METAR’s – Aviation Routine Weather Report – Hourly
This is the most common text weather product a pilot will come across. The METAR gives you a glimpse of the weather at the given airport at the reported time. Reports generally come out once an hour and can come from automated equipment or from weather observers. The standard METAR will include vital information for pilots: Wind, Visibility, Present Weather, Sky Condition, Temperate/Dew Point, and Altimeter. Here is the layout for a standard METAR.
[Type of Report] [Station Identifier] [Time & Date] [Wind] [Visiblity] [Present Weather] [Sky Condition] [Temperature & Dew Point] [Altimeter] [Remarks]
Below is an example of a METAR that contains the most common information.
METAR KSEA 041953Z 14006KT 2SM RA OVC002 01/M01 A3020 RMK AO2 SLP238 T00111006
Breaking down this METAR:
METAR – Standard METAR Report
KSEA – Station Identifier: Seattle-Tacoma International Airport.
041953Z - The Time & Date: 4th day of the month at 19:53 Zulu time.
14006KT – Wind: 140° at 6 knots.
2SM – Visibility: 2 statue miles.
RA – Present Weather: Moderate Rain (- is used for light and + is used for heavy).
OVC002 - Sky Condition: Overcast at 200 feet AGL.
01/M01 – Temperate/Dew Point: Temperate is 1°C / Dew Point is -1°C (M stands for Minus).
A3020 - Altimeter: Current Altimeter is 30.20.
RMK – Remarks: Everything after this is in the remarks section of the METAR.
AO2 - Type of measuring equipment: The equipment has automatic reporting capabilities and has a precipitation type sensor (AO1 do NOT have precipitation type sensors).
SLP238 – Sea Level Pressure (in hectopascals): This is used by meteorologists.
T00111006 - Exact Temperature: Temperature is 1.1°C and the dew point is -0.6°C.
There are several things not included in the example METAR above but can appear on a METAR, below are some examples.
AUTO – The report was fully automated with no observer present.
15007G28KT - Gusting Wind: Wind is 150° at 07 knots, gusting up to 28 knots.
030V160 – Varying Wind: The wind direction is varying from 030° to 160°.
PK WND 18030/35 – Peak Wind: The peak wind was from 180° at 30 knots and it occurred 35 minutes past the hour.
WSHFT 1421 - Wind Shift: The wind shifted at 1421Z (FROPA will follow the time if it is determined that a frontal passage was the cause for the wind shift).
VIS 1/4V1 3/4 - Variable Visibility: The visibility is variable between 1/4SM to 1 3/4SM.
RAB11 – Rain Began: Rain began at 11 minutes past the hour.
RAE53 – Rain Ended: Rain ended at 53 past the hour.
CIG 003V017 – Variable Ceilings: The ceiling is variable between 300 feet and 1,700 feet.
P0135 – Hourly Precipitation Amount: 1.35 inches of rain in the past hour.
$ – Maintenance Check Indicator: Maintenance is required on the equipment.
Precipitation will be reported as follows:
| DZ – Drizzle | RA - Rain | SN – Snow |
| SG – Snow Grains | IC – Ice Crystals | PL – Ice Pellets |
| GR – Hail | GS – Small Hail | UP – Unknown Precipitation |
Sky obscurations will be reported as follows:
| BR – Mist | FG – Fog | FU – Smoke | VA – Volcanic Ash |
| SA – Sand | HZ – Haze | PY – Spray |
The following can be used to describe the current precipitation or sky obscurations:
| MI - Shallow | PR – Partial | BC – Patches | DR – Low Drifting |
| BL – Blowing | SH – Showers | TS – Thunderstorms | FZ – Freezing |
Clouds can be described as following:
| SKC/CLR – Sky Clear | FEW – Few Clouds | SCT – Scattered | BKN – Broken | OVC – Overcast |
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Resources: For more detailed information, check out the FAA published book: Aviation Weather Services. This book contains all the information about every weather service available for pilots. This book is a valuable resource when it comes to studying for checkrides or trying to decipher the more uncommon weather products. Click on the book below to find out more.
