METAR

METAR (Meteorological Aerodrome Report) is a standardized format for reporting current weather conditions at an airport. METARs are issued at regular intervals, typically every 30 or 60 minutes, and are used by pilots, dispatchers, and meteorologists for flight planning and safety.

A typical METAR includes:

Station identifier (ICAO code)
Date/time of observation (in UTC/Zulu)
Wind direction and speed (gusts if applicable)
Visibility
Weather phenomena (rain, snow, fog, thunderstorms, etc.)
Cloud cover and ceiling heights
Temperature and dew point
Altimeter setting (QNH)

When conditions change significantly between regular reports, a SPECI (Special Report) is issued. Both METAR and SPECI follow the same encoding format defined by ICAO Annex 3 and WMO standards.