Free Version Mobile Weather App Options: Recommendations and Selecting the Good Ones

 

Features to look for

Not all weather apps are programmed equally. Some apps will provide delayed forecasts while others will use unauthorized branded names. In the weather biz, timing is everything. Be on the lookout for timestamps on maps, radars, satellite images, etc. Some weather apps are not as user friendly and can frequently lock up a smartphone. Read reviews carefully and if you're unsure about a particular app, consider writing some of your own feedback comments. Google Play offers Android users hundreds of apps and reviews to consider. IPhone users can still look up app reviews on Google Play to see if similar ones are available from the Apple store. All screenshots I am sharing from my Android device are from weather apps that I have used.

RadarNow App

RadarNow gives live local radar scans from nearby National Weather Service forecast offices. User defined settings allow the radar to pinpoint your location based on a gps signal when the app first starts. One thing to look out for when viewing radar apps is how some lower resolution composite reflectivity radar images don't always accurately match what type of precipitation is falling from the sky. I find this particular radar app highly accurate with the base reflectivity that comes directly from the National Weather Service offices. App users are able to navigate to different radar sites using an interactive interface. Although there is no national map view option, this is one of my favorite free versions local weather radar apps. There is an optional subscription fee for more advanced features.

Earth Now App - Interactive NASA Imagery

 

This app allows users to download the latest global NASA imagery from multiple various map types. Map options include air temperature, salinity, carbon monoxide, gravity, ozone, sea level, water vapor and a default visible satellite. The app is interactive for viewing particular regions of the Earth, but the zoom feature is slightly limited. Weekly animations are available for users to download for select map types. Another interesting feature is the details button that describes the significance of the map you are viewing and a little background information about the particular map type. The remarkably stunning images from NASA are a must have!

Blitzortung Lightning Monitor App

 

This near real-time lightning detector app allows custom settings for users to choose the app refresh rate from 20 seconds up to 10 minutes. Lightning strikes are shown from the last 5 to 25 minutes. White dots indicate the most recent strikes while red dots show older data. The app also gives notifications of nearby lightning threats. I downloaded my own thunderstorm notification tone to be used as my lightning alert notification. When you see many white dots popping up near your location, take any necessary precautions to protect yourselves.

Simple Weather Alert App

Simple Weather Alert notifies users of threatening weather nearby. Notifications can be set to be received for extreme and severe warnings, moderate or worse advisories, any severity, or no alerts. There are additional options to keep the alerts silent during designated time frames. All app notification alerts are officially issued by the National Weather Service and its partners. Sometimes you may not want to be disturbed from a modest advisory during the overnight hours. However, there are situations where you would want to be alerted during higher weather risks overnight. Never rely primarily on weather apps to alert you of severe weather. Also have a NOAA weather radio nearby as your primary source.

mPing App - Report your own weather

   

mPing is a crowd-sourcing weather reporting app. Users submit their own local weather conditions to NOAA's National Severe Storms Laboratory based on their gps detected location. The reports are used to improve scientific understandings on the development processes of various weather hazards. There are many weather options to report from reduced visibility to more extreme severe weather hazards such as hail and tornadoes. Users are able to view other user submitted nearby weather reports from an interactive map. Whether you are looking for your weather conditions in your backyard or on the road, mPing is another must have for weather app enthusiasts. 

The Weather Channel App

 

This app has gone through multiple versions over the years that have been previously vaguely too plain and basic. The most recent update is now well worth the many features available. Users have access to current weather data for nearby locations with daily forecasts and optional alerts of threatening weather. Local forecasts from this particular app have had their difficulties, especially considering the fact that most meteorologists from The Weather Channel are centralized in the Atlanta area.

Other than infrequent forecast updates, several other new features from this app may attract new users. Live interactive radar for the entire U.S. allows users to easily and accurately track storms. There are many various map layer overlays to choose from including cloud cover, radar, temperature, dew point, humidity, winds, and others of which there are too many to list here. Additional seasonal map layers are used for Tropical weather and Winter weather. The app also provides users of video updates of active weather around the world, in the U.S., and for your local area.

Which of these weather apps do you all prefer? Feel free to comment below with your own reviews.

Links to my Capital Weather Gang Articles

The following list of web links directs users to the blog articles I wrote as an intern of the Washington Post Capital Weather Gang.

 

What kind of weather should Nationals Park expect for the NHL Winter Classic? (12/18/2014) 

Which parts of U.S. could benefit most from El Niño? (5/29/2014)

Drones could revolutionize weather forecasts, but must overcome safety concerns (4/25/2014)

Sochi Olympics: The climate to expect, and the weather it will get (2/7/2014)

Snowstorm crushes New England with up to two feet of snow (1/3/2014)

Inside Washington, D.C.’s urban heat island effect (11/21/2013)

Fall foliage update: don’t wait until it’s too late (10/25/2013)

Mid-Atlantic fall foliage right on schedule; near peak conditions in mountains (10/18/2013)

Weather in the wilderness: 4 scary real-life situations (10/16/2013)

Identifying weather hazards on the road (10/1/2013)

Recognizing weather risks at sports venues: why it’s important (9/20/2013)

Detailing Atmospheric Battles Along Weather Fronts

Connecting Weather to the Battlefield

Imagine a field full of militia preparing for battle in an open field while beating wooden drums. There is a brief lull as the silent landscape glistens in sunshine. The two armies clash and warfare breaks out. Rapid gunfire and canons go off and bodies drop. A Victor is eventually declared and the aftermath is surveyed by medical professionals for injuries.

What does this situation have to do with weather? Let's try changing the scene and instead of an open field we have still air. In the distant skies, rumbles of thunder can be heard similar to the beating drums. Ambient temperatures feel warm, but humid until the wind picks up while transporting billowing clouds towards the serene atmosphere. Skies open up with fierce downpours and energetic thunder and lighting. Temperatures rapidly fall as in the case of soldiers dying on a battlefield, but eventually the storms gradually fade and dissipate. Damage to infrastructure is checked thoroughly. According to a page from the Australian Bureau of Meteorology, "Norwegian meteorologists developed the concept during the First World War". There you have it, the historical origins of a weather front!

Cold Front Weather Map Symbol

Source: NOAA Weather Prediction Center

Rapid Vengeance Along a Cold Front

Cold fronts most closely resemble the battlefield analogy mentioned previously. Densely chilling air rapidly advances and eventually overcomes warmer temperatures in the vicinity of a cold front. The warmer buoyant air is forced upward over-top the cold front and a line of showers and/or thunderstorms develop that can often times stretch from Canada all the way to the U.S. Gulf Coast. Cold fronts typically trek along the westerly flow aloft, from west to east at a rapid pace. They also tend to stretch southward from a mid-latitude cyclone's center of circulation. A passing cold front can most noticeably be experienced during winter months when temperature contrasts across a region have high variability between locations.

Warm Front Weather Map Symbol

Source: NOAA Weather Prediction Center

Persistent Transitions Along a Warm Front

For a warm front, showers will be light to moderate and tend last longer than with a cold front. Warm fronts usually progress slowly northward in the Northern Hemisphere bringing along warm and moist air from the tropics. Temperatures gradually rise ahead of the warm front before showers develop, if any. Occasionally strong thunderstorms with heavier showers can form as a warm front approaches, having effects more like a cold front. These particular conditions are most readily seen in the middle of summer and can last for several hours at a particular location.

Stationary Front Weather Map Symbol

Source: NOAA Weather Prediction Center

Steady, But Not Calm Along a Stationary Front

Stationary fronts exhibit little to no movement. Persistent showers that develop can last over multiple days over the same area. Common occurrences of stationary fronts develop from several scenarios when two opposing fronts meet, two weather systems in proximity to one another interact or block the other from further progressing, along land-sea coastal interfaces, or within valley mountain passes. Eventually one of these effects will break down and the front will either dissipate or progress forward embedded within another front or weather system.

Surface Analysis Fronts

This is a graphic of the surface analysis weather fronts map from the morning of October 28, 2012 as Hurricane Sandy was heading north off the coast of the Eastern U.S.

Source: NOAA Weather Prediction Center