When downloading data from ClimateData.ca, users may encounter the option to download files in a format called “netCDF.” For those new to working with climate data, this file format might be unfamiliar. This article provides an overview of netCDF files, explaining their structure, why they are widely used, and offering tips on how to open them and read them.
Unlike a typical spreadsheet, which has just two dimensions, rows and columns, a Network Common Data Form, or netCDF file, can store data across any number of space and time dimensions. These files also contain other information about the data, like units and copyright information. Users can recognize a netCDF file by its “.nc” file extension. Every day, more climate data is being shared in netCDF format because it is flexible and standardized.
NetCDF files are commonly used to store and access multi-dimensional gridded data. Imagine the Earth wrapped in a fine mesh, creating thousands of small boxes called grid cells across its surface. Each grid cell represents a specific area, typically defined by latitude and longitude. The values in a netCDF file denote a specific climate metric, such as temperature or precipitation, for each grid cell and at a specific time interval (i.e. daily, monthly, or annual).
Like a loaf of bread, it is possible to write a computer program that extracts a ‘slice’ of data across a specific space-time dimension within a netCDF file to examine how variables like temperature or precipitation change over time and space. This slice of data can then be mapped (a single slice of time over a wide area) or graphed on a time-series plot (a single location slice over a range of time). The netCDF file format accommodates both types of analyses.
Figure 1 shows the key components of a netCDF file. The Dataset contains multiple DataArrays, which hold the actual data, such as variables like temperature and precipitation. These variables are structured along coordinates—in this case, latitude and longitude—and mapped across different dimensions (e.g., x, y, and t for time). The Dimensions represent the axes of the data (spatial and temporal), and Indexes provide reference points within these dimensions. This structure allows for efficient storage and access to large, multi-dimensional climate datasets. Each of these components is discussed in more detail below.
Figure 1. Visualization of the components of a netCDF file. Source: Data Structures (xarray.dev).
Figure 2. Description of the components of a NRCANMET precipitation netCDF file.
The ability of netCDF files to store multiple variables is only part of the reason for their growing popularity. Rather than needing separate files for metadata (information about the data stored), properly formatted netCDF files include attribute information such as data descriptions and units. This allows all necessary information to be contained within a single file, making it easier to use and share.
NetCDF files are typically smaller in size compared to other formats that store the same amount of data, as they compress well, saving storage space and facilitating sharing. One key reason for this efficiency is that coordinates, such as latitudes, longitudes, and time steps, are stored only once in the file, rather than being repeated for each data point. While netCDF files can still be large, most of the space is occupied by the actual climate data, unlike other formats such as comma-separated values (CSVs), where metadata and coordinates often take up more space. More benefits of netCDF files can be found in Unidata’s netCDF factsheet.
The main drawback of using netCDF files over other data formats, such as CSVs, is that they cannot be easily opened in spreadsheet programs like Microsoft Excel without installing add-ons. Instead, netCDF files are best suited for working within programming environments, such as Python or R. That said, there are some options for opening and viewing the contents of a netCDF file without needing to learn a programming language.
NASA’s Panoply NetCDF Data Viewer is a freely available tool used to view netCDF data. Within Panoply, users can generate simple figures and view different data slices. A Panoply walkthrough for beginners is available here. Note that Panoply requires Java, which is a paid software when used for commercial purposes (some free substitutes are available, which can be found in the Panoply readme file). For simple analysis, free plugins for Microsoft Excel allow for opening netCDF files, or data can be imported as a raster layer in GIS software like ArcGIS.
For those who have some computer programming experience, there are several coding libraries available that make working with netCDF files relatively straight-forward. One example is xarray, a netCDF library for Python users. Detailed tutorials for and examples of working with netCDF files using Python can be found on the PAVICS tutorial page, Pangeo Library, and xarray’s tutorials and videos page.
PAVICS (Power Analytics and Visualization for Climate Science) is a virtual, python-based, Jupyter notebook programming environment with xarray pre-installed. Users can create a login for PAVICS by visiting the site linked above.
The following code blocks demonstrate how to open and read a netCDF file within a Python programming environment like PAVICS. Users looking for more examples should consult the brief tutorial on PAVICS.
# Load the xarray package into python
import xarray as xr
# Specify the location of your netCDF data file
path = "path/to/file.nc"
# Import the files = xr.open_dataset(path)# Load the xarray package into python
import xarray as xr
# Specify the location of your netCDF data file
path = "path/to/file.nc"
# Import the files = xr.open_dataset(path)Note: netCDF files can take a long time to open compared to other file types, such as CSVs.
Typing the following command will print out a detailed list the netCDF file’s components (the same components detailed in Figure 2):
print(ds)Similarly, here are some additional commands that users can use to view specific components of the file:
Similarly, the following command will print out information about a specific variable within the netCDF file:
# Specify the variable of interest
var = "prcptot" # total precipitation in NRCANMET
print(ds[var])
After opening and viewing the contents of a netCDF file, users will very likely want to perform additional custom analyses (e.g. computing a custom metric, such as “number of days per year that are above 33°C relative across a specific region”) prior to creating custom data visualizations (i.e. maps, graphs, and tables).
Again, PAVICS contains several built-in tutorials that showcase how to program these types of analyses and visualization commands. It is outside the scope of this article to explain how to develop these types of programs; however, the following code example demonstrates how one might approach this type of custom analysis.
The code block pasted below extracts and analyzes climate data from a netCDF file for a specific region, in this case, Terra Nova National Park. It begins by loading a shapefile that contains the boundary of the park and reprojects it to a standard geographic coordinate system. The program then accesses a climate dataset (specifically maximum temperature projections from one downscaled global climate model) from a specified URL and subsets the data to match the park’s geographical boundaries. Using the xclim library, it calculates the number of days per year where the maximum temperature exceeds 33°C. The program further computes two types of averages: one that averages the data spatially across the park, and another that averages the data temporally over the period from 2051 to 2080. Finally, it visualizes the data on a geographic map using a quadmesh plot, which includes a color scale to represent the results and a basemap for geographical context.
Users can download netCDF files for specific variables of interest from the Downloads page on ClimateData.ca.
This project was undertaken with the support of:
