UKCP09: 5km Gridded Long-Term Average Monthly Cloud Cover for the UK

12 monthly files provide mean cloud cover percentages for the UK on a 5km grid, averaged over the 1961-1990 period. The dataset was created with financial support from the UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) and promoted by the UK Climate Impacts Programme. Data access requires registration on the Met Office website.

Use Cases

• Analyze seasonal cloud cover patterns based on monthly averages.
• Validate regional climate models based on long-term historical averages.
• Study spatial variability in cloud cover across the UK based on the 5km grid.
• Establish baseline climatology for the 1961-1990 period.

Strengths

• Data covers a 30-year climatological reference period (1961-1990).
• Spatial resolution is specified as a 5km grid.
• Dataset consists of 12 distinct monthly average files.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Data freshness should be verified; the last metadata update was 2026-07-08.

Provenance

Source

Met Office

Collection Method

Gridded observational data, likely derived from station measurements and models.

Time Range

1961-1990

Freshness

Last updated 2026-07-08 13:32:43.896204; freshness should be verified

Geography

United Kingdom