It Changed How We Get the Weather, Meteorologists Hated It, and It's About to Disappear

upstart writes:

Farewell to Dark Sky, which didn't keep us dry, but forever changed the way we get our forecasts:

At the end of this year, Dark Sky-the popular, sleek, sometimes accurate weather app-will go dark, its various components ambiguously incorporated into Apple's revamped weather forecasting tool. The app was created in 2011 by developers Jack Turner and Adam Grossman, and was funded through a Kickstarter campaign that raised just under $40,000. During its run, it built up a loyal following of people who used it to keep ahead of the weather day to day, hour to hour, and even minute to minute. Now, with the Android version already dead, the beloved iOS app will stop working altogether on Jan. 1.

[...] Was it perfect? God, no. The other thing that stood out about Dark Sky was that it wasn't very good. Dark Sky's forecasts failed me on hikes, bike trips, park days, beach days, birthdays, and more. You name it, and I've had it ruined by the siren song of that neon map. [...]

Still, the allure was real. I kept the app on my phone over the years and continued to consult its forecasts. [...] It was the easiest way I knew of to find out what its shape was and infer how long a coming downpour would last. The real-time radar feature let me know in seconds whether a front was spread out across multiple state lines or a thin band of rain that would pass over quickly.

Meteorologists, it's worth noting, do not and have never shared my enthusiasm.

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