Why is there a temperature difference between Weather app and Weather channel?

Feature availability and data sources in the Weather app - Apple Support

“…Unless otherwise specified, temperature, precipitation, and wind map data is provided by Apple Weather. Data for air quality maps is provided by BreezoMeter and QWeather…”

In addition, Google says the raw data comes from the National Weather Service.

Back in the mid-80’s when I worked for Weather Services International (WSI), who provided data to the Weather Channel, and was eventually acquired by the Weather Channel (after my time), most of the raw data also came from the National Weather Service.

The value added was aggregating from multiple sources, analysis, and packaging. WSI also put physical data collection units at 200 radar stations across the U.S., and was the first to provide merged radar data, creating regional and national radar maps (I was a tiny cog in that project ⚙️ ).

This is after my time at WSI, but I had a co-worker that had a backyard weather station, which was Internet aware. It seems owners of this equipment could join organizations that collect the data.

Maybe one of the weather services is also using that data, and it is either more accurate for your location or worse (depending on the homeowner’s local setup and environment).

My time at WSI was 5-10 years before the Internet, and people used dialup telephone modems to connect directly to different computer servers. So this kind of data was not part of my experience.

They may use different sources and the apps may identify your location slightly differently. For example Apple Weather uses a small airport a few miles away. Weather channel uses a larger airport further from my actual location. This results in Apple potentially using a more granular approach to location. Weather channel may be using zip code or something less precise. But the bottom line is the temp is always a few degrees different.

kimbeam wrote:

Information appreciated. Still, 9 degrees difference seems like a lot. I suppose the airport could be that much warmer than my local area (about 15 miles away) when a front is passing through. Airport is also by the Arkansas River which would moderate temperature changes.

I just pulled up the weather station list in my area that Wunderground uses in my area. Today the weather is clear and calm and the list still has a range of about five degrees across the region. And that's only on one side of the city.

The other variable is how often the temperature is updated. Every 5 minutes to every hour. Who knows? I suppose if you need real accuracy buy yourself a weather station and learn what it is in your backyard.

Jeff Donald wrote:

I’ve thought about a home weather station multiple times, just never got around to actually doing it.

The basic NetAtmo with an indoor and outdoor module was very handy. As I recall, there were other accessories, such as a rain gauge and anemometer.

I’ve thought about a home weather station multiple times, just never got around to actually doing it.

Jeff Donald wrote:

The other variable is how often the temperature is updated. Every 5 minutes to every hour. Who knows? I suppose if you need real accuracy buy yourself a weather station and learn what it is in your backyard.

I did that for years until my NetAtmo bit the dust. I need to get around to replacing it.

Jeff Donald wrote:

The anemometer always intrigued me. I found one that would literally plug into an iPhone. I thought how much fun it would be to stand out in a hurricane and measure the wind speed. 😳😳

If you do, you are required to post pictures!

The anemometer always intrigued me. I found one that would literally plug into an iPhone. I thought how much fun it would be to stand out in a hurricane and measure the wind speed. 😳😳