The storm cells dataset provides observed and forecast data for all storm cells across the United States. This is a NEXRAD-derived product that attempts to identify and track storm cell movement, along with reporting cell intensity and certain severe weather signatures within the cell, like rotation and hail. The forecast track can be used to determine when and where a cell will affect a particular location or area.
Use our wizard to try out this endpoint
The following actions are supported with the stormcells 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. |
| affects | The affects action requests all places affected by a particular type of event, such as earthquake or storm cell. The query for places affected is unique for each endpoint it belongs to and can be a polygon (e.g., storm cell forecasts or warnings) or a circle with the center being the location of the event (e.g., earthquakes or fires). Instead of returning an array of objects specific to the endpoint, the affects action will always return an array of place objects in the same format as the within action on the places endpoint. Note: Not all endpoints support this action, so refer to each endpoint's complete documentation to determine if supported and its usage. |
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. |
| 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. |
| 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. |
| mindist | mindist=:distance:unit |
When using the route action, mindist determines the minimum distance along the route to return the requested data for. A valid unit value must be included in your mindist value, e.g. "5mi", "10km", "50miles". If no unit is provided, your value is assumed to be in meters by default. The default minimum distance between route data is 5 miles if not 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. |
| 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. |
| 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. |
| sort | sort=:string |
Used to sort results based on certain fields in the data set. See Sorting for more details. |
The following filters can be passed to the filter parameter to reduce the results that are returned:
| hail | Returns storm cells that most likely contain hail. |
| rotating | Returns storm cells that show rotation characteristics. |
| tornado | Returns storm cells that contain a tornadic vortex signature (TVS) as determined by NEXRAD radar. |
| threat | Returns storm cells which are potentially threatening |
| rainmoderate | Returns storm cells showing moderate precipitation potential |
| rainheavy | Returns storm cells showing heavy precipitation potential |
| rainintense | Returns storm cells showing intense precipitation potential |
| conus | Returns storm cells within the Continental US (CONUS) only. Equivalent to: query=country:us,state:!ak,state:!hi,state:!pr |
Use the following supported property keys when creating custom queries for your requests:
| hailprob | Used to query the storm cells hail probability. i.e. query=hail:70 will return only if the hail probability is greater than or equal to 70%. |
| hailsevere | Used to query the storm cells probability of severe hail. |
| hailsize | Used to query the storm cells maximum hail size, in inches. |
| tvs | Used to query if a storm cell is tornadic. |
| mda, rotation | Used to query the degree of a storm cells rotation. |
| dbz | Used to query the precipitation dbz. |
| type | Used to query based on stormcell type: general, hail, rotating, tornado |
| isgeneral | Used to query storm cells that are general / garden variety 1 = true, 0 = false |
| ishail | Used to query storm cells that have at least a 70% probability of hail. 1 = true, 0 = false |
| isrotating | Used to query storm cells that show major rotation 1 = true, 0 = false |
| istornado | Used to query storm cells that show potential tornado characteristics 1 = true, 0 = false |
| isthreat | Used to query storm cells that may be a potential threat 1 = true, 0 = false |
| name | Used to query based on the closest city to the storm cell. |
| state | Query the state the storm cell is in. Example: /stormcells/search?query=state:al&limit=100 (Returns up to 100 storm cells in the state of Alabama) |
| country | Used to limit results based on country. Currently only 'us' supported. |
You can use the following fields to sort data. Review the sorting docs page for more information on the sort functionality.
| hailprob | Sort the results by the probably of hail. |
| hailsevere | Sort the results by the probably of severe hail. |
| hailsize | Sort the results by the potential hail size. |
| tvs | Sort the results based on being tornadic. |
| mda, rotation | Sort the results based on the amount of rotation in the storm cell. |
| dbz | Sort based on the precipitation rate in DBz |
| isgeneral | Sort the results based storm cells being general / garden variety: 1 = general, 0 = more threatening |
| ishail | Sort based on storm cells most likely to have hail: 1 = hail, 0 = no significant hail potential |
| isrotating | Sort based on storm cells most likely to show major rotation 1 = rotation, 0 = no significant rotation |
| istornado | Sort based on storm cells being potentially tornadic 1 = potentially tornadic, 0 = no significant tornadic features |
| isthreat | Sort based on storm cells showing threatening characteristics 1 = potentially threatening, 0 = no significant threatening characteristics |
| name | Sort the results based on the name of the closet city. |
| state | Sort the results based on the ISO 2-letter state abbreviation. |
| dt | Sort the results based on the date/time of the record. |
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]
Returns data for a specific storm cell. In this case Storm Cell ID I9 as reported by Radar station MPX. Returns a single object containing the storm cell information. If no storm cell, then an empty object is returned along with an error code of no data./stormcells/mpx_i9?
Returns data for a specific storm cell. In this case Storm Cell ID I9 as reported by Radar station MPX. Returns a single object containing the storm cell information. If no storm cell, then an empty object is returned along with an error code of no data./stormcells?p=mpx_i9&
Returns closest single storm cell to the specified point. Result is an array. Empty if no close storm cells./stormcells/closest?p=45.25,-95.25&
Returns up to 5 storms cells within 50 miles of zip code 55403 (Minneapolis). Storm cells will be sorted by distance (ascending) from zip code 55403./stormcells/closest?p=55403&limit=5&radius=50mi&
Returns up to 1 storm cell within 50 miles of zip code 55403 that has a value for “ob.tvs” greater than 0. /stormcells/closest?p=55403&query=tvs&
Return all storm cells within 50 miles of zip code 55403 that have a 70%+ probability of hail. Results will be sorted by distance./stormcells/closest?p=55403&query=hail:70&limit=0&
Return all storm cells within 50 miles of zip code 55403 that have a 70%+ probability of hail with a hail size between .5 and 2 inches. Results sorted by distance./stormcells/closest?p=55403&query=hail:70,hail.size:.5:2&limit=0&
Returns up to 10 storm cells within the rectangle specified with the top left corner of 45.25,-95.25 and the bottom right corner of 35.25,-85.25. /stormcells/within?p=45.25,-95.25,35.25,-85.25&limit=10&
Returns all storm cells that have an 'ob.tvs' value greater than 0 (meaning a tornadic storm cell) within the rectangle specified with the top left corner of 45.25,-95.25 and the bottom right corner of 35.25,-85.25. /stormcells/within?p=45.25,-95.25,35.25,-85.25&query=ob.tvs&
Returns storm cells that show hail and tornadic characteristics within the rectangle specified with the top left corner of 45.25,-95.25 and the bottom right corner of 35.25,-85.25./stormcells/within?p=45.25,-95.25,35.25,-85.25&filter=tornado,hail&
Returns up to 50 cities within the forecast path of stormcell DMX_CO/stormcells/affects?p=DMX_CO&limit=50
Returns up to 50 cities with a population of 50,000 or greater that are within the forecast path of stormcell DMX_CO/stormcells/affects?p=DMX_CO&limit=50&pop=50000
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": [{
"id": "IWX_S0",
"loc": {
"long": -87.601109314399,
"lat": 41.797875664837
},
"ob": {
"radarID": "IWX",
"cellID": "S0",
"cpos": {
"lat": 41.797875664837,
"long": -87.601109314399,
"deg": 288,
"NM": 90
},
"movement": {
"dirDEG": 324,
"dir": "NW",
"dirToDEG": 144,
"dirTo": "SE",
"speedKTS": 29,
"speedMPH": 33,
"speedKMH": 54,
"speedKPH": 54
},
"tvs": 0,
"mda": 0,
"vil": 2,
"dbzm": 36,
"ht": 10.3,
"top": "13.9",
"topFT": 13900,
"hail": {
"probSevere": 0,
"prob": 0,
"maxSizeIN": 0,
"maxSize": "0.00",
"maxSizeCM": 0
},
"location": "7 SE of chicago",
"timestamp": 1528310281,
"dateTimeISO": "2018-06-06T13:38:01-05:00"
},
"forecast": {
"locs": [{
"lat": 41.702272951809,
"long": -87.523559557893,
"deg": 285,
"NM": 85,
"timestamp": 1528310741,
"dateTimeISO": "2018-06-06T13:45:41-05:00"
}, {
"lat": 41.611015809439,
"long": -87.416273078217,
"deg": 282,
"NM": 79,
"timestamp": 1528311641,
"dateTimeISO": "2018-06-06T14:00:41-05:00"
}],
"errFcst": 1.3,
"errMean": 1.8,
"cone": {
"narrow": [
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[41.605296988609, -87.426869430795],
[41.607593316315, -87.422387640916],
[41.609947605868, -87.417960291391],
[41.612359140128, -87.413588730832],
[41.614827184518, -87.409274290859],
[41.617350987249, -87.405018285693],
[41.619929779546, -87.400822011754],
[41.622562775883, -87.396686747268],
[41.797875664837, -87.601109314399]
],
"wide": [
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[41.57823940025, -87.499664970263],
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[41.587347747091, -87.469424959541],
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[41.590902105834, -87.459649629662],
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[41.614827184518, -87.409274290859],
[41.617350987249, -87.405018285693],
[41.619929779546, -87.400822011754],
[41.622562775883, -87.396686747268],
[41.625249174224, -87.392613751876],
[41.627988156267, -87.388604266252],
[41.63077888769, -87.384659511724],
[41.633620518411, -87.380780689903],
[41.63651218284, -87.376968982315],
[41.639453000149, -87.373225550044],
[41.642442074536, -87.369551533374],
[41.645478495501, -87.365948051449],
[41.64856133812, -87.362416201921],
[41.651689663329, -87.358957060629],
[41.65486251821, -87.355571681258],
[41.658078936281, -87.352261095029],
[41.66133793779, -87.349026310379],
[41.664638530014, -87.345868312653],
[41.667979707559, -87.342788063809],
[41.797875664837, -87.601109314399]
]
}
},
"traits": {
"type": "general",
"general": 1,
"hail": 0,
"rotating": 0,
"tornado": 0,
"threat": 0
},
"place": {
"name": "chicago",
"state": "il",
"country": "us"
},
"profile": {
"tz": "America\/Chicago"
},
"relativeTo": {
"lat": 41.85003,
"long": -87.65005,
"bearing": 145,
"bearingENG": "SE",
"distanceKM": 7.077,
"distanceMI": 4.397
}
}]
}
{
"type": "FeatureCollection",
"features": [{
"type": "Feature",
"id": "IWX_S0",
"geometry": {
"type": "GeometryCollection",
"geometries": [{
"type": "Polygon",
"coordinates": [
[
[-87.601109314399, 41.797875664837],
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]
}, {
"type": "LineString",
"coordinates": [
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]
}, {
"type": "Point",
"coordinates": [-87.601109314399, 41.797875664837]
}]
},
"properties": {
"id": "IWX_S0",
"loc": {
"long": -87.601109314399,
"lat": 41.797875664837
},
"ob": {
"radarID": "IWX",
"cellID": "S0",
"cpos": {
"lat": 41.797875664837,
"long": -87.601109314399,
"deg": 288,
"NM": 90
},
"movement": {
"dirDEG": 324,
"dir": "NW",
"dirToDEG": 144,
"dirTo": "SE",
"speedKTS": 29,
"speedMPH": 33,
"speedKMH": 54,
"speedKPH": 54
},
"tvs": 0,
"mda": 0,
"vil": 2,
"dbzm": 36,
"ht": 10.3,
"top": "13.9",
"topFT": 13900,
"hail": {
"probSevere": 0,
"prob": 0,
"maxSizeIN": 0,
"maxSize": "0.00",
"maxSizeCM": 0
},
"location": "7 SE of chicago",
"timestamp": 1528310281,
"dateTimeISO": "2018-06-06T13:38:01-05:00"
},
"forecast": {
"locs": [{
"lat": 41.702272951809,
"long": -87.523559557893,
"deg": 285,
"NM": 85,
"timestamp": 1528310741,
"dateTimeISO": "2018-06-06T13:45:41-05:00"
}, {
"lat": 41.611015809439,
"long": -87.416273078217,
"deg": 282,
"NM": 79,
"timestamp": 1528311641,
"dateTimeISO": "2018-06-06T14:00:41-05:00"
}],
"errFcst": 1.3,
"errMean": 1.8
},
"traits": {
"type": "general",
"general": 1,
"hail": 0,
"rotating": 0,
"tornado": 0,
"threat": 0
},
"place": {
"name": "chicago",
"state": "il",
"country": "us"
},
"profile": {
"tz": "America\/Chicago"
},
"relativeTo": {
"lat": 41.85003,
"long": -87.65005,
"bearing": 145,
"bearingENG": "SE",
"distanceKM": 7.077,
"distanceMI": 4.397
}
}
}]
}
The following properties will be provided in every response object:
Last modified: July 11, 2023