metar-cli 0.3.5

Terminal METAR + TAF dashboard for pilots and aviation nerds

metar-cli

Terminal METAR + TAF dashboard for pilots and aviation nerds. Live weather data rendered straight in your terminal — think wttr.in but aviation-focused.

Default station: MMML (General Rodolfo Sánchez Taboada Intl, Mexicali, BC, MX)

METAR MMML  ·  Mexicali Intl, BC, MX   12m ago
────────────────────────────────────────────────
  VFR    30°C / 14°   3kt 60°   10+ mi  None  29.71 inHg
          clear          NE    Visibility Ceiling  QNH
────────────────────────────────────────────────
╭─── wind ───╮ ╭──── clouds ────╮ ╭──── remarks ────╮
│ ↖ ↑ ↗      │ │ 20k │          │ │ stn   ASOS/auto │
│ ← · →      │ │ 12k │          │ │ SLP   1008.1 hPa│
│ ↙ ↓ ↘      │ │  6k │          │ │ T/Td  30.0/14.4 │
│ ──────     │ │  3k │          │ ╰─────────────────╯
│ elev  69ft │ │ 1.5 │          │
│ DA  2,141ft│ │ 500 │          │
╰────────────╯ │ sfc │          │
               │     └────────  │
               ╰────────────────╯
────────────────────────────────────────────────
  temp  ▁▂▄▆█▅▃▂▁▂▃▄   30→37 °C
  wind  ▃▂▁▁▂▃▄▃▂▁▂▃    0→10 kt
  QNH   ▅▄▃▄▅▆▇▆▅▄▅▆   29.66→29.72 inHg
────────────────────────────────────────────────
  METAR MMML 130647Z 06003KT 10SM SKC 30/14 A2971

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Install

The recommended way is pipx, which installs metar as a global command without polluting your system Python:

pipx install metar-cli

That’s it. metar is now available from anywhere.

Don’t have pipx?

# macOS (MacPorts)
sudo port install pipx

# macOS (Homebrew)
brew install pipx

# Linux / other
pip install --user pipx

For development / contributing:

git clone https://github.com/alexgc96/metar-cli.git
cd metar-cli
python3 -m venv .venv && source .venv/bin/activate
pip install -e .

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Usage

metar [-h] [--taf] [--raw] [-i] [--set-default ICAO] [ICAO ...]

positional arguments:
  ICAO                One or more ICAO station codes

options:
  -h, --help          show this help message and exit
  --taf               Include TAF forecast block
  --raw               Print raw METAR string only
  -i, --interactive   Interactive mode
  --set-default ICAO  Save a default station to ~/.config/metar/config

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Interactive mode (-i)

metar -i

Full-screen ICAO search box. Once a station is loaded:

Key	Action
t	Toggle TAF forecast
r	Toggle raw METAR string
u	Refresh / re-fetch data
s	New station search
c	Set default station
q	Quit

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Data sources

METAR + TAF — aviationweather.gov

All primary weather data comes from the Aviation Weather Center (AWC) public API operated by NOAA/NWS. No API key required.

Data	Endpoint
METAR (current)	https://aviationweather.gov/api/data/metar?ids=MMML&format=json
TAF (forecast)	https://aviationweather.gov/api/data/taf?ids=MMML&format=json

Fields used from METAR JSON:

• temp, dewp — temperature and dew point (°C)
• wdir, wspd, wgst — wind direction (°), speed and gust (kt)
• visib — visibility (statute miles)
• altim — altimeter setting (hPa, converted to inHg for display)
• clouds — array of {cover, base} objects (e.g. BKN, OVC at feet MSL)
• fltCat — computed flight category (VFR / MVFR / IFR / LIFR)
• wxString — present weather string (e.g. TSRA, -RA, BR)
• rawOb — full raw METAR string including remarks
• elev — station elevation (metres)
• lat, lon — station coordinates
• obsTime — observation Unix timestamp

Fields used from TAF JSON:

• validTimeFrom, validTimeTo — forecast valid period (Unix timestamps)
• issueTime — issue time (ISO 8601 string)
• rawTAF — full raw TAF string
• fcsts — array of forecast periods, each with timeFrom, timeTo, fcstChange, wdir, wspd, wgst, visib, clouds, wxString

Historical observations — Iowa State Mesonet (ASOS)

The 6-hour sparkline history uses the Iowa State University Environmental Mesonet ASOS archive. Free, no auth required.

https://mesonet.agron.iastate.edu/cgi-bin/request/asos.py
  ?station=MMML
  &data=tmpf,drct,sknt,alti
  &format=onlycomma
  &missing=null
  &tz=UTC

Fields used: tmpf (temp °F, converted to °C), sknt (wind speed kt), alti (altimeter inHg). Up to 76 observations per 6h window are sampled down to 12 points for the sparkline; the full dataset is used for accurate min/max ranges.

Computed values

• Density altitude — calculated from OAT, altimeter setting, and station elevation using the standard ISA lapse rate formula. No external data required.
• wx string decode — parsed locally from the wxString field using ICAO intensity/descriptor/phenomenon codes. No external data required.
• Remarks decode — parsed locally from the rawOb RMK section (SLP, precise T/Td, station type, peak wind, pressure tendency, precip, maintenance flag).

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Configuration

Set a persistent default station:

metar --set-default KJFK
# saves to ~/.config/metar/config

Or use an environment variable (takes priority over the config file):

export METAR_ICAO=MMML

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Safety disclaimer

metar-cli is a convenience tool for curiosity and preflight awareness — not a substitute for an official weather briefing.

Real and virtual pilots alike should always consult their country’s aviation authority and any flight planning services available to them before flight. In the US this means a standard weather briefing via 1800wxbrief.com or ForeFlight. In Mexico, consult SENEAM and your applicable NOTAMs. In other countries, use whatever official sources your CAA provides.

A single METAR is a snapshot in time at one point on the ground. It does not capture en-route conditions, winds aloft, SIGMETs, AIRMETs, TFRs, or anything happening above the field. Always get the full picture.

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Stack

• Python 3.10+
• rich — terminal layout, panels, color, sparklines
• requests — HTTP
• prompt_toolkit — interactive mode UI

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Inspiration

• wttr.in — terminal weather density as a design goal
• metar-taf.com — MMML dashboard, June 2026