Atlas

The following overview highlights the output variables, types and files that will be received with an Atlas download.

Whiffle Atlas provides 21 years of hourly wind time series at 2 km resolution and 10 fixed heights (up to 500 m). It offers a reliable long term reference - especially useful in coastal, nearshore, and complex terrain where standard reference datasets may fall short. Download our mesoscale data instantly, and use it directly in your existing workflows.

Whiffle Atlas is powered by the Whiffle Meso model, and has been comprehensively benchmarked in a global validation covering 170 sites and 300 met masts.

Validation results shows a mean wind speed bias of just 0.07 m/s and a standard deviation of 0.48 m/s – a tight error profile that reflects strong alignment with actual measurements.

This reduces long-term uncertainty and improves confidence in your MCP correction, especially in complex or data-sparse environments.

Free trial

Get full access for 30 days and download 5 mesoscale datasets, at locations of your choice. Compare sites, cross-check reference datasets, or validate MCP fits with your own data. Request trial here.

Outputs

Hourly data spanning 21 years is available at the following heights above ground level: 2 m, 10 m, 50 m, 100 m, 150 m, 200 m, 250 m, 300 m, 400 m, and 500 m. The data can be downloaded in CSV and NetCDF formats.

The overview below summarizes the output variables and data types included in the Atlas download.

Core atmospheric variables	Surface and stability metrics	Coming soon: Long-term and annual statistics
Wind speed [m/s]	Monin-Obukhov length [m]	Long-term mean wind speed [m/s]
Wind direction [°]	Bulk Richardson number between surface and first atmosperic level [-]	Long-term wind sector frequency [-]
Vertical wind speed [m/s]	Boundary layer height [m]	Long-term sector Weibull parameters [-][m/s]
Pressure [Pa]	Surface pressure [Pa]	Long-term monthly/hourly mean wind speed [m/s]
Temperature [°C]	Surface temperature [°C]	Annual mean wind speed [m/s]
Air density [kg/m3]		Annual wind sector frequency [-]
Relative humidity [-]		Annual sector Weibull parameters [-][m/s]
Bulk Richardson number [-]		Annual monthly/hourly mean wind speed[m/s]
Coming soon: 10-minute turbulence intensity (TI) proxy [-]

How does it work?

Enter a latitude and longitude (WGS 84) to select a point, or alternatively, use the “Drop a Pin” button to choose a location directly on the map.

Once a point has been selected, the data is fetched from the closest grid point (i.e., the nearest neighbour). Since the mesoscale data is computed on a 2 × 2 km grid, the grid point will never be more than 1.41 km away from the selected point.

On the left panel, you can instantly inspect a wind rose, Weibull distribution, and vertical profile to evaluate the 21-year wind climate. Analytics is currently in beta for a selected audience and will be officially rolled out soon.

Once you’ve completed your initial assessment, navigate to the Download tab to export time series data for more detailed analysis.

API

Atlas data is also accessible through the Whiffle API clients. Detailed instructions for setting up and using the API client can be found here.

FAQ

How is Whiffle Atlas different from ERA5, GWA, or other mesoscale datasets?

Whiffle Atlas provides finer spatial resolution (2 km), is precomputed, directly downloadable at 10 heights (from 2m to 500m), and validated against over 300 met masts globally.

What sets Atlas apart is its performance: across validation campaigns, it shows lower wind speed bias and higher correlation to measurements than other mesoscale datasets. That means reduced uncertainty in long-term wind estimates, especially in nearshore zones, coastal areas, and complex terrain where global models tend to underperform.

Use Atlas as an additional reference in your MCP, alongside ERA5, or as a faster alternative to traditional on-demand mesoscale simulations.

What is the horizontal and vertical resolution?

• Horizontal: 2 km × 2 km grid.

• Vertical: 2 m, 10 m, 50 m, 100 m, 150 m, 200 m, 250 m, 300 m, 400 m, and 500 m above ground level

The region I'm looking at isn’t available. Can I request a region?

Yes. Whiffle Atlas currently covers Europe, the United States, Australia, Japan, and Korea — with more regions in development. If your project site falls outside these areas, reach out to us directly via [email protected]. Custom regions can often be added based on demand or generated upon request.

Can i choose a custom time period?

No. By default Atlas delivers the time series for the last 21 whole years, which currently is 2004-2025.

Is Atlas suitable for offshore wind projects?

Yes, particularly for extrapolation across turbine clusters and regions with sparse measurement coverage.

Does Whiffle Atlas include terrain or land cover effects?

Yes. The Whiffle Meso model accounts for terrain and land–sea transitions at 2 km scale, improving representativeness compared to coarser reanalysis.