Skydive Weather is for skydivers in the US only.
This application is useful for skydivers in the United States. It presents NOAA forecast weather data for most Drop Zones (DZ) in the country in both graphical and text modes.
The interface is intuitive and ease to use.
Tapping on the initial page, the "Blue Marble", brings Google Map positioned exactly over the DZ affording a view the skydiver is likely to have prior to exiting the aircraft. In this sense it helps first time visitors to a particular DZ to develop their spotting skills - a skill all skydivers have to learn - and study the geographical markers of the area nearby.
Using checkboxes the user can also be informed of the probable cloud conditions, the surface wind direction and speed, and winds aloft at 3000, 6000, 9000 and 12000 when available with respective temperatures.
The winds aloft direction can and do change in different elevations so that knowing them and the speed they blow is very useful for the skydiver to make a plan to get back to the DZ, reducing the possibilities of landing out.
The text information can be reached by swiping the Blue Marble and the forecast is available for about 4 successive days, for the hours between 6am and 5pm, While it provides extra information such as the probability of rain and weather conditions it does not contain data for winds aloft.
The application is free to install. The Blue Sky Ranch DZ (http://www.theblueskyranch.com/) is always available for free. All other DZs are available for one year subscription purchase at the cost of $1.99 each which helps support the cost of updating the database and maintaining the application.
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