UKCP09: 1961-1990 Baseline Monthly Mean Vapour Pressure for UK Regions

UKCP09 provides long-term average monthly mean vapour pressure values for the 1961-1990 climate baseline. The Met Office dataset offers averages for 14 UK administrative regions and 23 river basins, derived from 5 x 5 km grid cells. Data is provided as space-delimited text files, created with support from the UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra).

Use Cases

• Establishing historical climate baselines based on the 1961-1990 reference period mentioned in the description
• Comparing humidity conditions across UK administrative regions and river basins based on the 14 and 23 regional aggregations
• Analyzing seasonal vapour pressure patterns using the provided monthly average values
• Validating climate models against observed long-term averages for the specified 30-year period

Strengths

• Covers a defined 30-year climate baseline period from 1961 to 1990
• Provides data for two distinct regional aggregations: 14 administrative regions and 23 river basins
• Values are spatially aggregated from a consistent 5 x 5 km grid resolution

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment
• Access requires registration on the Met Office website, adding a step to data acquisition

Provenance

Source

Met Office, UK Climate Projections (UKCP09)

Collection Method

Averages of 5 x 5 km grid cell values within defined regional boundaries

Time Range

1961-1990 baseline averages

Freshness

Last updated 2026-07-08 13:31:22.231699; freshness should be verified

Geography

United Kingdom (14 administrative regions, 23 river basins)