UKCP09: 5km Gridded Sunshine Duration Averages for the UK, 1961-1990

UKCP09 5 km gridded data provides monthly averages for sunshine duration in hours per day. The dataset contains 12 files, one for each month, representing the long-term average period from 1961 to 1990. It was created with financial support from the UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) and is promoted by the UK Climate Impacts Programme.

Use Cases

• Analyze seasonal sunshine patterns across the UK based on monthly average grids.
• Model historical solar energy potential based on gridded sunshine duration data.
• Validate or calibrate climate models using long-term average sunshine data for the 1961-1990 period.
• Study geographical variations in sunshine duration across the UK at a 5km resolution.

Strengths

• Provides a 30-year long-term average (1961-1990) for stable baseline comparisons.
• Data is gridded at a 5km spatial resolution, offering detailed geographical coverage of the UK.
• Contains 12 distinct monthly files, enabling analysis of seasonal patterns.

Limitations

• Description metadata is limited; actual data quality requires manual inspection after download.
• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Data may reflect temporal bias inherent to the specific 1961-1990 averaging period.

Provenance

Source

Met Office

Collection Method

Likely derived from meteorological station observations interpolated to a grid.

Time Range

1961-1990 (averaging period)

Freshness

Last updated 2026-07-08 13:31:57.352974; freshness should be verified.

Geography

United Kingdom, 5km grid