ERA5 Cloud Optimized (Zarr + Icechunk)

Description

A cloud-optimized version of the NSF NCAR Curated ERA5 dataset. Provided in Zarr + Icechunk, this version enables efficient, scalable access to global reanalysis data for weather, climate, and ML/AI applications. Managed by Earthmover. This dataset is a cloud-optimized reformat of the NSF NCAR Curated ECMWF Reanalysis 5 (ERA5). While the NCAR-hosted dataset is provided in CF-compliant NetCDF4 files, this version has been restructured into Zarr format with Icechunk indexing, making it highly scalable and performant for cloud-native workloads. This enables efficient, chunked access to time series and spatial subsets without requiring full file downloads.
ERA5 itself is produced using high-resolution forecasts (HRES) at 31 km resolution and a 62 km resolution ten-member 4D-Var ensemble of data assimilation (EDA) in CY41r2 of ECMWF’s Integrated Forecast System (IFS) with 137 hybrid sigma-pressure levels up to 0.01 hPa. Atmospheric data are interpolated to 37 pressure levels, with surface and single-level parameters (e.g., precipitation, 2 m temperature, radiation fluxes, soil and ocean-wave model fields). Data are generally available at hourly frequency, consisting of analyses and short (12-hour) forecasts initialized at 06 and 18 UTC.
ERA5 products are widely used for ML/AI training, climate and weather research, and applications such as renewable energy siting.

Update Frequency

Monthly, with a 3-4 month lag from realtime

License

https://www.ucar.edu/terms-of-use/data

Documentation

https://doi.org/10.5065/BH6N-5N20

Managed By

Earthmover

See all datasets managed by Earthmover.

Contact

hello@earthmover.io

How to Cite

ERA5 Cloud Optimized (Zarr + Icechunk) was accessed on DATE from https://registry.opendata.aws/earthmover-era5. European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts. 2019, updated monthly. ERA5 Reanalysis (0.25 Degree Latitude-Longitude Grid). Research Data Archive at the National Center for Atmospheric Research, Computational and Information Systems Laboratory. https://doi.org/10.5065/BH6N-5N20.

Usage Examples

Publications

• The ERA5 global reanalysis by Hersbach et al 2020