AfA422: Real-time Air Temperature for Flood Monitoring

Measurements of air temperature at Environment Agency rain gauge sites in England, usually taken every hour but sometimes every 15 minutes. This monitoring data is transferred via telemetry and updated on a daily cycle, with frequency increased during flood events. The dataset currently includes sites in the English Midlands, with data for Wales owned by Natural Resources Wales.

Use Cases

• Flood event prediction and modeling based on real-time air temperature readings.
• Environmental monitoring and climate trend analysis using time-series data from rain gauge sites.
• Operational decision support for emergency services during periods of increased flood risk.
• Validation of hydrological models with ground-truth telemetry data from specific geographic regions.

Strengths

• Provides real-time or near-real-time data transfer via telemetry systems.
• Data collection frequency increases from once daily to several times per day during flood events, enhancing utility for crisis response.
• Cross-platform presence on eu_open_data and uk_data suggests established importance and accessibility.

Limitations

• Data is described as 'unvalidated' and retrieved automatically, which may impact accuracy.
• Spatial coverage is currently limited to sites in the English Midlands.
• Specific column names, row counts, and file formats are not provided in any source, limiting understanding of data structure.

Provenance

Source

Environment Agency (England), with data for Wales owned by Natural Resources Wales (NRW).

Collection Method

Automated telemetry readings from rain gauge sites.

Freshness

Last updated metadata indicates 2026-07-06, but the underlying data copyright is from 2015.

Geography

England (specifically the English Midlands), with inclusion of sites in Wales.