Matplotlib Example

Hello! ... I reported the following issue in the Matplotlib repo... and they said to bring it to your attention:

The Matplotlib Sample: "Plot Precip With Filled Contours"
https://matplotlib.org/basemap/users/examples.html

code source: https://matplotlib.org/basemap/users/figures/plotprecip.py

seems to be dated... I say "seems" because this is my first week of python! :)

Code for reproduction
The variables as specified in your code do not seem to exist:
latcorners = nc.variables['lat'][:]
loncorners = -nc.variables['lon'][:]
lon_0 = -nc.variables['true_lon'].getValue()
lat_0 = nc.variables['true_lat'].getValue()

I'm guessing because that data is from 2006 and something has changed since then :)

I have been failing with new data located here:
http://water.weather.gov/precip/downloads/2018/01/24/nws_precip_1day_20180124_conus.nc

surely there is a way for matplotlib to cull the information needed from the file? if not I figure I'll do the long math..

use your code located here
code source: https://matplotlib.org/basemap/users/figures/plotprecip.py

but also notice that not only are the lat lon variables present, your variable:
prcpvar = nc.variables['amountofprecip']

will need to be adjusted to prcpvar = nc.variables['observation']

and the units are now inches instead of mm.

Here is the issue I submitted to matplotlib:
https://github.com/matplotlib/matplotlib/issues/10318

Inizia da basemap/users/figures/plotprecip.py e confronta le sue variabili con il file NetCDF più recente collegato nell’issue. Controlla l’issue di Matplotlib indicata per il contesto, quindi aggiorna l’esempio in modo che i suoi campi dati e le sue unità corrispondano alla sorgente supportata e verifica che l’esempio venga eseguito.