rustwx 0.5.4

Rust-first weather model metadata and projected map rendering bindings

rustwx Python bindings

rustwx is the optional Python binding package for the Rust-first rustwx weather workspace.

Design goal

Keep Python convenient, keep the hot path in Rust, and expose generic render/model metadata surfaces that are usable outside WRF-specific callers.

What is implemented

With the python feature enabled, the module exposes:

• agent-facing discovery and map rendering via agent_capabilities_json, list_domains_json, render_maps_json, render_glm_lightning_json, and sample_point_timeseries_json
• model listing and source/model helpers
• projected-grid rendering via render_projected_map and render_projected_map_json
• compatibility aliases render_wrf_map and render_wrf_map_json
• standalone projected projection metadata via describe_projected_projection
• standalone projected grid/layout metadata via describe_projected_geometry
• standalone projected CONUS basemap overlay extraction via build_projected_basemap_overlays
• future-facing cross-section request validation/normalization via normalize_cross_section_request
• native sounding-column rendering via render_sounding_column and render_sounding_column_json

The wheel also installs a stable rustwx console command for agent and MCP adapters:

rustwx capabilities
rustwx list-domains --kind country --limit 5
rustwx render-maps --date 20260424 --model hrrr --domain california --product 2m_temperature_10m_winds --out-dir out
rustwx render-lightning --domain california --data-dir C:\Users\drew\lightning-test\data\glm --out-dir out
rustwx sample-point-timeseries --date 20260427 --cycle 0 --lat 40.802 --lon -124.164 --forecast-hour-end 6

render-maps accepts mixed product slugs and routes them to the appropriate direct, light derived, heavy ECAPE-derived, or HRRR windowed product path. Heavy ECAPE slugs such as sbecape, mlecape, muecape, ECAPE/CAPE ratios, NCAPE, ECIN, and ECAPE EHI/SCP/STP use the canonical derived_batch ECAPE path; they do not require callers to discover or run separate binaries.

When cache_dir / --cache-dir is omitted, the agent API uses a shared rustwx_outputs/cache fetch/decode cache, or RUSTWX_CACHE_DIR when that environment variable is set. The cache is intentionally independent of out_dir and map bounds, so city or bbox sweeps can reuse the same upstream GRIB fetches while writing PNGs into different output folders.

MCP servers should call these stable Python/CLI entry points instead of invoking internal proof binaries.

render_glm_lightning_json / rustwx render-lightning reads GOES GLM OR_GLM-L2-LCFA_*.nc files, renders native Rust projected flash maps, and writes a JSON flash artifact with lat/lon, time, energy, and area fields for agent consumption.

sample_point_timeseries_json samples native model fields at a lat/lon over a forecast-hour range for meteograms and point-and-click agent tools. The default variable set is HRRR-meteogram ready: 2 m T/Td/Tw/RH, 10 m wind/gust, hourly and accumulated QPF, low/mid/high clouds, MSLP, VPD, HDW, and the fire-weather composite. It uses rustwx's GRIB/idx fetch path and shared cache rather than cfgrib/xarray.

Every new projected helper has both a Python-object entry point and a _json variant:

• Python-object entry points accept either a JSON string or a JSON-serializable Python dict
• _json entry points keep returning pretty JSON strings for low-friction interop

Projected map API

The projected map surface is generic and public-facing. The caller supplies:

• lat, lon, field as numpy.ndarray 2-D arrays
• a render spec with product metadata, color scale, layout, and projection metadata
• optional contour, overlay, and wind layers

render_projected_map(...) writes the PNG and returns a Python dict with:

• typed projection, extents, layout, and layers sections
• legacy pixel_bounds, data_extent, valid_data_extent, and projection_info keys for compatibility

Minimal example

import rustwx

print(rustwx.list_models_json())

Point time-series example

import json
import rustwx

report = rustwx.sample_point_timeseries_json(json.dumps({
    "model": "hrrr",
    "date_yyyymmdd": "20260427",
    "cycle_utc": 0,
    "source": "nomads",
    "lat": 40.802,
    "lon": -124.164,
    "forecast_hour_start": 0,
    "forecast_hour_end": 6,
    "variables": ["temperature_2m_c", "relative_humidity_2m_pct", "wind_speed_10m_ms", "hdw"],
}))
print(report)

Projected render example

import rustwx

spec = {
    "output_path": "example.png",
    "product_key": "Example",
    "field_units": "dBZ",
    "scale": {
        "kind": "palette",
        "palette": "reflectivity",
        "levels": [5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50, 55, 60, 65, 70],
        "extend": "Both",
    },
    "projection": {
        "map_proj": 1,
        "truelat1": 30.0,
        "truelat2": 60.0,
        "stand_lon": -97.0,
        "cen_lat": 38.0,
        "cen_lon": -97.0,
    },
    "width": 1100,
    "height": 850,
    "basemap_style": "none",
}

metadata = rustwx.render_projected_map(spec, lat, lon, field)
print(metadata["projection"]["kind"])
print(metadata["pixel_bounds"])

Geometry and overlay metadata example

surface = {
    "projection": spec["projection"],
    "width": 1100,
    "height": 850,
    "visual_mode": "filled_meteorology",
    "basemap_style": "filled",
}

geometry = rustwx.describe_projected_geometry(
    surface,
    lat,
    lon,
    include_projected_domain=False,
)
overlays = rustwx.build_projected_basemap_overlays(
    surface,
    lat,
    lon,
    include_geometry=False,
)

print(geometry["extents"]["padded"])
print(overlays["counts"])

Cross-section request normalization example

normalize_cross_section_request(...) does not render a cross-section yet. It validates and fills defaults for a future shared cross-section API surface.

xsect = rustwx.normalize_cross_section_request(
    {
        "path": {
            "start": {"lat": 39.74, "lon": -104.99, "label": "Denver"},
            "end": {"lat": 41.88, "lon": -87.63, "label": "Chicago"},
        },
        "field": {"product_key": "temperature", "field_units": "degC"},
    }
)

print(xsect["path_metrics"])
print(xsect["request"]["axis"])

Current limits

• projected rendering still expects caller-owned arrays
• cross-section support is validation/normalization only in this crate
• render_maps_json covers model fetch/download/render orchestration for direct, derived, heavy ECAPE-derived, and HRRR windowed map products
• sample_point_timeseries_json is a point data primitive; consumer-specific meteogram styling stays outside the Python wheel
• sounding rendering expects a caller-supplied validated column; model fetch and lat/lon extraction live in the Rust CLI for now