Several news outlets — including MacRumors, 9to5Mac, and The New York Times — have pointed out that Apple’s Weather app can deliver some ridiculous predictions for snow and ice. I can attest to that.
A major storm system is expected to deliver significant snowfall and freezing rain across more than half of the United States this weekend, with winter weather alerts in effect in cities like Atlanta, Baltimore, Boston, Charlotte, Cleveland, Dallas, Indianapolis, Nashville (where I live), New York, Philadelphia, Raleigh, Washington D.C., and others.
On the iPhone, iPad, and Mac, the Apple Weather app has forecasted up to 18 inches of snowfall for the Nashville area. That’s possible — the record is 17.3 inches in 1892 — but the Nashville Weather Service says my neck of the woods “has about a 37% chance of exceeding six inches of snow.”
So why is Apple Weather predicting Snowmageddon? Here’s why, according to The New York Times: Many weather apps show the results from a single forecast model, instead of the many that meteorologists will draw from in preparing their reports. The app pulls raw data and delivers it to the palm of your hand, but often without context that allows for the other possibilities. Sometimes, that ends up being the right one, and sometimes not.
On its website, Apple outlines the various data sources it uses for Apple Weather, including the National Weather Service, The Weather Channel, and NOAA. Still, “Apple Weather largely just ingests this information and presents it without proper context,” notes 9to5Mac.
I hope you’ll help support Apple World Today by becoming a patron. Almost all our income is from Patreon support and sponsored posts. Patreon pricing ranges from $2 to $10 a month. Thanks in advance for your support.
Article provided with permission from AppleWorld.Today
