Frequently Asked Questions
Before getting started, please read the User Guide.
General
What is Supercell Wx?
Supercell Wx is a free, open source application to visualize live and archive NEXRAD Level 2 and Level 3 data, and severe weather alerts. It displays continuously updating weather data on top of a responsive map, providing the capability to monitor weather events using reflectivity, velocity, and other products. Extended functionality, including weather reports and lightning data can be added using placefiles.
What do all these products mean? How do I read weather radar? How can I use this to identify and track tornadoes?
Below are some links to get you started:
Your local National Weather Service location may offer both online and in person training sometimes for free! Find your location here.
Installation and Setup
How much does Supercell Wx cost?
Supercell Wx is free and Open Source. Donations are welcome!
Where can I get the latest version?
Will my computer run Supercell Wx?
Minimum requirements:
Windows 10 (1809 or later)
Windows 11
Linux - Arch Linux (EndeavourOS, SteamOS [Steam Deck], and other Arch derivatives) - Fedora Linux 34+ - openSUSE Tumbleweed - Ubuntu 22.04+ - NixOS 25.05+ - Most distributions supporting the GCC Standard C++ Library 11+
macOS - 15.0+ for Intel-based Macs - 14.0+ for Apple silicon-based Macs
OpenGL 3.3
How do I install and set up Supercell Wx?
https://supercell-wx.readthedocs.io/en/stable/getting-started/initial-setup.html
Where can I join the discussion? Where do I report a bug?
What is planned for Supercell Wx? I have a suggestion or feature request.
Roadmap: https://github.com/users/dpaulat/projects/2/views/2
Feature Request: Please check the roadmap on GitHub first. If the feature is not already planned or suggested, you can make a request on Discord.
Help! My map is blank even after I added MapTiler.
Please verify your API key with the mapping service you have selected, or generate a new API key.
How can I contribute?
Head to Developer Setup and Contributing to configure the Supercell Wx development environment for your IDE. Currently Visual Studio and Visual Studio Code are recommended, with other IDEs remaining untested at this time.
Using Supercell Wx
How do I…
Before asking, please read the User Guide.
How do I set my home point?
File > Settings > General > Default Radar Site
How do I show multiple product panels?
File > Settings > General > Grid Width and Grid Height
For example, if you want a 4 pane view, set both the width and height to 2. To choose the product for each pane, click anywhere in that pane and then select a product from the Radar Toolbox navigation.
How do I enable Dark Mode?
File > Settings > General > Theme > Fusion
How do I change the default time zone and format?
File > Settings > Default Clock Mode
How do I see the specific values in a location?
Hold SHIFT and mouse over the location for the value related to the product you have selected.
How can I change the colors of the radar products?
File > Settings > Palettes
For a description of each product type, see https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/products/radar/next-generation-weather-radar. The websites below have some of the most commonly used color palettes.
https://grlevelxusers.com/grlevelx-goodies/categories/color-tables/
https://grx.almanydesigns.com/downloads/ (Color Table Format V3.0+ is not supported)
What are placefiles and where can I find them?
Placefiles provide additional data not provided by NEXRAD that can be overlaid on top of the map. Some placefiles include things like METARs, air temperatures, real time lightning, storm spotter reports, SPC outlooks and Mesoscale information, etc.
Supercell Placefiles: https://placefiles.supercellwx.net/
Placefile Nation: https://placefilenation.com/
An updated list of placefiles is located in the documentation: https://supercell-wx.readthedocs.io/en/stable/user-guide/placefile-manager.html#placefile-resources.