Professional meteorologists run multiple computer models of our complex atmosphere and make an informed decision based on the consensus of the models and local knowledge. The apps on your phone are often based on a similar automated model. To cover our bases, I compare several weather apps to get my own mini-consensus. For major events, I often contact our local weathermen for a more professional prediction. If the apps agree on the weather, it’s an easy decision. If they differ quite a bit, then I usually follow the majority rule.
I’m on Android, so these apps may not be available on iOS, but my two dedicated astronomy weather apps are Astro Panel, Astrospheric, and the Clear Sky Chart website, all of which include predictions on seeing (atmospheric instability that affects viewing) and transparency (haze that dims stars). Another great resource is the National Weather Service Lubbock Office, especially the hourly graphs. I also use MyRadar, WeatherTap (subscription), and KCBD’s weather app, but I’m a weather geek who also does storm photography.
As with the daily forecast, the closer we are to the star party, the more accurate the forecast will be. Astro Panel and Clear Sky Chart only go out three days, and Astrospheric goes out four. We usually wait until early afternoon the day of the party to cancel because the weather can dramatically shift overnight, so it pays to wait.
The thing to remember is that even if all of my sources show a bad night, these predictions are based on models of our very complex weather, and all four or five forecasts can be dramatically wrong!
Examples for tonight, September 19, 2026 for our Ransom Canyon Star Party:
Astrospheric has a nice display of could cover, which can sometimes show banding of clouds that the others would miss and it does have a website with the same info:
Tom
