Definition
A surface weather chart, derived from METAR reports, that uses symbols to show areas of IFR, marginal VFR, and VFR conditions, along with cloud cover, ceiling heights, visibility, weather, and frontal positions across a wide region at a given valid time.
Plain English
A simplified weather map that shades the country into zones showing where flying conditions are good, marginal, or instrument-only, so a pilot can see at a glance what the weather looks like over a large area.
Context Anchor
Seen during preflight planning, especially when a pilot wants a quick big-picture look at areas of low clouds, reduced visibility, or instrument conditions along a route.
Derivation
Depiction' comes from the Latin 'depingere', meaning 'to portray' or 'paint'. The chart literally paints a picture of the weather across the country, rather than listing it station by station.
Why Pilots Care
Allows rapid assessment of whether reported conditions meet IFR minimums along a planned route and helps identify the need for an alternate airport.
Intuition Check
Do not assume a weather depiction chart is a forecast. It depicts reported conditions at the time of the observations, so a pilot still needs current reports and forecasts before making a go/no-go decision.
Example Sentence 1
During preflight, the pilot pulled up the weather depiction chart and saw a broad band of IFR conditions shaded across the route.
Example Sentence 2
Red shaded areas on the weather depiction chart indicated IFR conditions, prompting the pilot to select a suitable alternate airport.