Windy: Windy brings a real-time global lightning strikes tracking

Windy has been buzzing with activity recently, tirelessly innovating to enhance your experience. This time, we're focusing on something that strikes—quite literally—lightning.⚡️

Collaborating with industry experts to bring you yet another game-changing layer, we've partnered with Nowcast.de, a worldwide lightning detection provider.

”If you have a comprehensive overview of the lightning strikes situation, you have a very good overview of the weather situation.”* Richard Fellner, CEO of Nowcast.

As a result of this collaboration, we’re able to present you with a lightning strike overlay for Weather radar and Satellite that shows real-time lightning activity right in your vicinity. And again, the lightning detection layer is totally free for everyone!

See our short video with a few words from Richard Fellner, the CEO of Nowcast:

Coverage? It's global!

We are proud to say that the coverage of the lightning detection network is GLOBAL.

However, there are still a few limitations. Marginal coverage is over the Pacific Ocean, the eastern part of the Indian Ocean, the northern part of the Atlantic Ocean, and the southern part of Argentina.

Why is lightning detection important?

Access to high-quality lightning information offers invaluable benefits for both professional and everyday users. For professionals like pilots, glider pilots, and sailors, precise data on approaching thunderstorms is crucial for ensuring safety and making informed navigational decisions.

Meanwhile, everyday users also stand to gain significantly; accurate storm warnings allow them to seek shelter in a timely manner and take steps to safeguard their property.

💡 Quality meets accuracy. The moment a lightning strike hits the ground, it's reflected on the Windy map with a maximum delay measured in mere seconds.

Example of what a lightning sensor looks like.

Support us by buying Windy Premium

Premium features take you one step further, making you ready when your big day comes. Whether you're an athlete, pilot, sailor, or weather enthusiast. Plus, your Premium subscription helps us continue to provide essential features like lightning detection to all users free of charge.
Go Premium now

https://www.windy.com/cs/-Meteoradar-radar?radar,50.111,14.406,5,internal

Comments (19)

Alberto Flores 144 days ago

I'm from Brazil. Windy used to work seamlessly on both my PC (Windows 11) and iPhone (iOS), but unfortunately, it no longer does.

smith jack 2 170 days ago

Windy’s new global lightning overlay is a strong step forward, giving both professionals and everyday users real-time awareness of nearby storms. By pairing Nowcast’s detection network with Windy’s radar and satellite layers — and even tagging your notes with something like live speed test km/h to track conditions — you get faster, clearer insight into developing weather. Aside from a few oceanic gaps, the coverage is impressively broad, making this a genuinely valuable and safety-enhancing addition that’s free for everyone

chatpoint 517 days ago

great really iimpressive.

Lajpat Rai 710 days ago

@Korina Kudos to Windy for the incredible innovation! Real-time lightning detection is a game-changer for safety and information. Thanks for providing it free and making the world a safer place!
Regards: Bitlife Unlocked

Ondřej Šutera STAFF 750 days ago

Hi, if you are interested in lightnings technology and you would like to support this project, you can check our article here.