Ever wondered whether that blob on the radar is rain or snow? Or how powerful the waves actually are, not just how high?

With our Holiday Update, we focused on exactly these kinds of questions. This release brings clearer winter forecasts, deeper ocean insights, smoother performance, and a few thoughtful extras across the app and widgets.

Here’s what’s new, improved, and fixed in Windy's new version 48

Precipitation Type Added to Weather Radar

One of the most-requested upgrades is here. 🌧️

You can now see whether precipitation is falling as rain or snow directly on the Weather Radar layer, making winter conditions clearer at a glance and helping you better assess travel, outdoor plans, and storm impacts.

A New Way to Read the Ocean: Wave Energy

If you spend time on (or watching) the ocean, this update is for you 👀

Wave Energy is now available:

• as a brand-new standalone map layer
• and directly inside the Waves & Tides forecast

It goes beyond wave height and helps you understand the actual power of the waves, a valuable new perspective for surfers, sailors, kiters, and marine forecasters alike.

Lightning & Flow Vectors on Mobile Widgets

Storm tracking just got smarter. ⚡

You can now see lightning strikes and flow vectors on the Weather Radar and Satellite widgets on iOS and Android. That means not only spotting active storms, but also quickly understanding where they’re heading next, right from your home screen.

(P.S. Garmin upgrade coming soon.)

Weather Station Widget Comes to Android

Android users, this one’s for you.

The Weather Station widget will be now available on Android, bringing real-time local observations straight to your home screen for quick, no-fuss weather checks. Some of you might already see this update, and it will be available for all users in the following two days.

Sun & Moon Position Anywhere on the Map

Planning around daylight, sunrise, sunset, or moon phases?

You can now see the Sun and Moon position for any place directly on the map, a small addition that’s especially useful for photographers, pilots, sailors, hikers, and outdoor planners.

How to find it:
🖥️ On desktop: Right-click anywhere on the map
📲 On mobile: Tap anywhere on the map and find it in the top menu

New External Plugin: The Buoy

Built by community developer Thomas Cailhol, The Buoy plugin brings detailed ocean buoy observations and forecasts into Windy.

You’ll find it in the External Plugin Gallery, another great example of how the Windy community helps expand what the platform can do.

Smoother Radar & Satellite Layers

Behind the scenes, both the Weather Radar and Satellite layers now run on new technology. What does that mean for you?

• smoother scrolling
• faster loading
• more fluid animations

It’s especially noticeable when tracking active weather, where speed and responsiveness really matter.

Expanded Weather Radar Coverage

We’ve improved radar coverage in several regions, including:
🇮🇳 India, 🇿🇦 South Africa, 🇱🇸 Lesotho, 🇸🇿 Eswatini, 🇲🇺 Mauritius

This brings more reliable precipitation data to areas where coverage has traditionally been limited.

Easier Forecast Model Switching

You can now switch forecast models directly under the pin icon in the mobile version, making comparisons quicker and easier, especially for those who like to dig deeper into the data.

Weekends Highlighted in the Timeline

Weekends are now clearly marked in the timeline, making it easier to plan trips, activities, and forecasts at a glance.

Found something that doesn’t look quite right?

You can now report bugs directly in the app, helping us spot issues faster and keep improving Windy together.

Fixes

As always, we’ve also spent time polishing things up:

• Fixed issues with the ICON-D2 model and timeline display
• Restored speed adjustment in the Satellite layer
• Resolved Firefox-specific glitches
• Fixed map and color scale inconsistencies
• Plus 50+ smaller bug fixes and stability improvements

Windy keeps evolving thanks to you and the way you use the app in real-world conditions.

Tried the new features?
Have feedback or ideas for what should come next?

Let us know in the comments.
Thanks for being part of the Windy community, and enjoy the holiday update. 🎄