pkg.soopen package index

brew / rank 4689

Install ncview with Homebrew, apt, dnf, MacPorts, Nix

Visual browser for netCDF format files. Version 2.1.11 via Homebrew; verified 2026-07-22. Also installable with debian: sudo apt install ncview.

Install commandSecurity notes

install

Additional install commands

macOS

Homebrewverified · 100%
brew install ncview

local Homebrew formula metadata

MacPortsverified · 94%
sudo port install ncview

MacPorts ports tree · science/ncview/Portfile · source: api.github.com

Linux

Debian aptverified · 92%
sudo apt install ncview

Debian stable package indexes · ncview · source: deb.debian.org

Fedora dnfverified · 92%
sudo dnf install ncview

Fedora Rawhide package metadata · ncview · source: dl.fedoraproject.org

Nixverified · 92%
nix profile install nixpkgs#ncview

nixpkgs package indexes · pkgs/by-name/nc/ncview/package.nix · source: api.github.com

overview

Package summary

Visual browser for netCDF format files

Commands and aliases

  • ncview

history

Project history and usage

ncview is David W. Pierce's X11 visual browser for netCDF files, aimed at quick inspection rather than full analysis. The official page describes it as a way to get a push-button look at netCDF data, animate time slices, browse dimensions, inspect values, and change colormaps.

Project history

The distributed README for ncview 1.75 is dated March 20, 1999 and states copyright from 1993 through 1999, so the project belongs to the early scientific Unix/X11 era around netCDF. The README explicitly frames ncview as a lightweight viewer for movies and simple plots, not as a replacement for commercial analysis packages.

The project remained tied to the netCDF ecosystem: its build instructions require the netCDF library and optionally UDUNITS, and the official page says version 2.1.11 was updated on November 26, 2024.

Adoption history

ncview has persisted because climate, ocean, atmospheric, and HPC users still need a fast graphical sanity check for array-oriented scientific files. Debian packages it under science, and Homebrew lists binary bottle support for macOS and Linux.

On July 1, 2026, Homebrew Formulae listed ncview 2.1.11 with 670 installs in its 365-day analytics window, which is modest but real usage for an X11 scientific utility.

How it is used

Package nerd usage is simple: install netCDF/X11 dependencies, run `ncview file.nc`, then scrub through dimensions or time steps to see whether a model or instrument output looks sane before doing heavier analysis in Python, NCO, CDO, Panoply, MATLAB, or domain-specific tooling.

The official page's notes on missing values, units, long_name, title, add_offset, scale_factor, dimensional variables, and UDUNITS support explain why ncview works best on netCDF files that follow common metadata conventions.

Why package nerds care

ncview is a classic small scientific Unix tool: old UI stack, narrow purpose, durable because the file format and workflow survived. It is especially useful in package indexes because its dependencies signal the netCDF plus X11 visualization niche.

Timeline

  • {'date': '1993', 'event': 'Earliest copyright year listed in the ncview 1.75 README.'}
  • {'date': '1999-03-20', 'event': 'ncview 1.75 README date.'}
  • {'date': '2024-11-26', 'event': 'Official page says ncview 2.1.11 was updated.'}
  • {'date': '2026-07-01', 'event': 'Homebrew Formulae listed stable 2.1.11 and 670 installs in the 365-day analytics window.'}

Related projects

  • netCDF
  • UDUNITS
  • X11 Athena Widget Set
  • Panoply
  • NCO
  • CDO

security posture

Risk level: green

narrow executable package without higher-risk signals.

Risk classifier

green risk · low confidence · appliance

Why

  • narrow executable package without higher-risk signals

Signals

  • metadata:no-higher-risk-signals

Install behavior

  • No Homebrew bottle metadata was recorded.

Recommended review

Before unattended agent use, check whether the tool reads plaintext credentials, writes remote state, publishes artifacts, or shells out to plugins.

executables

Installed executables

CommandKindExposureNote
ncviewexecutableindexed executableDiscovered from the local executable index.

freshness

Version and freshness

These signals separate page generation age, package-manager activity, and upstream release comparison. Version lag is warned only when an evidence URL and comparable versions are present.

page generated2026-08-03
manager version2.1.11
manager updated2026-07-22
local dataunknown
upstreamnot available
latest detectednot detected
  • okNo freshness warnings were generated.

install metadata

Package metadata

Package keybrew:ncview
Version2.1.11
Package managerHomebrew
Homepagehttps://cirrus.ucsd.edu/ncview/
Last updated2026-07-22T16:43:57-04:00
Pulseupdated
Bottlenot recorded
Servicenone declared

source database matches

Other package-manager records

Matches are pulled from external package-manager indexes and kept separate from local Automic Vault package links.

Debian apt95%

ncview 2.1.11+ds-1+b1

X11 visual browser for NetCDF format files

https://cirrus.ucsd.edu/ncview/

sudo apt install ncview
  • Section: science
  • Architecture: amd64
  • Source Package: ncview
  • 7 dependencies
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: Ncview
Debian stable package indexes · deb.debian.org · Debian stable package indexes: ncview from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz
Nix95%

ncview

nix profile install nixpkgs#ncview
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: Ncview
nixpkgs package indexes · api.github.com · nixpkgs package indexes: pkgs/by-name/nc/ncview/package.nix from https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/git/trees/master?recursive=1
Ubuntu apt95%

ncview 2.1.8+ds-5build3

X11 visual browser for NetCDF format files

http://meteora.ucsd.edu/~pierce/ncview_home_page.html

sudo apt install ncview
  • Section: universe/science
  • Architecture: amd64
  • 7 dependencies
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: Ncview
Ubuntu 24.04 LTS package indexes · archive.ubuntu.com · Ubuntu 24.04 LTS package indexes: ncview from https://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/dists/noble/universe/binary-amd64/Packages.gz
dnf95%

ncview 2.1.11-8.fc45

A visual browser for netCDF format files

https://cirrus.ucsd.edu/ncview/

sudo dnf install ncview
  • License: GPL-3.0-only
  • Category: Unspecified
  • Architecture: x86_64
  • Source Package: ncview
  • 12 dependencies
  • 1 provides
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: Ncview
Fedora Rawhide package metadata · dl.fedoraproject.org · Fedora Rawhide package metadata: ncview from https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/fedora/linux/development/rawhide/Everything/x86_64/os/repodata/07190dc5ae9f35ae73866675fed6d95fe6e8d9fe22c9d7cdf85862cb2ed24a4c-primary.xml.zst
MacPorts95%

ncview

sudo port install ncview
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: Ncview
MacPorts ports tree · api.github.com · MacPorts ports tree: science/ncview/Portfile from https://api.github.com/repos/macports/macports-ports/git/trees/master?recursive=1

package graph

Links come from deterministic package relationships, av.db category and tag curation, ecosystem matches, and package hub membership.

source trail

Generated from repository data

This page is generated by av-web from the private package SQLite artifact built by scripts/generate-pkg-sqlite.py.

Used sources

  • Geiger risk classifier
  • cross-ecosystem install command graph
  • curated package history
  • external package-manager database matches
  • pkg.so package database
  • pkgdb category and tag curation