Comparison

Aurora Forecast 3D vs Weather

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Aurora Forecast 3D

Visualize Earth in 3D and track the aurora borealis with real-time data and forecasts up to three days ahead. Includes an aurora compass, star maps, and satellite tracking.

Highlights
  • 3D Earth visualization
  • Real-time aurora oval tracking
  • Up to 3-day aurora forecasts
  • Aurora compass with Sun and Moon
  • 2.4 million star map
  • Satellite orbit calculations
Features
Read full description

The Aurora Forecast 3D is a tool to track down where the aurora is located in the sky from any location on planet. It renders Earth in 3D with rotation and scaling at your fingertips. You can select locations and make your own ground - station list. The Sun illuminates the globe as it updates in near real-time. The short term forecasts are up to +6 hours, while the long term forecasts are up to 3 days ahead in time. They are updated when the app is active and connected to internet. An Aurora Compass is included that shows where the auroral oval [1,2], the Moon and the Sun are located as you look up at the sky from your location. The phase and age of the Moon is also visualized in the compass. By zooming out in the 3D view port, satellites, stars and planets appear in their orbits [3] around the Sun. FEATURES - 3D view port of Earth. - Solar illumination of the Earth and the Moon. - Aurora oval size and location in real time. - Day side location of the red Cusp. - Forecasts based on predicted Kp index estimated by the Space Weather Prediction Centre (NOAA-SWPC). - Includes a 2.4 million star map [4]. - City light texture [5]. - Earth, Sun and Moon textures [6,7]. - Sky view module to track planets and stars [8]. - 3-day space weather condition forecast as news ticker. - Two-Line Element (TLE) satellite orbit calculations [9]. - Skyview navigation. - 3D Laser Star pointer to identify star signs. - Sounding rocket trajectories. - Sun and Moon daily elevation plots with rise and set time. - Epoch selection for magnetic pole position [10] - Ovals based on polar orbiting satellites data [11] - Target web links added to satellites, stars, planets and position. - All-sky camera links to the Boreal Aurora Camera Constellation (BACC). - Sky color animation [12,13]. - Zhang and Paxton ovals [14]. - Earth shadow calculations in twilight - Youtube demonstration. References [1] Sigernes F., M. Dyrland, P. Brekke, S. Chernouss, D.A. Lorentzen, K. Oksavik, and C.S. Deehr, Two methods to forecast auroral displays, Journal of Space Weather and Space Climate (SWSC), Vol. 1, No. 1, A03, DOI:10.1051/swsc/2011003, 2011. [2] Starkov G. V., Mathematical model of the auroral boundaries, Geomagnetism and Aeronomy, 34 (3), 331-336, 1994. [3] P. Schlyter, How to compute planetary positions, http://stjarnhimlen.se/, Stockholm, Sweden. [4] Bridgman, T. and Wright, E., The Tycho Catalog Sky map- Version 2.0, NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center Scientific Visualization Studio, http://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/3572, January 26, 2009. [5] The Visible Earth catalog, http://visibleearth.nasa.gov/, NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center, April-October, 2012. [6] T. Patterson, Natural Earth III - Texture Maps, http://www.shadedrelief.com, October 1, 2016. [7] Nexus - Planet Textures, http://www.solarsystemscope.com/nexus/, January 4, 2013. [8] Hoffleit, D. and Warren, Jr., W.H., The Bright Star Catalog, 5th Revised Edition (Preliminary Version), Astronomical Data Center, NSSDC/ADC, 1991. [9] Vallado, David A., Paul Crawford, Richard Hujsak, and T.S. Kelso, Revisiting Spacetrack Report #3, AIAA/AAS-2006-6753, https://celestrak.com, 2006. [10] Tsyganenko, N.A., Secular drift of the auroral ovals: How fast do they actually move?, Geophysical Research Letters, 46, 3017-3023, 2019. [11] M. J. Breedveld, Predicting the Auroral Oval Boundaries by Means of Polar Operational Environmental Satellite Particle Precipitation Data, Master thesis, Department of Physics and Technology, Faculty of Science and Technology, The Arctic University of Norway, June 2020. [12] Perez, R., J,M. Seals and B. Smith, An all-weather model for sky illuminance distribution, Solar Energy, 1993. [13] Preetham, A.J, P. Shirley and B. Smith, A practical model for daylight Computer Graphics, (SIGGRAPH 99 Proceedings), 91-100, 1999. [14] Zhang Y., and L. J. Paxton, An empirical Kp-dependent global auroral model based on TIMED/GUVI data, J. Atm. Solar-Terr. Phys., 70, 1231-1242, 2008.

About

Weather

Access global weather model maps easily and intuitively. Compare and share significant weather images with friends for quick consultations. Your weather at your fingertips.

Highlights
  • Global weather model maps
  • Intuitive access
  • Map comparison
  • Image sharing
  • Weather consultation
Features
Read full description

Con Weather Maps potrai accedere rapidamente alle Mappe dei Modelli Meteo di tutto il mondo in maniera semplice e intuitiva. Potrai consultare, confrontare e inviare le immagini più significative per consultarti con i tuoi amici. Weather Maps, il meteo a portata di Tap.

Screenshots

Aurora Forecast 3D4 screens
Weather4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Weather at 100% against Aurora Forecast 3D's 33%. Weather also leads on update cadence (every 2 days vs every 2 months). Aurora Forecast 3D's advantage is rating (3.7 vs 3.3) and iOS requirement (11.0 vs 13.0). On price, ratings volume, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Aurora Forecast 3D holds the better App Store score, 3.7 against 3.3. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 3 and 3 respectively. Written reviews complicate that: 33% of Aurora Forecast 3D's written reviews are positive against 100% of Weather's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Aurora Forecast 3D ships an update every 2 months, Weather every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on August 19, 2026 and September 20, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Aurora Forecast 3D versus Weather: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterAurora Forecast 3DWeather
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.7 (3 ratings) — better3.3 (3 ratings)
Positive reviews33.3% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings33
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 2 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS11.0 — better13.0
Further details — not scored
Size48 MB5 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperUniversity Centre in Svalbard (UNIS)Giuseppe Gambino

Customer experience

Aurora Forecast 3D

All ratings3 ratings
Positive33.3%
Neutral66.7%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews6 reviews
Positive33.3%
Neutral50.0%
Negative16.7%

Weather

All ratings3 ratings
Positive33.3%
Neutral66.7%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

Aurora Forecast 3D

No in-app purchases

None

Weather

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Aurora Forecast 3D free?
Aurora Forecast 3D is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Weather free?
Weather is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Aurora Forecast 3D or Weather?
Aurora Forecast 3D is rated higher. Aurora Forecast 3D averages 3.7 out of 5 from 3 ratings, while Weather averages 3.3 from 3 ratings.
Do Aurora Forecast 3D or Weather have ads?
Neither Aurora Forecast 3D nor Weather shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Aurora Forecast 3D or Weather?
Aurora Forecast 3D ships an update every 2 months, and Weather every 2 days. Most recently, Aurora Forecast 3D was updated on August 19, 2026 and Weather on September 20, 2026.

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