Do you follow weather? Do TV News weather reports bore you?

[MineralMan]

Are mobile weather apps unsatisfying?

Yesterday, I saw a new way of looking at global weather, thanks to a link in a thread from Leith on DU. A global weather mapping website:
https://www.ventusky.com/
has about the best global weather maps I have ever encountered. You can look at those maps in a huge variety of ways, and they're interactive, letting you zoom in to your own immediate area or out to view the entire planet's weather.

Thanks to Leith, here's the post my link came from: https://www.democraticunderground.com/100212819366#post18

I particularly like the wind speed mapping, which lets to see wind patters at ground level or at higher altitudes, right up to the stratosphere, including at jetstream level. But, there are also cloud maps, radar maps, temperature maps, precipitation maps and many other ways of looking at weather on our planet. You can also look back in time or into future projections, based on a range of weather prediction models.

Ventusky is also available as a mobile app for cell phones and tablets. Just search your app store for Ventusky. The basic app is free, but the full-featured version subscription costs only $2.99 per year. I can't recommend this too strongly for people who want to see weather so they can do their own predictions, based on the same kinds of information meteorologists use.

Almost every setting has multiple options, so you can customize the display in an almost infinite number of ways.

You can see one display of a temperature map below:

Note: I have no connection whatsoever with the website or company.

[tblue37]

1. K&R and thanks. nt

[MineralMan]

3. Be warned: It's addicting. You can spend a lot of time using it.

I put it on my cell phone, and I'm finding myself checking it often.

[randr]

2. Have not watched a "weather report" since my first smart phone

Show me the radar app and I'll figure it out

[MineralMan]

6. Exactly. I got really tired of TV Weather talking about the Twin Cities

like the weather was the same everywhere in the Metro area. If I can look at radar, wind, and temperatures, I can predict way more precisely than the TV weather can, and zoom in to my own immediate area to see weather boundaries, if I wish.

I'll never use weather.com again.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

4. Wow, that's a keeper! Thanks!

I'm fascinated by weather; I had to learn a lot about it when working on my pilot's license and still use that knowledge when sailing (flying got too expensive). I even took a meteorology course at a community college, still have the textbook and can still talk about stuff like dry adiabatic lapse rates. This is a weather nerd's dream site!

[Wounded Bear]

5. The Weather Channel is my go to...

emergency switch-to when Trump comes on TV. While listening to MSNBC, it's usually where the tuner goes when I hit "last."



Nice looking app, though. Thanks.

[MineralMan]

7. The desktop version is even more flexible and useful.

But, the phone app is great, too.

[calimary]

43. We feel that way, too.

If both MSNBC and CNN are in commercials, my husband will switch to the Weather Channel. I find I look for the latest evidence of the climate crisis that n the coverage.

[Silent3]

8. What is this ven TUSS kee thing?

Yes, I'm sure it's pronounced VEN too SKY, but I can't help hearing Ventusky in my mind as ven TUSS kee instead.

[MineralMan]

9. From what I understand, it's a Czech website.

It's a pretty amazing visual compilation of global weather data, I think. I have no idea how they do it, but it's spectacular.

I'm sure it should be pronounced ven TOO ski

[Leghorn21]

10. Ohhhhhhhhhhh

My sister and I are 100% weather freaks, now and forever

This is GLORIOUS, and I shall tell her it’s from MineralMan!!

[MineralMan]

13. Amazing, isn't it?

The more you play with its settings, the more you can learn.

[smirkymonkey]

11. I love this!

Thank you! Great maps.

[MineralMan]

18. Enjoy!

[MineralMan]

12. Here's another image - Wind at 5500 Meters altitude - Jetstream

Last edited Sat Dec 28, 2019, 01:09 PM - Edit history (1)

This is current, from the desktop site:

[Lochloosa]

14. This Floridian thanks you. We tend to pay attention to the weather here.

[MineralMan]

15. I'll bet you do. I do, too, but for different types of weather

than you experience. It'll be great during hurricane season, I think.

[Lochloosa]

23. That's what I was thinking.

[MineralMan]

24. One of the things I'm going to try with it

is to look at a hurricane's winds at different altitudes, using the map. That should give me a 3-D look at the storm, I think. There are so many ways that site can look at things. It's pretty amazing, really, and I haven't even explored all of its options yet.

[XRubicon]

16. This is good- downloaded the app

Thanks.

[MineralMan]

17. The free version of the app is limited. But $2.99 per year is worth

expanding your ways of viewing the maps, I think. I like the desktop version best, of course, but the app is good if you subscribe.

[WhiteTara]

19. What a fabulous website!!!

I love the wind pattern too. Our little mountain top is situated so perfectly that we rarely have terrible weather. It's almost like early spring out here rather than early winter. Global warming.

[MineralMan]

21. That was my reaction, too. I was amazed!

It's not often I post about any website here, but this one seemed worth pointing out to people.

[KY_EnviroGuy]

20. Thanks, MM. I rarely watch local TV weather except...

when dangerous storms with potential for tornadoes come through. The local stations have Doppler radar that sees those things real-time and help us be forewarned to head for cover......

Normally, I just hit NOAA's local 7-day weather page for my daily needs.

Here's another site similar to the one you posted:

Windy is a Czech company providing interactive weather forecasting services worldwide.

Link: https://www.windy.com/

The portal was founded by Ivo Lukačovič in November 2014. Currently, weather forecasts are based on data from the GFS models, ECMWF, and NEMS model from the Swiss company Meteoblue. Initially, the portal focused on wind animation, currently there are other basic meteorological parameters such as temperature, pressure, relative humidity, cloud base and additional panels with more advanced data. The wind animation is based on the open sources project of Cameron Beccario earth. (from Wikipedia)

I suspect all these sites use the same streaming data fed by national weather systems like NOAA and perhaps via this organization:

The World Meteorological Organization (WMO)
Link: https://public.wmo.int/en

The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) is an intergovernmental organization with a membership of 193 Member States and Territories. It originated from the International Meteorological Organization (IMO), the roots of which were planted at the 1873 Vienna International Meteorological Congress. Established by the ratification of the WMO Convention on 23 March 1950, WMO became the specialised agency of the United Nations for meteorology (weather and climate), operational hydrology and related geophysical sciences a year later. The Secretariat, headquartered in Geneva, is headed by the Secretary-General. Its supreme body is the World Meteorological Congress.

Those sites are mesmerizing......

[MineralMan]

22. What an amazing planet we live on, eh?

[KY_EnviroGuy]

28. Yes, and some good things do come through the internet.

Sites providing global weather data and forecasting remind me of how the international scientific community cooperates with little entry of politics. Also with complex scientific endeavors like CERN and global health hazard links as with our CDC.

What a relief from the daily head-spinning flood of US political bullshit......

[MineralMan]

30. I agree. It's a great way to learn new things.

There's so much more out there than politics.

[malaise]

25. Bookmarking your thread with the links

Happy Holidays to you and yours

[MineralMan]

26. And to you and yours as well.

It's almost Election Year! Hoorah!

[robbob]

27. Bookmarking to check later

Looks fascinating!

[DemoTex]

29. I use Windy dot Com

I wish these new weather apps had been around back when I was flying captain on the airline! Far better weather products than I ever got with my dispatch release papers.

[MineralMan]

31. That's another good one.

We have such amazing access to information now!

[jpak]

47. My go-to weather site

[liberaltrucker]

57. Same when I was on the road.

Would've saved a lot of headaches.

[Wolf Frankula]

32. I stopped watching TV weather reports decades ago.

To them, if the weather is not hot and sunny, it's bad. Except at Christmas when it MUST SNOW. Remembering a place where there was a drought into late October, (it's usually very rainy) and the weatherbeasts chattered "And tomorrow's going to be another wonderful, warm, summery day.

Wolf

[MineralMan]

33. I still see TV weather daily, but it's almost useless.

Where I am, they just refer to the Twin Cities or the Metro area in their weather reports. To find out what's going to happen right where you live is very difficult from that broad area. I pay no attention to what they say, but look at the weather radar to get an idea what will happen in St. Paul, which could be very different from somewhere else in the Twin Cities. It's frustrating, but there are other tools I can use to get a clearer picture, like that website.

[safeinOhio]

34. Bob Dylan...

Don’t need no weatherman to tell me which way the wind blows.

Thanks for the link.

[MineralMan]

35. Exactly!

A Minnesota boy who made good!

[safeinOhio]

36. Johnny is in the basement

mixing up the medicine

I’m on the pavement thinking about the government.

New day and same ole blues.

[MineralMan]

37. My favorite is "Talking World War III Blues"

One of my favorites, anyhow.

Well, I rung the fallout shelter bell
And I leaned my head and I gave a yell
Give me a string bean, I'm a hungry man
A shotgun fired and away I ran
I don't blame them too much though
They didn't know me.

[safeinOhio]

40. Mine is the Story of

Hurricane

I remember watching him fight.

[MineralMan]

41. Another good one.

He was my hero in my last year in high school, and Joan Baez was my biggest crush.

I never met Dylan, but I did meet Baez. It went nowhere, though, sad to say, so I switched and started crushing on Linda Ronstadt. That was equally useless, so I decided to lower my sights a bit.

[Martin Eden]

38. Thanks, I will check out the weather app

I travel several times a year to go hiking & backpacking, so this could be better than other options.

[SWBTATTReg]

39. Thanks so much. I attempted to watch something on YouTube, weather-wise, and I was...

disappointed and didn't even watch it to completion. Some people on YouTube kind of drone on and on, and the video is often times grainy/not clear.

This website you provided is wonderful. It will be handy when we have tornado season here in STLMO.

[UpInArms]

42. Awesome!

Thanks for the info!

[MineralMan]

51. You're more than welcome.

[rickmoen]

44. Already My Favorite

Thank you for posting this! Already my favorite weather app.

[MineralMan]

48. Enjoy!

[RainCaster]

45. Very entertaining, thanks!

[MineralMan]

50. My pleasure.

[marlakay]

46. Thanks for new site

I use rogueweather.com for local weather and he goes to areas on all sides to giving all pass info in the winter and fire info in summer. Guy who runs it is the best!

He is retired guy who was in charge of the fire teams for years putting out forest fires around here and runs this weather site in his retirement and is the best for can you travel or not on any road within 100 miles of here.

Totally explains the smoke and where it is coming from in summer.

So if you ever have to travel in Southern Oregon or over pass from Cali to OR and not sure of roads check his site. Main site general info ok but more better info on FB.

[MineralMan]

49. Love it. That's the true spirit of community service!

[GusBob]

52. Fairly accurate for hurricane predictions

Mostly

[MineralMan]

54. You can choose your prediction model, at least on the desktop site.

I'm still exploring the site.

[GusBob]

61. Yes Sir, well I only use it for canes

It and the National Hurricane Center

At my other home in Montana the weather is more volatile and hard to predict, the National Weather Service does a very good job predicting it

Of course conservatives are trying to put the NWS out of business

[Ohiogal]

53. It's very cool.

But I wish "Waves" included the Great Lakes! My hubby fishes Lake Erie and always checks the marine forecast before he goes out. This would be great if they had that, because it has all that other stuff included.

[MineralMan]

55. I didn't think of that. The Great Lakes data might not be available to

the Czech company that does the site. There are good local sources for that info, though. I'd check, too, but I have never had a boat on Lake Superior. It's a couple of hours drive from my house.

[Backseat Driver]

56. K & R - Thanks so much for these links!

We lost our local WHIO TV weather geek, Chris Bradley, last year to lymphoma, and we miss him and his usually faultless forecasts. Do you know about mPING for reporting your immediate local weather conditions? https://www.citizenscience.gov/mping-weather-reports/#

[MineralMan]

58. Thanks for that link.

I'll check it out.

[Silver1]

59. Thank you!

What an incredible site. My husband and I just spent an hour perusing. Such incredibly clear graphics. He's a weather buff and will be exploring it thoroughly.

In case you don't know about it, Weather Underground is a great place to look at detailed local weather conditions. Here's the page for Washington, DC. https://www.wunderground.com/forecast/us/dc/washington

But we all already know it's icy cold in the heart of the White House ...

[MineralMan]

60. I'm glad you're enjoying it!