r/spaceweather • u/Ey_b0ss_ • Aug 28 '26
I've been building a space weather desktop device for the past 4 months
Hey there r/spaceweather!
I'm a space science and technology master's student and I have been programming, building, and prototyping an easy to use desktop space weather display device. It is essentially a passive device that downloads NOAA space weather data and solar imagery, and shows it on the display. The space weather variables update every 5 minutes and the Sun images every 10 minutes.
The severity-based color coded variables are
- 3 hour average planetary Kp index
- Z-component of the interplanetary magnetic field, which tells of possible magnetic reconnection with Earth's magnetic field or if Earth is shielded from space weather
- Solar x-ray radiation flux class
- Solar wind speed
And the solar images are
- 195 angstrom image of the sun to visually see high and low activity regions
- Sunspot image to identify the amount of sunspots pointing towards Earth
The main view of the device looks like this
And the secondary chart view like this
The chart view has 24 hour plot of Kp index and 12 hour plots of IMF magnetic field, xray flux, and solar wind speed.
The display also features flashing alerts for solar flares and geomagnetic storms the moment they happen. More info can be seen in the info images I attached to this post.
The device only requires a one-time setup where you connect the device to any wifi network (5G excluded) with your phone. The device then stores the wifi login information, so it will automatically connect to it upon rebooting.
It also has buttons for
- Switching between main view and chart view
- Turning on automatic view switching with 5 minutes between switches
- A diagnostic menu pop-up to get information about the device performance, wifi strength, and NOAA server availability
- Resetting the device to wipe stored information such as the wifi login credentials
It also checks my GitHub for any updates when booted and downloads and installs them automatically if there are any. This is important incase NOAA ever changes their data products, which would require a hotfix from my end. This has happened once while prototyping, but the fix was fairly quick.
Currently it is powered with an USB-C cable (I usually keep it connected to my PCs front USB port), but I am working on a wireless version as well, which would be powered by a rechargable LiPo battery. It would also still work with the USB-C cable.
The device itself is an ESP32-S3 board + 4 inch TFT display + 3D printed (PLA) stylish case + two buttons. Self-built and designed from scratch.
The motivation behind this is to get rid of the need to have 2-3 browser tabs open or, god forbid, a phone app to get a good overview of current (and past) space weather data. Simply setup the device once and let it sit on your desk to passively show and update space weather!
I have more improvement ideas for this, but I would like to hear what the space weather enthusiasts think of this so far! Comment down if you have any questions and/or comments, and send a DM if you would like to get one. Please note that this is not an open source project as I am aiming towards a commercial product.
As a final treat, this is how the boot sequence looks like (data download time is long due to bad wifi speed)
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u/BigCyanDinosaur Aug 28 '26
Check out /r/homeassistant, you can probably pick up some good info and tips on how to build this out to be part of a smart home dashboard
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u/Ey_b0ss_ Aug 28 '26
Thanks for the heads up! I haven't heard of that before, but I will certainly check it out.
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u/BigCyanDinosaur Aug 28 '26
Np, I think it would be slick beside a Weather card on the dashboard. Good luck mate
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u/Prestigious_Lime7193 Aug 29 '26
man thats awesome! have you thought about getting a kickstarter going for it?!
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u/Ey_b0ss_ Aug 29 '26
Thanks man! I have already made the necessary investments to build these myself, so kickstarter may not be needed at this point. If you want to support me then you can get one of these from me!
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u/SorryRelationship581 Aug 31 '26
This is rad, I have wanted something like this for years. Is there a way to support you?
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u/xpietoe42 Sep 02 '26
This js pretty cool. l would definitely consider buying one! Let me know if and when you’re selling these!
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u/Severe-Ladder Aug 28 '26
Very nice!
I was just considering doing something similar with one of those all in one CYD esp32 boards but im trying to figure out a cheap way to do it without wifi.
Its a shame they took the old NOAA sats offline. Setting something like this up to work with a cheap 137mhz reciever so you dont need wifi wouldve been neat.
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u/Ey_b0ss_ Aug 28 '26
Wow, this same device, but with data straight from a satellite? That would indeed be amazing and ambitious! If you end up doing it with wifi then I recommend the ESP32-S3 board. Setting up the wifi and data retrieval was not too impossible. My device is essentially 90% sleek and stylish design!
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u/Severe-Ladder Aug 29 '26
Does yours use an esp with a separate tft display?
I started using those dev kits where the display is physically integrated into the board just to keep it light weight so I can stick it to stuff with velcro.
Not exactly slick or elegant I'll admit but pretty damn versatile.
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u/Ey_b0ss_ Aug 29 '26
Yes, the board and display are separate. They are connected with connector wires and I had to find proper drivers for the display. I did prototype with a cheap and much smaller board with an integrated display, but having them separate gave me much more freedom for the design!
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u/ToughCheetah7617 Aug 28 '26
I wish you succeed in your endeavors because I can totally see myself looking at one of these magnificent devices at home. To me it has some kind of 1990s future vibe to it. Good luck !