General
What do the timeline colors represent?
The light gray color represents a clear sky (i.e. sunny) and the darker gray colors represent varying levels of cloudiness (partly cloudy, mostly cloudy, and overcast). The blue colors represent rain, and the blue-purple colors represent snow -- the lighter variations of these colors mean the precipitation is forecasted to be light.
What does X error message mean?
- “Error retrieving forecast”, “Forecast unavailable”, or “Sorry, unable to get forecast”: The app was unable to fetch a forecast. This is usually due to connectivity issues.
- “Next hour forecast temporarily unavailable (radar station is down)”: This message means that the data from a government run radar station is down in your area. We don't have control over these stations, but this is generally fixed within a few days.
- “Detailed next hour forecast is unavailable due to lack of radar coverage” or “Detailed next hour forecast is unavailable”: We do not have enough radar data to create a reliable next hour forecast for this location.
- “Current Location Unavailable”, “Location unavailable”, or “Sorry, unable to find your location”: The app could not find your location. Please check that location is enabled and Dark Sky has the location permission enabled.
To what direction do the wind arrows point?
The arrows indicate the direction the wind is blowing. So if the arrows are pointing north (towards the top of the app), that means the wind is blowing from south to north.
What do the percentages mean?
The percentage shown below the day label is the probability of precipitation occurring at any time within the day. For example, if the percentage is 90%, this means we are reporting that there is a 90% chance it will rain at some point on that day.
The percentages shown if you click "Precip %" button are the probability of precipitation occurring at any time within that hour. For example, if the app showed "12AM 15%", this means we are reporting that there is a 15% chance it will rain at some point between 12am-1am.
The percentage shown in the weather condition description is the maximum hourly precipitation probability of that time block on the timeline. Using a time block of 8am-12pm and "Rain (14%)" as an example, this means one hour between 8am-12pm has a 14% chance of rain and all other hours have less than or equal to 14% chance of rain.
Why is the daily precipitation percentage so high when the hourly precipitation value is so low?
This is one confusing part of probability. While there may be just a small chance of precipitation during any individual hour, there are many chances for precipitation throughout the entire day. Because there are more chances for precipitation, the probability for the whole day will be higher than for any single hour.
The more hours you wait, the more likely it will rain during at least one of them.
Do you have a “feels like” feature?
We display “feels like” temperature wherever appropriate and screen real estate allows. There is no longer a way to display “feels like” temperature instead of actual temperature.
Payments
Apple Watch
Why isn't the Apple Watch updating properly?
- Update Dark Sky on your iPhone to the latest version.
- Open Dark Sky on your Apple Watch and wait for the correct location and forecast to load.
- Turn off the Dark Sky complication(s), then turn back on
Map
Why can’t I scroll further into the future?
The zoomed out view is the forecast model view (on the scale of days) and the zoomed in view is the radar view (on the scale of hours). You can toggle between the two views by pinching to zoom. You can drag your finger along the timeline to play the future forecast.
Why is the map view zoomed out when I load it? Can I change this?
The map zoom varies depending on nearby weather conditions. If there is no precipitation in your area, the zoom will be further out (otherwise the map would be completely blank). When there is precipitation in your area, the map will zoom in to provide an appropriate level of detail. We don’t offer a way to customize this functionality.
The Android and Wear OS apps are no longer available for download and will be shutdown on July 1, 2020. Existing users should update to the latest versions to continue using the apps until that time.
General
What do the timeline colors represent?
The light gray color represents a clear sky (i.e. sunny) and the darker gray colors represent varying levels of cloudiness (partly cloudy, mostly cloudy, and overcast). The blue colors represent rain, and the blue-purple colors represent snow -- the lighter variations of these colors mean the precipitation is forecasted to be light.
What does X error message mean?
- “Error retrieving forecast”, “Forecast unavailable”, or “Sorry, unable to get forecast”: The app was unable to fetch a forecast. This is usually due to connectivity issues.
- “Next hour forecast temporarily unavailable (radar station is down)”: This message means that the data from a government run radar station is down in your area. We don't have control over these stations, but this is generally fixed within a few days.
- “Detailed next hour forecast is unavailable due to lack of radar coverage” or “Detailed next hour forecast is unavailable”: We do not have enough radar data to create a reliable next hour forecast for this location.
- “Current Location Unavailable”, “Location unavailable”, or “Sorry, unable to find your location”: The app could not find your location. Please check that location is enabled and Dark Sky has the location permission enabled.
What direction are the wind arrows?
The arrows indicate the direction the wind is blowing. So if the arrows are pointing north (towards the top of the app), that means the wind is blowing from south to north.
What do the percentages mean?
The percentage shown below the day label is the probability of precipitation occurring at any time within the day. For example, if the percentage is 90%, this means we are reporting that there is a 90% chance it will rain at some point on that day.
The percentages shown if you click "Precip %" button are the probability of precipitation occurring at any time within that hour. For example, if the app showed "12AM 15%", this means we are reporting that there is a 15% chance it will rain at some point between 12am-1am.
The percentage shown in the weather condition description is the maximum hourly precipitation probability of that time block on the timeline. Using a time block of 8am-12pm and "Rain (14%)" as an example, this means one hour between 8am-12pm has a 14% chance of rain and all other hours have less than or equal to 14% chance of rain.
Why is the daily precip percentage so high when the hourly precip values are so low?
This is one confusing part of probability. While there may be just a small chance of precipitation during any individual hour, there are many chances for precipitation throughout the entire day. Because there are more chances for precipitation, the probability for the whole day will be higher than for any single hour.
The more hours you wait, the more likely it will rain during at least one of them.
Why isn’t the address my house?
We use geocoder services to determine addresses. Generally speaking this should be close to accurate, but not always perfect. It should not affect your forecasts, however, since we use your coordinates and not street address to generate the forecast.
Why aren’t you available in X?
Dark Sky is only available in the US, UK and Ireland right now, as we need radar data in each region to provide the next hour forecasts that power the core features of our mobile apps.
Why does Google Play say the app is not compatible with my device?
Dark Sky is only available in the US, UK, and Ireland, as we need radar data in each region to provide next hour forecasts. If your Google Play Store is based in a country other than the US and UK then it will show a message that Dark Sky is not compatible with your device.
Location
How do I search for a new location?
If you tap the search icon or the location bar at the top of the app, you will be able to search for a new location. We save your past search locations so you can find them again easily.
Why isn’t my address updating to my current location?
Please make sure you have Location permissions turned on for Dark Sky. Navigate to your phone’s Android Settings > Apps > Dark Sky and turn on Location permissions. If you are using Android 6, you can visit Permissions directly, to make sure Location is turned on for Dark Sky.
Location
How do I search for a new location?
If you tap the magnifying glass at the top left of your main screen, you will be able to search for a new location. We save your past search locations in the “Recent Searches” section so you can find them again easily.
How do I permanently save a location?
Tap the icon to the right of each city and drag it to the Saved Locations section. You can reorder cities in your Saved Locations by dragging the same icon.
Why isn’t the location showing my home address?
We use third party geocoder services to determine your address. Generally speaking, this should be close to accurate, but not always perfect. It will not affect your forecasts, however, since we use your coordinates, not street address, to generate a forecast.
Why am I getting notifications for the wrong location?
Dark Sky may be using an old or cached location. Please try uninstalling and reinstalling the app (there’s no extra charge for this if you are signed in with the same App Store ID that you originally purchased with).
Website
What do the timeline colors represent?
The light gray color represents a clear sky (i.e. sunny) and the darker gray colors represent varying levels of cloudiness (partly cloudy, mostly cloudy, and overcast). The blue colors represent rain, and the blue-purple colors represent snow -- the lighter variations of these colors mean the precipitation is forecasted to be light.
To what direction do the wind arrows point?
The arrows indicate the direction the wind is blowing. So if the arrows are pointing north (towards the top of the app), that means the wind is blowing from south to north.
What do the percentages mean?
The percentage shown below the day label is the probability of precipitation occurring at any time within the day. For example, if the percentage is 90%, this means we are reporting that there is a 90% chance it will rain at some point on that day.
The percentages shown if you click "Precip %" button are the probability of precipitation occurring at any time within that hour. For example, if the app showed "12AM 15%", this means we are reporting that there is a 15% chance it will rain at some point between 12am-1am.
The percentage shown in the weather condition description is the maximum hourly precipitation probability of that time block on the timeline. Using a time block of 8am-12pm and "Rain (14%)" as an example, this means one hour between 8am-12pm has a 14% chance of rain and all other hours have less than or equal to 14% chance of rain.
Why is the daily precip percentage so high when the hourly precip values are so low?
This is one confusing part of probability. While there may be just a small chance of precipitation during any individual hour, there are many chances for precipitation throughout the entire day. Because there are more chances for precipitation, the probability for the whole day will be higher than for any single hour.
The more hours you wait, the more likely it will rain during at least one of them.
Why isn’t the address my house?
We use geocoder services to determine addresses. Generally speaking this should be close to accurate, but not always perfect. It should not affect your forecasts, however, since we use your coordinates and not street address to generate the forecast.
Maps
What do the precipitation percentages and humidity percentages indicate?
The probability of precipitation is simply a statistical probability of 0.01 inch or more of precipitation at a given area in the given forecast area in the time period specified. For example, if a forecast for a given location says that there is a 40% chance of rain this afternoon, then there is a 40% chance of rain at any point in that location for noon to 6 p.m. local time.
The humidity percentage represents the relative humidity on a 100% scale, and tells you how saturated the air is with moisture. The higher the value, the more humid (and potentially “sticky”) it will feel.
What do the wind arrows indicate?
The wind arrows point in the direction in which the wind is blowing. An arrow pointing south represents a northerly wind originating from the north and moving south.
What do the colors mean on the wind maps?
The color range is from blue to red. The blue indicates a lower value while the red indicates a much higher value. A white hue indicates a value somewhere in the middle.
What’s the difference between wind gust and wind speed?
All gusts are a type of wind. A gust is a sudden increase of the wind’s speed that lasts no more than 20 seconds. This usually occurs when wind speeds reach a peak of at least 16 knots. A wind gust usually comes in 2-minute intervals.