.ncdc:C00800
licence []
metadata-date 2018-11-05
metadata-language
progress historicalArchive
resource-type dataset
responsible-party [{"name": "DOC/NOAA/NESDIS/NCEI > National Centers for Environmental Information, NESDIS, NOAA, U.S. Department of Commerce", "roles": ["pointOfContact"]}]
spatial {"type": "Polygon", "coordinates": [[[-180.0, -80.0], [180.0, -80.0], [180.0, 80.0], [-180.0, 80.0], [-180.0, -80.0]]]}
spatial-data-service-type
spatial-reference-system
spatial_harvester true
temporal-extent-begin 1848-01-01