TerraClimate Downloader for QGIS

Version 0.0.8

Compatibility: QGIS 3.16-4.99 with Qt5/Qt6 compatibility updates.
Checked on: Jul 24, 2026, 09:19 PM GMT+3 Qt6 validation: All 27 reported scoped-enum/API issues were corrected while keeping version 0.0.8.

Download and clip TerraClimate climate data directly in QGIS. Select your area of interest, choose a climate variable, and download either a single year or a multi-year stack.

Easy Installation

Method 1: Install from ZIP

1. Download the TerraClimateDownloader-0.0.8.zip file.
2. In QGIS, go to Plugins > Manage and Install Plugins.
3. Click Install from ZIP.
4. Select the ZIP file and click Install Plugin.
5. Open Plugins > TerraClimate Downloader > Install Dependencies.
6. Click Install Required Packages and wait for completion.
7. Restart QGIS.

Method 2: Manual Installation

1. Extract the ZIP file.
2. Copy the TerraClimateDownloader folder to your QGIS plugins directory.
3. Restart QGIS.
4. Enable the plugin in Plugins > Manage and Install Plugins.
5. Install dependencies as described below.

Installing Python Dependencies

Automatic

1. Open Plugins > TerraClimate Downloader > Install Dependencies.
2. Click Install Required Packages.
3. Restart QGIS after installation.

Manual

Run this command with the same Python executable that QGIS uses:

python -m pip install --user --upgrade-strategy only-if-needed "numpy>=1.24,<2" xarray rioxarray netCDF4 dask

How to Use

1. Load a polygon layer representing your area of interest.
2. Open the tool from Plugins > TerraClimate Downloader or the Processing Toolbox.
3. Choose a climate variable.
4. Choose a year mode:
   • Single year: select one year and either one month or all 12 months.
   • Year range: select a start year and end year; the tool downloads all months automatically.
5. Set the output file location and run.

Examples:

• 2024 in single-year mode with month -1 gives a 12-band raster.
• 2023-2024 in year-range mode gives a 24-band raster.
• 2021-2025 in year-range mode gives a 60-band raster.

Available Climate Variables

Variable	Description	Units
aet	Actual Evapotranspiration	mm
def	Climatic Water Deficit	mm
pdsi	Palmer Drought Severity Index	-
pet	Potential Evapotranspiration	mm
ppt	Precipitation	mm
q	Runoff	mm
soil	Soil Moisture	mm
srad	Downward Shortwave Radiation	W/m²
swe	Snow Water Equivalent	mm
tmax	Maximum Temperature	°C
tmin	Minimum Temperature	°C
vap	Vapor Pressure	kPa
vpd	Vapor Pressure Deficit	kPa
ws	Wind Speed	m/s

Notes

• Supported years: 1958-2025
• All-month downloads are combined into one multiband raster.
• Large year ranges can create large raster files and take longer to download.

Troubleshooting

Missing Python packages

• Use the built-in dependency installer: Plugins > TerraClimate Downloader > Install Dependencies
• Restart QGIS after installing packages

Connection timeout

• Check your internet connection
• The TerraClimate server may be temporarily unavailable
• Increase the Connection retries parameter

Large downloads are slow

• TerraClimate data is downloaded over the internet
• Large areas or long year ranges will take longer
• Try a smaller region first if you want to test the workflow

Credits

• Author: Hemed Lungo (Hemedlungo@gmail.com)
• Icon: Fusion5085
• TerraClimate Dataset: Abatzoglou, J.T., S.Z. Dobrowski, S.A. Parks, K.C. Hegewisch (2018), Scientific Data

Links

• GitHub Repository
• TerraClimate Website
• Report Issues

License

See LICENSE.

0.0.8 Security hardening

• Resolved 17 Bandit findings.
• Removed silent exception swallowing from processing and installer paths.
• Replaced subprocess.Popen with validated Qt QProcess launches.
• Restricted process execution to absolute executable paths and fixed installer arguments.