GarbinWx Public API Service

As part of our public service, GarbinWx provides direct, read-only JSON feeds of near real-time earthquake, tsunami, and weather alert data. These feeds are accessible without authentication and return standardized JSON data.

General Guidelines & Usage

CORS headers are automatically enabled for all services (Access-Control-Allow-Origin: *). Proxy or replicate this data before using it in your application to prevent undue stress on our existing infrastructure. Implement client-side caching to manage traffic and prevent API abuse. Strict rate limiting is enforced across all services.

Important Safety Notice

GarbinWx provides this public API service as an additional resource for your convenience. While we strive for accuracy, the information provided may not be complete, timely, or error-free. GarbinWx should not be considered a primary source of official weather warnings or a substitute for professional judgment.

By using this data, you agree to the terms of use and the required attribution under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Seismic Data

Earthquakes API

Near real-time earthquake records and bulletins from the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS).

GET https://data.garbinwx.org/api/earthquakes.json

Example Response

{
  "metadata": {
    "api_source": "GarbinWx Public API Service",
    "data_source": "Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology",
    "last_updated": "2026-09-05T11:00:00.000000+08:00",
    "total_earthquakes": 2,
    "developer_note": "Made by a Filipino, For the Filipino, and For the World. This API is free for non-commercial use, is not affiliated with any government entities, and is solely operated independently by GarbinWx. We extend our sincere gratitude to all our generous supporters. Proxy or replicate this data before using it in your application to prevent undue stress on our existing infrastructure."
  },
  "earthquakes": [
    {
      "timestamp_iso": "2026-09-05T10:32:00+08:00",
      "latitude": 16.04,
      "longitude": 120.04,
      "depth_km": 34,
      "magnitude": 1.5,
      "location": "006 km S 63° W of Sual (Pangasinan)",
      "bulletin_url": "https://earthquake.phivolcs.dost.gov.ph/2026_Earthquake_Information\\September\\2026_0905_0232_B1.html"
    },
    {
      "timestamp_iso": "2026-09-05T09:49:00+08:00",
      "latitude": 5.32,
      "longitude": 125.34,
      "depth_km": 31,
      "magnitude": 2.1,
      "location": "014 km S 42° W of Balut Island (Municipality Of Sarangani) (Davao Occidental)",
      "bulletin_url": "https://earthquake.phivolcs.dost.gov.ph/2026_Earthquake_Information\\September\\2026_0905_0149_B1F.html"
    },

    DATA CONTINUES...
  ]
}

TSUNAMI ALERTS

Tsunami API

Active tsunami watches, advisories, and warnings issued by the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS).

GET https://data.garbinwx.org/api/tsunami.json

Example Responses

{
  "metadata": {
    "api_source": "GarbinWx Public API Service",
    "data_source": "Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology",
    "last_updated": "2026-01-01T16:00:00.000000+08:00",
    "developer_note": "Made by a Filipino, For the Filipino, and For the World. This API is free for non-commercial use, is not affiliated with any government entities, and is solely operated independently by GarbinWx. We extend our sincere gratitude to all our generous supporters. Proxy or replicate this data before using it in your application to prevent undue stress on our existing infrastructure."
  },
  "tsunami": []
}

{
  "metadata": {
    "api_source": "GarbinWx Public API Service",
    "data_source": "Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology",
    "last_updated": "2026-01-01T16:00:00.000000+08:00",
    "developer_note": "Made by a Filipino, For the Filipino, and For the World. This API is free for non-commercial use, is not affiliated with any government entities, and is solely operated independently by GarbinWx. We extend our sincere gratitude to all our generous supporters. Proxy or replicate this data before using it in your application to prevent undue stress on our existing infrastructure."
  },
  "tsunami": [
    {
      "date_time": "30 Jul 2025 - 07:25 AM",
      "latitude": 52.2,
      "longitude": 160.0,
      "depth_km": 74.0,
      "magnitude": 8.7,
      "location": "Off The East Coast Of Kamchatka  Russia",
      "bulletin_urls": [
        {
          "url": "https://tsunami.phivolcs.dost.gov.ph/Tsunami_Information/2025_Tsunami_Information/Jul/29/20250729_2325z_Advisory2_1.html",
          "text": "Tsunami Information # 2",
          "advisory_level": 2
        },
        {
          "url": "https://tsunami.phivolcs.dost.gov.ph/Tsunami_Information/2025_Tsunami_Information/Jul/29/20250729_2325z_Advisory0_1.html",
          "text": "Tsunami Information # 1",
          "advisory_level": 0
        }
      ],
      "threat_level": "MINOR_THREAT",
      "threat_description": "TSUNAMI ADVISORY - Minor Sea Level Disturbance Expected",
      "areas_affected": [
        "Surigao del Sur",
        "Camarines Norte",
        "Cagayan",
        "Isabela",
        "Albay",
        "Southern Leyte",
        "Surigao del Norte",
        "Davao del Sur",
        "Catanduanes",
        "Leyte",
        "Camarines Sur",
        "Davao del Norte",
        "Sorsogon",
        "Aurora",
        "Davao de Oro",
        "Davao Occidental",
        "Northern Samar",
        "Dinagat Islands",
        "Eastern Samar",
        "Batanes Group of Islands",
        "Davao Oriental",
        "Quezon"
      ]
    }
  ]
}

{
  "metadata": {
    "api_source": "GarbinWx Public API Service",
    "data_source": "Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology",
    "last_updated": "2026-01-01T16:00:00.000000+08:00",
    "developer_note": "Made by a Filipino, For the Filipino, and For the World. This API is free for non-commercial use, is not affiliated with any government entities, and is solely operated independently by GarbinWx. We extend our sincere gratitude to all our generous supporters. Proxy or replicate this data before using it in your application to prevent undue stress on our existing infrastructure."
  },
  "tsunami": [
    {
      "date_time": "10 Oct 2025 - 09:43 AM",
      "latitude": 7.22,
      "longitude": 126.97,
      "depth_km": 23.0,
      "magnitude": 7.4,
      "location": "Offshore Davao Oriental",
      "bulletin_urls": [
        {
          "url": "https://tsunami.phivolcs.dost.gov.ph/Tsunami_Information/2025_Tsunami_Information/Oct/10/20251010_0143z_Advisory3_1.html",
          "text": "Tsunami Information # 1",
          "advisory_level": 3
        }
      ],
      "threat_level": "WARNING",
      "threat_description": "TSUNAMI WARNING - Potential destructive tsunami",
      "areas_affected": [
        "Dinagat Islands",
        "Leyte",
        "Davao Oriental",
        "Southern Leyte",
        "Eastern Samar",
        "Surigao del Sur",
        "Surigao del Norte"
      ]
    }
  ]
}

Weather Alerts

Common Alerting Protocol (CAP) Alerts

Active weather alerts, thunderstorm advisory, rainfall warning, and tropical cyclone wind signals issued by the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA).

GET https://data.garbinwx.org/api/cap-alerts.json

Example Response

NO AVAILABLE DOCUMENTATION

Doppler Radar

Nationwide Doppler Radar Composite

Radar composite images are served under fixed URL patterns. You can fetch the latest live national composite directly, or pull timestamped historical archives using UTC+8 timestamps.

Note: An identification header is required to access this radar endpoint. Please contact us to request your ID header: contact@garbinwx.org

Composite URL Structure

GET https://data.garbinwx.org/raw/{RADAR-TYPE}-{YYYYMMDDHHmm}.png

Radar Image Bounds Valid after Sep 3, 2026

GeoJSON / Leaflet coordinate bounding box in [minLon, minLat, maxLon, maxLat] order:

"bounds": [
  115.41549141305251,
  3.801613036809332,
  129.51730887177652,
  22.45850950564088
]

Min Longitude

115.4155° E

Min Latitude

3.8016° N

Max Longitude

129.5173° E

Max Latitude

22.4585° N

Supported Radar Types

DBZ

Reflectivity

Radar reflectivity returns measured in dBZ (0–80 dBZ).

Rain Rate

Radar quantitative precipitation estimation (0–80 mm/hr).

Color Scale

Reflectivity (dBZ)

HEX_COLORS_DBZ = [
    '#535353',  # 1 dBZ
    '#5b5b5b',  # 2
    '#606060',  # 3
    '#6e6e6e',  # 4
    '#797979',  # 5
    '#828282',  # 6
    '#8a8a8a',  # 7
    '#939393',  # 8
    '#9b9b9b',  # 9
    '#a1a1a1',  # 10 
    '#aaaaaa',  # 11
    '#b9b9b9',  # 12
    '#c1c1c1',  # 13
    '#c8c8c8',  # 14
    '#cecece',  # 15 
    '#00ff00',  # 16
    '#00f500',  # 17
    '#00e600',  # 18
    '#00dc00',  # 19
    '#00d200',  # 20 
    '#00c800',  # 21
    '#00be00',  # 22
    '#00b400',  # 23
    '#00aa00',  # 24
    '#00a000',  # 25 
    '#009600',  # 26
    '#32aa00',  # 27
    '#64be00',  # 28
    '#96d200',  # 29
    '#cdeb00',  # 30 
    '#ffff00',  # 31
    '#fff500',  # 32
    '#ffe600',  # 33
    '#ffdc00',  # 34
    '#ffd200',  # 35 
    '#ffc800',  # 36
    '#ffb900',  # 37
    '#ffaa00',  # 38
    '#ff9600',  # 39
    '#ff8700',  # 40 
    '#ff7800',  # 41
    '#ff5f00',  # 42
    '#ff4600',  # 43
    '#ff3200',  # 44
    '#ff1900',  # 45 
    '#ff0000',  # 46
    '#ff0000',  # 47
    '#e60000',  # 48
    '#dc0000',  # 49
    '#d20000',  # 50 
    '#c80000',  # 51
    '#be0000',  # 52
    '#b40000',  # 53
    '#aa0000',  # 54
    '#a00000',  # 55 
    '#960000',  # 56
    '#aa0032',  # 57
    '#be0064',  # 58
    '#d70096',  # 59
    '#eb00cd',  # 60 
    '#ff00ff',  # 61
    '#eb00ff',  # 62
    '#d200ff',  # 63
    '#be00ff',  # 64
    '#aa00ff',  # 65 
    '#9600ff'   # 66+ dBZ
]

Rain Rate (RR) (Pending Finalization)

The color scale for mm/hr rain rate composites are currently under calibration and will be defined here upon release.

# HEX_COLORS_RR = [
#   Placeholder: Color scale for rainrate (mm/hr) to be defined
# ]

Request Example

Using Python (requests) with Required Headers

import requests

# Parameters: DBZ or RR
radar_type = "DBZ"
timestamp = "202609051610"  # UTC+8 (YYYYMMDDHHmm)
url = f"https://data.garbinwx.org/raw/{radar_type}-{timestamp}.png"

headers = {
    "User-Agent": "IDENTITY-HERE"
}

response = requests.get(url, headers=headers, stream=True)

if response.status_code == 200:
    with open(f"radar_{radar_type}_{timestamp}.png", "wb") as f:
        for chunk in response.iter_content(1024):
            f.write(chunk)
    print("Radar composite image saved successfully.")
else:
    print(f"Failed to fetch image: status code {response.status_code}")