Visual Crossing just launched a new Weather Maps API that makes it much easier to put high-quality weather visuals onto a map.
If you’ve ever tried to build a weather app, you know the biggest headache isn’t getting the data—it’s turning that raw data into a map that actually looks good and loads quickly. Usually, that requires building a complex “rendering pipeline” from scratch. This new API does that heavy lifting for you.
The Highlights
- Ready-to-Use Tiles: You get pre-made “layers” for things like radar, temperature, wind, and snow. These snap directly onto popular maps like Leaflet, OpenLayers, Mapbox and Google Maps.
- Built for Speed: The map layers are optimized to load instantly, so your users won’t deal with laggy or blurry images while zooming in and out.
- Past, Present, and Future: It doesn’t just show the current radar. You can visualize historical weather patterns or look ahead at upcoming forecasts.
- Simplified Workflow: You can focus on building your app’s features while Visual Crossing handles the difficult math and data processing behind the scenes.
Who is this for?
This represents a significant shift in how businesses visualize weather risk.. For example:
- Insurance: Mapping out hail damage or flood risks for specific neighborhoods.
- Logistics & Shipping: Tracking trucks through a storm.
- Energy & Utilities: Seeing exactly where ice or high winds might hit power lines.
- Agriculture: Monitoring crop conditions across specific fields.
The Weather Maps API is currently in a limited trial phase. You can check out the technical documentation for integration details or request access here to start testing it.
Want to try it out?
The Weather Maps API allows you to focus on your app’s functionality and user experience while Visual Crossing handles the data fusion, normalization, and performance optimization behind the scenes.