Users can view any variables available in the popular Applied Climate Information System (ACIS) Maps suite to be viewed as a colored contour map, a contour map with overlaid station points, or simply as a map of colored dots. The Grid Point Inspector feature can be enabled to analyze climate information for any location in the contiguous U.S. 

Surface observations are derived from data available through the Applied Climate Information System, a joint-RCC long-term climate data service. The SPI and SPEI indices were developed in cooperation with the National Drought Mitigation Center. Additional information about these products is available on the ACIS Climate Maps web page.