The introduction of OGD is based on the Swiss Federal Act on the Use of Electronic Means to Carry Out Official Tasks (EMOTA, german). The aim is to promote transparency, participation and innovation in all areas of society by opening up administrative data and making it freely usable. The use and dissemination of meteorological and climatological data is considered to be of particular social and economic value.
What data is being made available?
Some of MeteoSwiss's data series go as far back as 1864, enabling conclusions to be drawn about long-term climate trends. The monitoring network has been expanded multiple times and automated, enabling measurements to be taken at 10-minute intervals at around 260 land-based stations for over 40 years now. This information, together with the high-resolution radar and model forecast data from across Switzerland, means that users have free-of-charge, 24/7 access to a huge trove of data for a variety of applications. In fact, MeteoSwiss is making over a billion measurement, analysis and forecast values available each day.
The data will be released gradually on publicly accessible data platforms during 2025.
Where is the data being made available?
MeteoSwiss's OGD web page serves as a central gateway to the wealth of OGD-related weather and climate data and provides a direct link to the other relevant Swiss federal government platforms.
In order to make the best possible use of synergies within the Federal Administration, much of the publicly available data provided by MeteoSwiss (including all of the land-based station data) is being made available via the federal geodata infrastructure (FSDI). The Federal Office of Topography swisstopo operates the FSDI on behalf of the federal government. Since March 2021, swisstopo has made all standard digital products available free of charge as OGD - an experience from which MeteoSwiss benefits directly: The technical architecture and operation of the platform is ensured so that MeteoSwiss can make its data available in an efficient and stable manner. The volume of the weather model data is such that it is distributed directly by the Swiss National Supercomputing Centre (CSCS), where the model forecasts are calculated.
All data published by MeteoSwiss is ultimately referenced on the federal government's OGD platform (opendata.swiss, german), which is operated by the Federal Statistical Office (FSO).
Benefits for society, business and research
Meteorological and climatological data is key to analysing, understanding and forecasting the weather and climate. It comprises a variety of measurements recorded using different instruments and methods, such as radar stations and automated land-based monitoring stations. It also includes data generated by weather models as the main basis for weather forecasts. All measuring instruments, as well as the computer infrastructure for data processing and for calculating weather models, are part of Switzerland's national critical infrastructure and are vital for society, business and research.
With this key step, MeteoSwiss is helping society, business and research explore the potential of its vast data trove and tap into it even more effectively. The public provision of weather and climate data and the associated wider use of this data yields multiple benefits. This is because meteorological and climatological data underlies everything from production plans, plant/facility design and risk assessments to the operation and planning of infrastructure projects, as well as every weather forecast, severe weather warning, newly-built sustainable energy generation plant and long-term climate scenario. Whole swathes of the economy (including the energy and transport sectors, insurance, agriculture, engineering firms and private weather services) will benefit from the new OGD access to MeteoSwiss weather and climate data, as will emergency services, data science start-ups and any members of the public who wish to delve deeper into this data.
You can find out more about the application of meteorological and climatological data in our blog (german): Beziehen, verarbeiten und darstellen unserer Wetter- und Klimadaten – das sind Ihre Möglichkeiten
Further information
- More information about Open Data at MeteoSwiss
- Video: Youtube / Vimeo
- The Federal Act on the Use of Electronic Means to Carry Out Official Tasks (EMOTA) (german)
- The Federal Act on Meteorology and Climatology (MCA; SR 429.1) (german)
- The Ordinance on Meteorology and Climatology (MetClimO; SR 429.11)
Contact details / For enquiries
MeteoSwiss Media Relations Office
media@meteoschweiz.ch
Tel. +41 (0)58 460 97 00