Solar and Meteorological Measurements from Colorado's San Luis Valley

Comprising solar and meteorological measurements from a station in the San Luis Valley, Colorado, established through a partnership with the U.S. Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). It monitors global horizontal, direct normal, and diffuse horizontal irradiance to quantify solar energy potential, accompanied by meteorological data for a complete environmental picture.

Use Cases

• Analyze global horizontal, direct normal, and diffuse horizontal irradiance to model solar energy yield at the San Luis Valley site.
• Correlate meteorological variables like humidity and pressure with solar irradiance measurements to understand environmental impacts on solar power generation.
• Use the diffuse and direct irradiance data to validate and calibrate solar resource models for the Colorado region.
• Investigate the relationship between precipitation events and subsequent changes in measured irradiance levels.

Strengths

• Data is collected by the U.S. Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), an authoritative source for renewable energy research.
• The dataset includes multiple types of solar irradiance measurements (global horizontal, direct normal, diffuse horizontal) for comprehensive solar resource assessment.
• Meteorological monitoring equipment provides accompanying environmental data, offering a complete picture of site conditions.

Limitations

• The specific data volume (rows), column structure, and file size are unknown, making it difficult to assess the dataset's scale and suitability for large-scale analysis.
• Data is provided in HTML format, which is not a standard, machine-readable format for structured scientific data and may require significant parsing effort.
• The geographic coverage is limited to a single measurement station in the San Luis Valley, Colorado, limiting broader spatial analysis.

Provenance

Source

U.S. Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL).

Collection Method

Collected via a solar measurement station with instrumentation including pyranometers and radiometers, accompanied by meteorological monitoring equipment.

Freshness

The dataset was last updated on March 21, 2026, indicating recent maintenance.

Geography

San Luis Valley, Colorado, United States.