diff --git a/.claude/CLAUDE.md b/.claude/CLAUDE.md
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+# CLAUDE.md — Claude Code Instructions for xCDAT
+
+## Canonical Reference
+
+All coding standards, architecture constraints, testing conventions, and
+dependency policies are defined in **`AGENTS.md`** at the repository root.
+Apply those rules to all generated code and suggestions.
+
+## Claude-Specific Behavior
+
+- Read `AGENTS.md` at the start of each session for full project context.
+- Ground all suggestions in the actual repository structure and existing code.
+- Do not invent files, modules, or configuration not present in the repository.
+- When uncertain about project conventions, consult `AGENTS.md`, `pyproject.toml`,
+  or `.pre-commit-config.yaml`.
+
+## Quick Reference — Build Commands
+
+```bash
+make install       # install local build
+make lint          # ruff check + fix
+make format        # ruff format
+make test          # full test suite with coverage
+pytest tests/test_<module>.py  # targeted tests
+make docs          # build Sphinx documentation
+```
diff --git a/.github/copilot-instructions.md b/.github/copilot-instructions.md
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+# Copilot Instructions for xCDAT
+
+<!-- This file is automatically applied to all GitHub Copilot Chat requests in this workspace. -->
+
+## Canonical Reference
+
+All coding standards, architecture constraints, testing conventions, and
+dependency policies are defined in **`AGENTS.md`** at the repository root.
+Apply those rules to every response in this workspace.
+
+## Copilot-Specific Behavior
+
+- Always ground suggestions in the actual repository structure and existing code.
+- Do not hallucinate files, modules, or configuration that are not present in the
+  repository.
+- Prefer patterns already established in the codebase over speculative alternatives.
+- Do not generate code that violates the rules in `AGENTS.md`.
+- When uncertain about project conventions, consult `AGENTS.md`, `pyproject.toml`,
+  or `.pre-commit-config.yaml` rather than guessing.
diff --git a/AGENTS.md b/AGENTS.md
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+# AGENTS.md — AI Development Guidelines for xCDAT
+
+This file is the canonical, tool-agnostic source of AI development rules for the
+[xCDAT](https://github.com/xCDAT/xcdat) project. Tool-specific files
+(`.github/copilot-instructions.md`, `.claude/CLAUDE.md`) contain concise extracts
+aligned with this document.
+
+## Project Overview
+
+xCDAT (Xarray Climate Data Analysis Tools) is a Python library that extends
+[xarray](https://xarray.dev) for climate data analysis on structured grids. It
+provides spatial/temporal averaging, regridding, bounds handling, and dataset
+I/O with CF-convention support.
+
+See `pyproject.toml` for the minimum supported Python version and all dependency
+constraints.
+
+## Repository Layout
+
+```
+xcdat/              # Main package source
+  axis.py           # Coordinate axis utilities
+  bounds.py         # BoundsAccessor (xarray accessor)
+  dataset.py        # Dataset I/O (open_dataset, open_mfdataset)
+  spatial.py        # SpatialAccessor for spatial averaging
+  temporal.py       # TemporalAccessor for temporal averaging
+  mask.py           # Masking operations
+  regridder/        # Regridding subpackage (xESMF, xgcm, regrid2)
+  utils.py          # Shared utility functions
+  _logger.py        # Logger setup
+  tutorial.py       # Sample data utilities
+tests/              # Pytest test suite (test_*.py)
+docs/               # Sphinx documentation
+conda-env/          # Conda environment files
+```
+
+## Coding Standards
+
+- **Formatter / Linter**: Ruff — handles formatting, linting, and import sorting.
+  See `pyproject.toml` under `[tool.ruff]` for configuration.
+- **Type Checking**: MyPy — all public APIs must include type annotations.
+  See `pyproject.toml` under `[tool.mypy]` for configuration.
+- **Docstrings**: Use **NumPy-style** docstrings for all public functions, classes,
+  and methods. Include `Parameters`, `Returns`, and `Raises` sections as applicable.
+- **Imports**: Use absolute imports within the package
+  (e.g., `from xcdat.axis import get_dim_coords`). Import sorting is handled by Ruff.
+- **Pre-commit**: The project uses pre-commit hooks. See `.pre-commit-config.yaml`
+  for the configured checks (Ruff, MyPy, whitespace, etc.).
+- **License**: New contributions must be made under the Apache-2.0 with LLVM exception
+  license.
+
+## Architecture
+
+- **xarray Accessors**: `BoundsAccessor`, `SpatialAccessor`, `TemporalAccessor`, and
+  `RegridderAccessor` extend `xr.Dataset` via `@xr.register_dataset_accessor`.
+  Follow this pattern when adding new dataset-level functionality.
+- **CF Conventions**: Use `cf_xarray` for coordinate discovery. Always reference axes
+  by CF standard names or axis attributes, not hardcoded dimension names.
+- **Module Responsibility**: Each module has a single clear responsibility. Avoid
+  circular imports. Shared helpers go in `utils.py`.
+- **Public API**: All public symbols are re-exported from `xcdat/__init__.py`. When
+  adding a new public function or class, add it to `__init__.py`.
+
+## Testing Conventions
+
+- **Framework**: pytest with pytest-cov. See `pyproject.toml` under
+  `[tool.pytest.ini_options]` for configuration.
+- **File Naming**: Test files live in `tests/` and follow the pattern `test_<module>.py`.
+- **Assertions**: Prefer `xarray.testing.assert_identical` and
+  `xarray.testing.assert_allclose` for comparing xarray objects.
+- **Fixtures**: Use pytest fixtures for reusable test data. Construct expected results
+  explicitly and compare against actual output.
+- **Running Tests**: `pytest` (full suite) or `pytest tests/test_<module>.py` (targeted).
+  Use `make test` for the full suite with coverage.
+
+## Dependencies
+
+- See `pyproject.toml` under `[project.dependencies]` for runtime dependencies and
+  version constraints.
+- See `pyproject.toml` under `[project.optional-dependencies]` for dev, test, and
+  docs dependencies.
+- Do not add new runtime dependencies without discussion. Prefer leveraging existing
+  dependencies before introducing new ones.
+
+## Build & Development
+
+```bash
+# Create dev environment
+conda env create -f conda-env/dev.yml
+conda activate xcdat_dev
+
+# Install local build
+make install  # or: python -m pip install .
+
+# Quality assurance
+make lint          # ruff check + fix
+make format        # ruff format
+make pre-commit    # run all pre-commit hooks
+
+# Testing
+make test                        # full suite with coverage
+pytest tests/test_<module>.py    # targeted tests
+
+# Documentation
+make docs  # build Sphinx HTML docs
+```
+
+## Workflow Rules
+
+- Always run `pre-commit run --all-files` before committing.
+- Every PR should include tests for new or changed behavior.
+- Do not modify unrelated code or tests.
+- Keep changes minimal and focused on the issue being addressed.
+- Use meaningful commit messages that summarize the change.