Frequently Asked Questions

Q1. How do I find historical weather data for location ‘x’ on date ‘y’?

A.To view historical weather data for a particular location and date, click on the “Climate Data Online” option below the main menu on the left. You can select your location and date by using the quick links on the map below accompanied with the “Search Options” box by selecting the date and data interval of your choice. Note that data are available in hourly, daily, monthly, and almanac (daily averages & extremes) intervals. Also note that all four data intervals are not available for all possible stations; it depends on what was observed at each site. This method is helpful for referencing popular locations and large cities, and locating weather stations that provide current data.

For a more refined search, perform a “Customized Search” by clicking on the button located on top of the map. You will then be presented with 3 different search methods; by province, by station name, and by proximity. The most commonly used is by station name. If you leave the default setting for these searches, the results will provide you with a list of all stations (historical and current) for the province/location/area you are requesting. Once you have reached the results, you can select the date and data interval and click on “Go” to view the data.

Q2. Are data available in an easily downloadable file?

A. Data from our National Climate Archives Online can be downloaded as XML or as a CSV (comma delimited) file through the “Bulk Data” tool located in the Navigation Options box below any data table you are viewing. Hourly data can be downloaded for a period of 1 month at a time, daily data for a period of 1 year at a time, and monthly data for the entire period of record.

Alternatively, for larger sets of data, an order for a customized dataset can be placed through Climate Services. A cost recovery service charge will apply. To place an order, please contact the Climate Services office within the region of your location of interest. For locations in multiple regions, or across Canada, please contact the National Headquarters office. Contact information for all offices can be referenced by selecting the “Contacts” option below the main menu on the left.

Q3. How can I download data from multiple stations at a time?

A. Information on this website is posted on a site-by-site basis. For a dataset that contains data for multiple stations at once, you will be required to order a customized dataset from the Climate Services office within the region of your location of interest. For locations in multiple regions, or across Canada, please contact the National Headquarters office. Contact information for all offices can be referenced by selecting the “Contacts” option below the main menu on the left.

Q4. Where can I get values that are missing or left blank online?

A. If values are missing online, this would imply that they are not available. The reasons for missing data are many. In most instances, data values are blank because they had never been observed. When a value is flagged as “M” (missing), the data value is not available and cannot be retrieved. If data seems to stop a few months to a few years from the current date, it may imply either that the station has since closed down, or that data is currently being processed through quality control and there is a back-log. If you require specific information for a particular site and date, you can verify this information by contacting the Climate Services office within the region of your location of interest. Contact information can be viewed by clicking on the “Contacts” option below the main menu on the left.

Q5. What data are available from the National Climate Archives?

A. The following data parameters are posted online and can be viewed through the Climate Data Online option:

HOURLY	DAILY	MONTHLY	ALMANAC
Temperature	Maximum Temperature	Mean Maximum Temperature	Average Maximum Temperature
Dew Point Temperature	Minimum Temperature	Mean Temperature	Frequency of Precipitation
Relative Humidity	Mean Temperature	Mean Minimum Temperature	Frequency of Precipitation
Wind Direction	Heating Degree Days	Extreme Maximum Temperature	Highest Temperature
Wind Speed	Cooling Degree Days	Extreme Minimum Temperature	Lowest Temperature
Visibility	Total Rainfall	Total Rainfall	Greatest Precipitation
Station Pressure	Total Snowfall	Total Snowfall	Greatest Rainfall
Humidex	Total Precipitation	Total Precipitation	Greatest Snowfall
Wind Chill	Snow on Ground	Snow on Ground on Last Day	Most Snow on Ground
Weather	Direction of Maximum Gust	Direction of Maximum Gust
	Speed of Maximum Gust	Speed of Maximum Gust

There are other observations that are not available online, and can only be obtained by order of a cost-recovered customized dataset. Please refer to our “Technical Documentation” for detailed information on all parameters stored in the National Climate Archives.

For a list of other products and services available from the National Climate Archives, visit the “Products & Services” option below the main menu on the left.

To obtain more information or to order a customized dataset, you will need to contact the Climate Services office within the region of your location of interest. Contact information can be viewed by clicking on the “Contacts” option below the main menu on the left.

Q6. What type of climate should I expect for a Canadian city that I would like to visit?

A. Typical weather conditions for various locations. across Canada can be referenced through our Climate Normals datasets. The values presented as Normals on our site provide monthly averages calculated over a 30 year period for stations that contain at least 15 years worth of data. To access the Climate Normals, click on the “Climate Normals & Averages” option below the main menu on the left and type in the name of the location you are interested in. If there is any information available, you will be provided with results.

Q7. Where can I find daily averages?

A. Average temperature and precipitation values for a particular day are provided by the Almanac data interval through the “Climate Data Online” option. For more details, refer to question 1 (Q1).

Q8. Where can I get official/certified documentation for legal purposes?

A. Certified documentation can be requested through the Climate Services office within the region of your location of interest. Contact information can be viewed by clicking on the “Contacts” option below the main menu on the left. Note that there is a service charge for the provision of these documents.

Q9. Where can I acquire Engineering Services such as IDF data, National Building Code Design Data, Water Balances/Budgets?

A. Inquiries regarding engineering products and services can be sent to the National Climate Services Headquarters office at “Climate.Services@ec.gc.ca”

Q10. Are there any GIS formatted data available?

A. GIS formatted data is not provided through the National Climate Archives however our database contains latitude and longitude of each observation (Degrees & minutes) that can be used to create a GIS shape file. This can be provided through the order of a customized dataset. To place an order, you will need to contact the Climate Services office within the region of your location of interest. Contact information can be viewed by clicking on the “Contacts” option below the main menu on the left.

Q11. Why is there a charge for the provision of customized datasets and various resources?

A. The reason that charges are made for specialized services is that Environment Canada, like all government departments, has limited resources. Taxes pay for the collection of weather data that is used for the general good of all Canadians and is incorporated into a variety of products including public forecasts and weather warnings. We do make as much of our data as possible available for download through our website at no charge. Of course, due to bandwidth limitations, we have to limit the amount of data that can be selected at any one time in order to not overload our servers. What are not covered by taxes are specialized extractions or reformatted data to meet the specific requirements of a client. In these cases we must charge for the time taken to do the work, the data itself is free.

Q12. I noticed questionable data on Climate Data Online, what should I do?

A. To report questionable data, simply use the Contact Us button at the top of your browser to send us your detailed message.

Q13. Is all data on Climate Data Online quality controlled?

A. No, not all data on Climate Data Online is quality controlled. For instance, some Partner stations provide data to the National Climate Archives which does not undergo Archive review processes. Such data can be identified by a "‡" symbol next to the date of the observation.