Data & sources
Coldfront uses only publicly available data. The details per source come from the project source list. The retrieval date and checksum show which version of the data was used.
Data sources used
Abwassersurveillance AMELAG (Einzelstandorte)
- Licence
- CC BY 4.0
- Retrieved on
- Reference
- https://raw.githubusercontent.com/robert-koch-institut/Abwassersurveillance_AMELAG/main/amelag_einzelstandorte.tsv
- SHA-256 (shortened)
8f15105e87dd…- Attribution
- Robert Koch-Institut und Umweltbundesamt, Abwassersurveillance AMELAG, CC BY 4.0
BKG VG250 Verwaltungsgebiete 1:250 000 (Bundesländer)
- Licence
- dl-de/by-2-0
- Retrieved on
- Reference
- https://sgx.geodatenzentrum.de/wfs_vg250
- SHA-256 (shortened)
edc6778c747d…- Attribution
- © GeoBasis-DE / BKG (2026) dl-de/by-2-0; Datenquellen: https://sgx.geodatenzentrum.de/web_public/gdz/datenquellen/datenquellen_vg_nuts.pdf; Geometrie vereinfacht (bearbeitet)
DWD Climate Data Center, daily station observations (kl)
- Licence
- CC BY 4.0
- Retrieved on
- Reference
- https://opendata.dwd.de/climate_environment/CDC/observations_germany/climate/daily/kl/
- SHA-256 (shortened)
n/a (many station files)- Attribution
- Quelle: Deutscher Wetterdienst; Wochenmittel der Tageswerte (TXK, TNK) aus mehreren Stationen berechnet
GeoNames Cities (population > 500), Germany
- Licence
- CC BY 4.0
- Retrieved on
- Reference
- https://download.geonames.org/export/dump/cities500.zip
- SHA-256 (shortened)
f92aa55f4a60…- Attribution
- GeoNames, https://www.geonames.org, CC BY 4.0
GeoNames Postal Codes Germany
- Licence
- CC BY 4.0
- Retrieved on
- Reference
- https://download.geonames.org/export/zip/DE.zip
- SHA-256 (shortened)
128138d8c2f9…- Attribution
- GeoNames, https://www.geonames.org, CC BY 4.0
ARE-Konsultationsinzidenz
- Licence
- CC BY 4.0
- Retrieved on
- Reference
- https://raw.githubusercontent.com/robert-koch-institut/ARE-Konsultationsinzidenz/main/ARE-Konsultationsinzidenz.tsv
- SHA-256 (shortened)
9f4487193945…- Attribution
- Robert Koch-Institut, ARE-Konsultationsinzidenz, CC BY 4.0
GrippeWeb Daten des Wochenberichts
- Licence
- CC BY 4.0
- Retrieved on
- Reference
- https://raw.githubusercontent.com/robert-koch-institut/GrippeWeb_Daten_des_Wochenberichts/main/GrippeWeb_Daten_des_Wochenberichts.tsv
- SHA-256 (shortened)
64d2538eb0f0…- Attribution
- Robert Koch-Institut, GrippeWeb Daten des Wochenberichts, CC BY 4.0
Influenzafälle in Deutschland
- Licence
- CC BY 4.0
- Retrieved on
- Reference
- https://raw.githubusercontent.com/robert-koch-institut/Influenzafaelle_in_Deutschland/main/IfSG_Influenzafaelle.tsv
- SHA-256 (shortened)
70b7b610a652…- Attribution
- Robert Koch-Institut, Influenzafälle in Deutschland, CC BY 4.0
Wikidata entity data (coordinates P625, administrative units P131) used to identify and cross-check wastewater plant localities
- Licence
- CC0 1.0
- Retrieved on
- Reference
- https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Special:EntityData/
- SHA-256 (shortened)
e1a2b714fcca…- Attribution
- Wikidata, CC0 1.0
Required notices
This project is not created or endorsed by RKI, DWD or other named bodies. Forecasts are our own calculations based on the data; changes have been made.
Licences per source
| Source | Licence | Attribution and notes |
|---|---|---|
| RKI datasets (ARE consultation incidence, GrippeWeb, influenza cases) | CC BY 4.0 | Attribution as in the source list, e.g. "Robert Koch-Institut, ARE-Konsultationsinzidenz, CC BY 4.0". Weekly values are used. |
| AMELAG wastewater surveillance (single sites) | CC BY 4.0 | Attribution: "Robert Koch-Institut und Umweltbundesamt, Abwassersurveillance AMELAG, CC BY 4.0". The programme is time-limited. |
| DWD climate data (daily values, temperature) | CC BY 4.0 | Attribution: "Quelle: Deutscher Wetterdienst". Change notice: weekly means calculated from daily values of several stations. |
| BKG VG250 administrative boundaries (federal states) | dl-de/by-2-0 | Attribution: "© GeoBasis-DE / BKG (2026) dl-de/by-2-0". Geometry simplified (edited). BKG data sources |
| GeoNames postal codes Germany | CC BY 4.0 | Attribution: "GeoNames, https://www.geonames.org, CC BY 4.0". geonames.org |
| Vacation periods per federal state | Stated per entry | Attribution: "Ferientermine: Kultusministerkonferenz, Ferienkalender der Länder; eigene Erfassung, Quelle je Eintrag". |
Sources not used
These kinds of data are deliberately not used:
- Sources with a share-alike condition or an unclear licence. They would restrict the licence of the forecasts or make their reuse uncertain.
- Indicators based on search queries. In the literature, such an approach overestimated the influenza peak of the 2012/13 season by about 140 %. For this reason such signals are not used in the models.
Limitations of the data
- Retrospective corrections: ARE consultation incidence is corrected retrospectively for about the last four weeks. Forecasts use the data version that is current at the time of issue.
- Wastewater data arrive up to two weeks late and may stop, because the programme is time-limited.
- The model remains usable without wastewater data.