4 ms·

Very nice. Climate is what you expect, weather is what you get. The interface is daunting, though. I'm not quite sure what it's trying to tell me. http://weat

by aristus 16y ago

Very nice. Climate is what you expect, weather is what you get. The interface is daunting, though. I'm not quite sure what it's trying to tell me. http://weatherspark.com/#app;a=USA/CA/San_Francisco;t0=02/16;t1=02/17 http://weatherspark.com/#app;a=USA/CA/San_Francisco;t0=02/16... It says 2012 on the bottom bar. I'm uncertain whether this is a bug, a forecast for 365 days from now, or an average since 1948 or... what, exactly. I also don't get a feel for the accuracy of the predictions, especially at what time range. Sure, I can see that in SF winters are wet and summers are dry, but I knew that already. Can it tell me something interesting about a shorter period, like late April?

jacobn 16y ago
The far future is the averages (light blue background) - the forecast is only in the "Forecast"-zone (light purple), but perhaps that can be made more clear (e.g. changing 2012 to "Averages" in the x-axis or something similar). Accuracy of predictions: the forecasts are as accurate as forecasts are, and we don't influence that. The averages (mean, 10th percentile, 90th percentile, etc) aren't accurate in any predictive sense - they're just the stats for the recorded history for the station. They tell you what you can reasonably expect, but YMMV. For SF in late April you can see that the average temperature is steadily rising and the chance of precipitation steadily declining: 62F high on average in early April, 65F towards the end. 8% precipitation vs 5% means almost half as much rain towards the end - I'd hold off until the last week of April if it's an option ;)
jacobn 16y ago
For the far-future accuracy, look at the percentiles. Compare: http://weatherspark.com/#app;a=USA/CA/San_Francisco;t0=01/01;t1=12/31 http://weatherspark.com/#app;a=USA/CA/San_Francisco;t0=01/01... To http://weatherspark.com/#app;a=USA/HI/Honolulu;t0=01/01;t1=12/31 http://weatherspark.com/#app;a=USA/HI/Honolulu;t0=01/01;t1=1... The temperature spread (10th to 90th percentile) in late September for SF is 64F to 82F for a delta of 18F - it can be very nice, but it can also be kind of crappy. In Honolulu the temp spread in August is 86F to 91F for a delta of only 5F - it's pretty sure it's going to be nice.

by aristus 16y ago

jacobn 16y ago

The far future is the averages (light blue background) - the forecast is only in the "Forecast"-zone (light purple), but perhaps that can be made more clear (e.g. changing 2012 to "Averages" in the x-axis or something similar). Accuracy of predictions: the forecasts are as accurate as forecasts are, and we don't influence that. The averages (mean, 10th percentile, 90th percentile, etc) aren't accurate in any predictive sense - they're just the stats for the recorded history for the station. They tell you what you can reasonably expect, but YMMV. For SF in late April you can see that the average temperature is steadily rising and the chance of precipitation steadily declining: 62F high on average in early April, 65F towards the end. 8% precipitation vs 5% means almost half as much rain towards the end - I'd hold off until the last week of April if it's an option ;)

jacobn 16y ago

For the far-future accuracy, look at the percentiles. Compare: http://weatherspark.com/#app;a=USA/CA/San_Francisco;t0=01/01;t1=12/31 http://weatherspark.com/#app;a=USA/CA/San_Francisco;t0=01/01... To http://weatherspark.com/#app;a=USA/HI/Honolulu;t0=01/01;t1=12/31 http://weatherspark.com/#app;a=USA/HI/Honolulu;t0=01/01;t1=1... The temperature spread (10th to 90th percentile) in late September for SF is 64F to 82F for a delta of 18F - it can be very nice, but it can also be kind of crappy. In Honolulu the temp spread in August is 86F to 91F for a delta of only 5F - it's pretty sure it's going to be nice.