Comparison

SOS Remote vs Climate from Space

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

Head to head
About

SOS Remote

Control a Science On a Sphere® system with your mobile device. Adjust sphere orientation, manage datasets, and enhance presentations with interactive features. Ideal for educational settings.

Highlights
  • Adjust sphere orientation
  • Control dataset playback
  • Load presentation playlists
  • Search and browse data catalog
  • View dataset descriptions
  • Create presentation playlists
  • Draw on and zoom datasets
  • Dynamically adjust dataset layers
Read full description

SOS Remote is a universal app for the iPhone*, iPod Touch*, and iPad that is used to control a Science On a Sphere® (SOS) system. SOS is a room sized, global display system that uses computers and video projectors to display planetary data onto a six-foot diameter sphere, analogous to an animated globe. SOS is used as an educational tool to help illustrate Earth System science to people of all ages in a way that is intuitive and captivating. The SOS Remote app affords greater interaction capabilities and ease of use compared to previous SOS controllers such as the Wii Remote. With this app, you can: • Adjust the orientation of the sphere in an intuitive way • Control playback of datasets • Load any presentation playlist stored on the SOS computer • Quickly search and browse the entire SOS Data Catalog and select datasets at random to load on the sphere • View a dataset's description and presenter notes while giving an SOS presentation • Quickly create a presentation playlist directly from the iPad • Draw on and zoom into a dataset loaded on the sphere • Dynamically turn on/off dataset layers and pips and adjust their transparency • Split the sphere into 2-4 vertical slices to replicate a portion of the dataset around the sphere • Perform full alignment of the sphere using an intuitive three step process * Note: The iPhone/iPod Touch support only a subset of the features described above. The iPad supports all features. Requirements: • In order to functionally use the SOS Remote app, you must have a Science On a Sphere® (SOS) installation • Wi-Fi or Bluetooth access to the SOS computer that is being controlled • SOS Software Version 5.5.0

About

Climate from Space

Explore 40 years of Earth's climate data from space on interactive globes and maps. Visualize changes in ocean temperature, ice sheets, and atmospheric carbon dioxide. Learn from project scientists through video interviews and richly illustrated text.

Highlights
  • Interactive animated globes
  • 40 years of climate data
  • Data viewer for climate variables
  • Video interviews with scientists
  • Illustrated text and satellite images
  • Globe and map views
Features
Read full description

Satellites observing the Earth from space provide a clear picture of the health of our planet and the signs of climate change. This electronic book lets you take a closer look at the climate data being produced by the European Space Agency's Climate Change Initiative. Forty years of climate data are at your fingertips on interactive globes and maps. Use the data viewer to see how climate variables including ocean temperature, ice sheets, sea level, sea ice, carbon dioxide and soil moisture change through time. Play, pause, and step through the data; spin the world and zoom in; switch between globe and map views; compare one data set with another. Engaging and richly-illustrated text explains why measuring these parts of the Earth system is important for climate science, and describes what the climate data shows. Project scientists from across Europe explain their work in their own words in short video interviews. Features: • Interactive, animated globes with 17 key climate data sets • Scroll through time to see forty years of change • 130 illustrations, including satellite images, diagrams and animations • 14 interviews with project scientists • Over 16,000 words of text • 74 pages Requires: iPad 4th gen (2012), iPad mini 2 (2013), or later.

Screenshots

SOS Remote2 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is device support: SOS Remote at 3 against Climate from Space's 1. Climate from Space's advantage is iOS requirement (12.0 vs 18.6). On price, review sentiment, update cadence and ads 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.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

SOS Remote ships an update every 8 months, Climate from Space every 5 months. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and November 6, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
SOS Remote versus Climate from Space: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSOS RemoteClimate from Space
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (3 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews100.0% of reviews
Number of ratings3 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 8 monthsEvery 5 months — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPad
Requires iOS18.612.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size4 MB1.7 GB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperNOAA Science On a SphereESA - European Space Agency

Customer experience

SOS Remote

All ratings2 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Climate from Space

Written reviews2 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

SOS Remote

No in-app purchases

None

Climate from Space

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is SOS Remote free?
SOS Remote is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Climate from Space free?
Climate from Space is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do SOS Remote or Climate from Space have ads?
Neither SOS Remote nor Climate from Space shows ads.
Which is updated more often, SOS Remote or Climate from Space?
SOS Remote ships an update every 8 months, and Climate from Space every 5 months. Most recently, SOS Remote was updated on November 1, 2026 and Climate from Space on November 6, 2026.

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