Solar Weather vs Solar Activity
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Solar Weather
Monitor magnetic storms and moon phases with real-time magnetosphere data and forecasts. Receive push notifications for disturbed magnetosphere conditions and track full and new moon times.
- Magnetic storm monitoring
- Magnetosphere scale (1-10)
- 3-day magnetosphere history
- 24-hour magnetosphere forecast
- 27-day magnetosphere forecast
- Push notifications for disturbed magnetosphere
- Moon phase tracking
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Solar Weather brings real-time space weather monitoring to your pocket. Track the planetary Kp-index, forecast magnetic storms, and follow moon phases — all in one beautifully designed app. SOLAR WIND See the solar wind that drives it all — speed, plus the all-important Bz and Bt magnetic field straight from NOAA's DSCOVR satellite, with a 24-hour Bz trend. A southward Bz is the earliest sign that a storm and aurora are building. NOAA STORM SCALES Follow the three official NOAA scales at a glance — geomagnetic storms (G), solar radiation storms (S) and radio blackouts (R) — with a 3-day outlook. Turn on alerts for radiation storms and radio blackouts, too. REAL-TIME KP-INDEX Monitor the current geomagnetic activity level on a clear 0–9 scale with color-coded status. See hourly charts for the last 24 hours and spot trends at a glance. STORM FORECASTS View 24-hour and 27-day geomagnetic forecasts sourced from NOAA. Know when the next magnetic storm is coming before it affects your health, electronics, or aurora visibility. MOON PHASE CALENDAR Browse an interactive monthly calendar showing the moon phase for every day. Tap any date to see the lunar day, illumination percentage, and days until the next full or new moon. SMART NOTIFICATIONS Choose exactly which alerts matter to you: • Magnetosphere excited (Kp 2–3) • Magnetic storm detected (Kp 4+) • Severe storm warning (Kp 7+) • Full moon — 2 days, 1 day, or day-of • New moon — 2 days, 1 day, or day-of EDUCATIONAL ARTICLES Learn what the magnetosphere is, how K-index works, how geomagnetic storms affect health, and why the aurora borealis happens. ASK SIRI Just ask Siri — “Is there a magnetic storm?”, “What's the moon phase?” or “What's the solar activity?” — for an instant answer. The same shortcuts work from Spotlight and the Shortcuts app. WIDGETS & LIVE ACTIVITY Keep the current Kp-index, aurora chance, and moon phase on your Home and Lock Screen. When a magnetic storm is underway, a Live Activity shows live readings on your Lock Screen and in StandBy. FEATURES • Real-time Kp-index with hourly bar charts • 24-hour and 27-day storm forecasts from NOAA • Interactive moon phase calendar • 11 configurable push notification types • Real-time solar wind (speed, Bz, Bt) with a 24-hour trend • Official NOAA G/S/R storm scales with a 3-day outlook • Offline moon calculations — works without internet • Dark theme designed for space weather • Available in 17 languages • Ask Siri & Spotlight — storms, moon phase, solar activity • Home Screen & Lock Screen widgets, plus a storm Live Activity • Apple Watch app • Optimized for iPhone and iPad • Built-in knowledge hub with an illustrated glossary • No ads. No tracking. Free forever.
Solar Activity
Track solar activity with a forecast for magnetic storms up to 27 days in advance. View the latest images and videos of the sun, and monitor key metrics like the Kp index and sunspots.
- Magnetic storm forecast
- Kp index forecast (3-27 days)
- Aurora borealis predictions
- Sunspot tracking
- Solar wind monitoring
- Latest SOHO/SDO images & videos
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Monitor solar activity. Get a solar storm forecast for the next 3-27 days and view the latest images and videos from SOHO/SDO. Also includes: - magnetic storm forecast - Kp index forecast for 3/27 days - aurora borealis - sunspots - solar wind
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Solar Weather at 3.4 against Solar Activity's 1.0. Solar Weather also leads on ads (none vs shown) and monetization model (free vs ad-supported). Solar Activity's advantage is review sentiment (25% vs 13%) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 17.0). On price, in-app purchases and device support 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
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Solar Weather holds the better App Store score, 3.4 against 1.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Solar Weather has 5 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 13% of Solar Weather's written reviews are positive against 25% of Solar Activity's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
Solar Weather ships an update every 6 weeks, Solar Activity every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on September 9, 2026 and September 10, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Solar Weather | Solar Activity |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 3.4 (5 ratings) — better | 1.0 (1 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 12.5% of reviews | 25.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 5 — better | 1 |
| Update frequency | Every 6 weeks — better | Every 3 months |
| Ads | No — better | Yes |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free — better | Ad-supported |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | 15.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 10 MB | 33 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Andrey Sapunov | Pavel Koyushev |
Customer experience
Solar Weather
Solar Activity
In-app purchases
Solar Weather
No in-app purchases
Solar Activity
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Solar Weather free?
Is Solar Activity free?
Which has better reviews, Solar Weather or Solar Activity?
Do Solar Weather or Solar Activity have ads?
Which is updated more often, Solar Weather or Solar Activity?
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