The places dataset provides the core data for geographical locations, including cities, reporting stations, airports, points of interest (POI), and more. This is typically the first request that is made for every other weather-related request.
Use our wizard to try out this endpoint
The following actions are supported with the places endpoint:
| :id | Requesting data by using the :id action is used for returning data for a particular item that has an ID associated with it. This is the primary method for requesting general weather information for a single location (observations, forecasts, advisories, etc.) as the location's name or a zip code serves as the id. Other endpoints may expect a certain value for the ID, such as storm cells whose ID value is a combination of the radar site identifier and unique identifier assigned to every storm cell. Refer to an endpoint's detailed documentation for specific information regarding how to use the :id action. |
| closest | The closest action will query the API for data that is closest to the requested place and return the results, if any, in order from closest to farthest. If no limit is provided in the request, then only the closest single result will be returned. If your request does not return results, you may try setting or increasing the radius being used. |
| within | The within action allows for returning data within a variety of different geometrical regions. Currently supported geometries include a circle (requires a center point and radius), rectangle (requires two coordinate points defining the top-left and bottom-right corners) and polygon (requires at least three coordinate points). Unlike the closest action, the results will not be returned in any particular order based on distance. |
| search | The search action is used as a more general query method and expects the query to be defined with the custom query for the request. Unlike the closest action, results will not be returned in any particular order. |
The following parameters are optional unless otherwise noted:
| p | p=:place |
Defines the location to query data for. Refer to the list of supported place value formats. |
| radius | radius=:distance:unit |
When requesting the closest results within a circle, the radius determines how far from the specified location to search. A valid unit value must be included in your radius value, e.g., "5mi", "10km", "25miles". If no unit is provided, your value is assumed to be in meters by default. Most endpoints utilize a default radius of 50 miles, though some endpoints, such as lightning, may have tighter restrictions specified. |
| minradius | minradius=:distance:unit |
When requesting the closest results within a circle, the minradius determines how far from the specified location to search to begin searching results. A valid unit value must be included in your minimum radius value, e.g., "5mi", "10km", or "25miles". If no unit is provided, your value is assumed to be in meters by default. When combined with the radius parameter, donut style queries can be made for point data, such as lightning. |
| limit | limit=:total |
The total number of results to return as an integer. Each endpoint may have a set maximum for this value depending on usage. The default limit is 1 if not specified. The maximum limit for this endpoint is 250. |
| filter | filter=:string |
Predefined filters for limiting the results. The filter value can be a single, comma-delimited or a semicolon delimited string of filter names. |
| query | query=:string |
Used to filter results based on certain fields in the data set. See Advanced Queries for more details. |
| sort | sort=:string |
Used to sort results based on certain fields in the data set. See Sorting for more details. |
| fields | fields=:string |
Provides a comma separated list of values for the API to return. This parameter is often used to limit the amount of data returned. See Reducing Output. |
| skip | skip=:number |
Used to skip over a specific number of results in the data set. |
| format | format=:string |
Defines the API output format. The available options include:format=json - Standard JSON output. This is the default.format=geojson - API will output GeoJSON.If obtaining GeoJSON and using the fields parameter, be sure to include loc to ensure geographical references are available in the response.
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The following filters can be passed to the filter parameter to reduce the results that are returned:
| airport | Returns all airports, including airbases, airfields and heliports. |
| amusement | Returns all theme and adventure parks. |
| bridge | Returns all structures erected across an obstacle, such as a stream, road, etc., in order to carry roads, rail and pedestrians. |
| camp | Returns all sites occupied by tents, hunts, or other shelters for temporary use. |
| church | Returns all buildings used for public christian worship. |
| county | Returns US counties (Parishes in Louisiana). |
| divisions | Returns smaller US towns, non-incorporation locations such as census divisions. |
| feature | Returns all natural geological features. |
| fort | Returns all defensive structures or earthworks. |
| golf | Returns all golf courses. |
| lake | Returns all lakes, including crater lakes, salt lakes, oxbow lakes and underground lakes. |
| neighborhood | Returns smaller US non-incorporation locations such as census divisions, local areas of a city etc. |
| parish | Alias for the county filter. |
| park | Returns all parks and other areas maintained as a place of recreation. |
| poi | Returns all categories of places across all filters. |
| port | Returns all places that transfer waterborne cargo or passengers, usually in a harbor. |
| ppl | Returns all populated places, including larger cities, towns and smaller locations and neighborhoods. |
| reserve | Returns all tracts of public land reserved for future use or restricted use, including agricultural, forest, hunting, nature, reservation and wildlife. |
| school | Returns all schools, including colleges, military, maritime and technical. |
| stadium | Returns all facilities used for athletic games and spectators. |
| temple | Returns all places used for religious worship. |
| trail | Returns all paths, tracks or routes used by pedestrians, animals, or off-road vehicles. |
| tunnel | Returns all subterranean passageways used for transportation, including natural caves, road and rail passages. |
| university | Returns all institutions for higher learning, including prep schools. |
| worship | Returns all churches and temples. |
| complex | For improved speed the search action does not include the expanded profile information for locations. The complex filter forces the API to return the expanded profile information, though may lead to a slower response. |
| simple | Forces the API to not return the expanded profile information for places, leading to faster responses. |
Use the following supported property keys when creating custom queries for your requests:
| name | Query for a place with the specified name. This queries against the primary name in our database. NOTE: The string to search should be in lowercase. Example: /places/search?query=name:austin&limit=10 (returns 10 locations that match the name "Austin") |
| altname | Query for a place based on the primary or alternate names. Useful for locations that may have multiple names such as "dc, washington, washington dc". NOTE: The string to search should be in lowercase. Example: /places/search?query=altname:dc&limit=10 (returns 10 locations that match the name "dc") |
| state | Query for a place with the specified state or province two letter abbreviation. This should be used in conjunction with the name property. NOTE: The string to search should be in lowercase. Example: /places/search?query=name:austin,state:tx (returns a single location matching the name "Austin" in the state of "TX") |
| country | Query for a place with the specified country two letter abbreviation.. This should be used in conjunction with the name property. NOTE: The string to search should be in lowercase. Example: /places/search?query=name:paris,country:fr (returns a single location matching the name "Paris" in the country of "FR") |
| pop | Query for a place based on it's population. Example: /places/closest?p=minneapolis,mn&query=pop:75000&limit=10 (returns up to 10 closest locations to Minneapolis that have a population of 75,000 or higher) |
You can use the following fields to sort data. Review the sorting docs page for more information on the sort functionality.
| name | Sort by place name. Example: /places/closest?p=minneapolis,mn&limit=10&sort=place (returns 10 closest locations to Minneapolis, with the results sorted by place name alphabetically) |
| pop | Sort by place population: Example: /places/search?query=state:mn&limit=10&sort=pop:-1 (returns the top 10 locations in Minnesota, by population, sorted descending) |
The /[:endpoint]/[:action]? portion within the query template below can be exchanged with any of the examples. Also, please note you will need to input your client credentials in the [ID] and [SECRET] fields which can be found under the Apps section of the members area.
https://api.aerisapi.com/[:endpoint]/[:action]?client_id=[ID]&client_secret=[SECRET]
Return the location closest to the coordinate 42.25N, 95.25W./places/closest?p=45.25,-95.25&
Return up to five places within 50 miles of zip code 55403 (Minneapolis). Results will be sorted by distance (ascending) from the specified zip code./places/closest?p=55403&limit=5&radius=50mi&
Search for and returns data for Seattle, WA./places/search?query=name:seattle,state:wa&
Return up to 10 locations, with a name starting with "seat". The locations will be sorted by population descending./places/search?query=name:^seat&limit=10&
Return the location information for Minneapolis,MN/places/minneapolis,mn?
Return the location information for Paris, France/places/paris,fr?
Return the location information for Paris, France. Example of using the full country name./places/paris,france?
Return the location information for Paris, France. Example using a search action./places/search?query=name:paris,country:fr&
The following is an example of what each object in the response will consist of. Depending on your requested action, the response may contain multiple instances of this object within an array.
{
"success": true,
"error": null,
"response": {
"loc": {
"lat": -7.23333,
"long": -62.9
},
"place": {
"name": "Sao Paulo",
"state": "",
"stateFull": "",
"country": "BR",
"countryFull": "Brazil",
"region": "",
"regionFull": "",
"continent": "sa",
"continentFull": "South America"
},
"profile": {
"elevM": 60,
"elevFT": 197,
"pop": null,
"tz": "America\/Manaus",
"tzname": "AMT",
"tzoffset": -14400,
"isDST": false,
"wxzone": null,
"firezone": null,
"fips": null,
"countyid": null
}
}
}
{
"type": "FeatureCollection",
"features": [{
"type": "Feature",
"geometry": {
"type": "Point",
"coordinates": [-62.9, -7.23333]
},
"properties": {
"loc": {
"lat": -7.23333,
"long": -62.9
},
"place": {
"name": "Sao Paulo",
"state": "",
"stateFull": "",
"country": "BR",
"countryFull": "Brazil",
"region": "",
"regionFull": "",
"continent": "sa",
"continentFull": "South America"
},
"profile": {
"elevM": 60,
"elevFT": 197,
"pop": null,
"tz": "America\/Manaus",
"tzname": "AMT",
"tzoffset": -14400,
"isDST": false,
"wxzone": null,
"firezone": null,
"fips": null,
"countyid": null
}
}
}]
}
The following properties will be provided in every response object:
Last modified: October 05, 2022