Dataset: CHELSA-monthly • CHELSA

CHELSA-monthly

CHELSA-monthly is a global, kilometer-scale climate dataset generated with the CHELSA downscaling model. It consists of monthly aggregated surface variables summarized as monthly means or, in some cases, monthly accumulations.

Start Time: 1979-01-15
End Time: 2021-12-15
Status: active
Version: 2.1

Name	Unit	Description
Total Cloud Cover Percentage (clt)	percent	Total cloud area fraction (reported as a percentage) for the whole atmospheric column as seen from the surface or the top of the atmosphere. Includes both large-scale and convective cloud.
Monthly Climate Moisture Index (cmi)	kg m-2 month-1	Monthly ratio of precipitation to potential evapotranspiration; indicator of climatic water availability
Near-Surface Relative Humidity (hurs)	percent	The relative humidity with respect to liquid water for T> 0 C and with respect to ice for T
Monthly Potential Evapotranspiration (pet)	kg m-2 month-1	Total potential evapotranspiration for the month assuming unlimited water availability calculated based on Penman Monteith
Precipitation (pr)	kg m-2 month-1	includes both liquid and solid phases
Surface Downwelling Shortwave Flux in Air (rsds)	MJ m-2	Surface solar irradiance for UV calculations.
Near-Surface Wind Speed (sfcWind)	m s-1	near-surface (usually 10 meters) wind speed.
Standardized Precipitation Evapotranspiration Index (spei12)	1	Standardized index of climatic water balance (precipitation minus potential evapotranspiration) over a given integration period here 12 months expressed in standard deviations from the long term mean, used to characterize drought severity and duration
Standardized Precipitation Index (spi12)	1	Standardized index of precipitation anomalies over a given integration period here 12 months expressed in standard deviations from the long-term mean; used to characterize drought severity and duration without accounting for evapotranspiration
Daily Mean Near-Surface Air Temperature (tas)	K	near-surface (usually 2 meter) air temperature
Daily Maximum Near-Surface Air Temperature (tasmax)	K	maximum near-surface (usually 2 meter) air temperature
Daily Minimum Near-Surface Air Temperature (tasmin)	K	minimum near-surface (usually 2 meter) air temperature
Vapor Pressure Deficit (vpd)	Pa	Difference between the saturation vapor pressure and actual vapor pressure representing atmospheric drying power

CHELSA V2.1
CHELSA-daily
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CHELSA-daily is a global, kilometer-scale climate dataset generated with the CHELSA downscaling model. It consists of daily surface variables summarized as daily means, minima, maxima, or, in some cases, daily accumulations.
Start Time
1979-01-01
End Time
2025-08-29
Status
active (incomplete)
Version
2.1
CHELSA V2.1
CHELSA-drought-indices
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CHELSA-drought-indicies is a dataset that consists of standardized precipitation (SPI) and the standardized precipitation evapotranspiration index (SPEI) index.
Start Time
1980-06-15
End Time
2018-07-15
Status
finished
Version
2.1
CHELSA V2.1
CHELSA-climatologies
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CHELSA-climatologies is a global, kilometer-scale climate dataset generated with the CHELSA downscaling model. It consists of long term climatological means.
Start Time
1981-2010
End Time
2071-2100
Status
active
Version
2.1
CHELSA V2.1
CHELSA-bioclim
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CHELSA-bioclim is a global, kilometer-scale climate dataset generated with the CHELSA downscaling model. It consists of bioclimatic variables.
Start Time
1981-2010
End Time
1971-2100
Status
active
Version
2.1
CHELSAch-highres
CHELSAch-highres-daily
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CHELSAch-highres-climatologies is a high resolution climate dataset generated with the CHELSA downscaling model for Switzerland. It consists of daily surface variables.
Start Time
1981-01-01
End Time
2022-12-31
Status
offline
Version
1.0
CHELSAch-highres
CHELSAch-highres-climatologies
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CHELSAch-highres-climatologies is a high resolution climate dataset generated with the CHELSA downscaling model for Switzerland. It consists of long term 30 year mean aggregated surface variables.
Start Time
1981-01-01
End Time
2010-12-31
Status
active
Version
1.0

Key Figures

License: Creative Commons Zero - No Rights Reserved (CC0 1.0)
File Format: COG
Publication Date: 10.2025
Model Citation: Karger, D. N.; Conrad, O.; Böhner, J.; Kawohl, T.; Kreft, H.; Soria-Auza, R. W.; Zimmermann, N. E.; Linder, H. P.; Kessler, M. Climatologies at high resolution for the earth's land surface areas. Sci. Data 2017, 4, 170122 (20 pp.). https://doi.org/10.1038/sdata.2017.122
Data Citation: Karger, D. N., Brun, P., Zilker, F. (2025). CHELSA-monthly climate data at high resolution. EnviDat. https://www.doi.org/10.16904/envidat.686

CHELSA-monthly

CHELSA-daily

CHELSA-drought-indices

CHELSA-climatologies

CHELSA-bioclim

CHELSAch-highres-daily

CHELSAch-highres-climatologies

Key Figures