Weather API

From Deep Sky Chile

Deep Sky Chile Weather API User Manual[edit]

The Deep Sky Chile Weather API provides real-time weather and astronomical data, including cloud cover, temperature, wind speed, rain, light levels, seeing conditions, and key astronomical measurements.

Base URL[edit]

The base URL for accessing the API is: http://api.deepskychile.com/weather

Endpoint[edit]

  • GET /weather: Retrieves the current weather and astronomical data, including cloud, rain, light states, seeing, and important astronomical metrics.

Response Format[edit]

The API returns data in JSON format with the following structure: 

{
    "weather": {
        "cloudwatcher": {
            "clouds": <clouds_value>,
            "temp": <temperature_value>,
            "wind": <wind_speed>,
            "gust": <wind_gust>,
            "rain": <rain_value>,
            "light": <light_level>,
            "switch": <switch_state>,
            "safe": <safe_state>,
            "hum": <humidity>,
            "dewp": <dew_point>,
            "cloudsState": "<clouds_state>",
            "rainState": "<rain_state>",
            "lightState": "<light_state>"
        },
        "ninox": {
            "UTC": "<utc_time>",
            "NSBNow": <current_NSB_value>,
            "SunAltitude": <sun_altitude>,
            "MoonAltitude": <moon_altitude>,
            "MoonPhase": <moon_phase>,
            "ZenithGalacticLatitude": <galactic_latitude>,
            "NightBestNSB": <best_NSB_value>,
            "NightBestNSBTime": "<night_best_NSB_time>",
            "NightBestNSBZGL": <night_best_ZGL>,
            "OverallBestNSB": <overall_best_NSB_value>,
            "OverallBestNSBTime": "<overall_best_NSB_time>",
            "OverallBestNSBZGL": <overall_best_ZGL>
        },
        "seeing": {
            "UTC": "<seeing_utc_time>",
            "SeeingValue": <seeing_value>,
            "status": "<seeing_monitor_status>",
            "avgSeeing": <average_seeing>,
            "monitoringSeeingStart": "<seeing_monitoring_start>",
            "minSeeing": <minimum_seeing_since_start>,
            "minSeeingTime": "<minimum_seeing_time>",
            "nightMinSeeing": <minimum_seeing_current_night>,
            "nightMinSeeingTime": "<minimum_seeing_time_current_night>"
        },
        "average": {
            "avgHum": <average_humidity>,
            "avgWind": <average_wind_speed>,
            "avgTemp": <average_temperature>,
            "monitoringStart": "<monitoring_start_date>"
        }
    }
}

Fields[edit]

weather The main object containing weather data from four sources: cloudwatcher, ninox, seeing, and average.

cloudwatcher (General Weather Data)

  • clouds (float): Current sky temperature in degrees Celsius.
  • temp (float): Current temperature in degrees Celsius.
  • wind (float): Wind speed in km/h.
  • gust (float): Wind gust speed in km/h.
  • rain (float): Rain value (unitless).
  • light (float): Ambient light level (unitless).
  • switch (integer): Lock switch status:
 * 1 – Observatories are unlocked.  
 * 0 – Observatories are locked.
  • safe (integer): Safety status:
 * 1 – Safe.  
 * 0 – Unsafe.
  • hum (float): Relative humidity (%).
  • dewp (float): Dew point temperature in degrees Celsius.
  • cloudsState (string):
 * "Clear" – Low cloud cover.  
 * "Cloudy" – Moderate cloud cover.  
 * "Overcast" – High cloud cover or fully covered skies.
  • rainState (string):
 * "Dry" – Rain > 2000.  
 * "Wet" – Rain between 1700 and 2000.  
 * "Raining" – Rain < 1700.
  • lightState (string):
 * "Dark" – Light > 8000.  
 * "Bright" – Light between 6 and 8000.  
 * "Sunny" – Light <= 6.

ninox (Astronomical Data)

  • UTC (string): Current UTC time, format yyyy-mm-dd hh:mm:ss.
  • NSBNow (float): Current sky-brightness (NSB) value; lower is darker.
  • SunAltitude (float): Altitude of the Sun (°).
  • MoonAltitude (float): Altitude of the Moon (°).
  • MoonPhase (float): Moon phase (%).
  • ZenithGalacticLatitude (float): Galactic latitude at zenith (°).
  • NightBestNSB (float): Best NSB value for the current night.
  • NightBestNSBTime (string): Timestamp of NightBestNSB.
  • NightBestNSBZGL (float): Zenith galactic latitude at NightBestNSBTime.
  • OverallBestNSB (float): Best overall NSB recorded.
  • OverallBestNSBTime (string): Timestamp of OverallBestNSB.
  • OverallBestNSBZGL (float): Galactic latitude at OverallBestNSBTime.

seeing (Atmospheric Seeing Conditions)

  • UTC (string): UTC time of the current seeing measurement.
  • SeeingValue (float): Current seeing value in arcseconds (lower = better).
  • status (string): Operational status of the seeing monitor (e.g., "Monitoring", "Idle (Daytime)").
  • avgSeeing (float): Average seeing since monitoring began.
  • monitoringSeeingStart (string): Start timestamp for seeing monitoring (yyyy-mm-dd hh:mm:ss).
  • minSeeing (float): Lowest (best) seeing since monitoringSeeingStart.
  • minSeeingTime (string): Timestamp of minSeeing.
  • nightMinSeeing (float): Best seeing during the current astronomical night.
  • nightMinSeeingTime (string): Timestamp of nightMinSeeing.

average (Averaged Historical Data)

  • avgHum (float): Average humidity (%) since monitoring began.
  • avgWind (float): Average wind speed (km/h) since monitoring began.
  • avgTemp (float): Average temperature (°C) since monitoring began.
  • monitoringStart (string): Start timestamp for historical averages (yyyy-mm-dd hh:mm:ss).

Example Response[edit]

{
    "weather": {
        "cloudwatcher": {
            "clouds": -14.82,
            "temp": 12.09,
            "wind": 3,
            "gust": 3,
            "rain": 5248,
            "light": 57232,
            "switch": 1,
            "safe": 1,
            "hum": 22,
            "dewp": -9,
            "cloudsState": "Clear",
            "rainState": "Dry",
            "lightState": "Dark"
        },
        "ninox": {
            "UTC": "2025-05-24 07:42:47",
            "NSBNow": 21.02,
            "SunAltitude": -48.5,
            "MoonAltitude": -10.7,
            "MoonPhase": 11.42,
            "ZenithGalacticLatitude": -15.9,
            "NightBestNSB": 21.41,
            "NightBestNSBTime": "2025-05-24 00:59:44",
            "NightBestNSBZGL": 32,
            "OverallBestNSB": 21.96,
            "OverallBestNSBTime": "2025-05-17 23:30:55",
            "OverallBestNSBZGL": 23.2
        },
        "seeing": {
            "UTC": "2025-05-24 07:35:03",
            "SeeingValue": 1.22,
            "status": "Idle (Daytime)",
            "avgSeeing": 0.93,
            "monitoringSeeingStart": "2025-05-21 14:04:05",
            "minSeeing": 0.48,
            "minSeeingTime": "2025-05-22 10:22:06",
            "nightMinSeeing": 0.54,
            "nightMinSeeingTime": "2025-05-24 06:20:06"
        },
        "average": {
            "avgHum": 25.22,
            "avgWind": 3.37,
            "avgTemp": 15.26,
            "monitoringStart": "2023-05-24 09:49:02"
        }
    }
}

Error Handling[edit]

If an error occurs while fetching the data, the API will return a generic HTTP error response (e.g., 500 Internal Server Error).

Example Request[edit]

To retrieve the current weather and astronomical data: GET http://api.deepskychile.com/weather

Authentication[edit]

Currently, the API does not require authentication. Any future requirements will be documented here.

Conclusion[edit]

This API provides detailed weather, seeing, and astronomical data to support stargazing, observatory operations, and long-term monitoring at Deep Sky Chile.

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